RT Book, Section
A1 Schaefer, G. Bradley
A1 Thompson, Jr., James N.
SR Print(0)
ID 1147722257
T1 The Structure and Function of Genes
T2 Medical Genetics: An Integrated Approach
YR 2017
FD 2017
PB McGraw-Hill Education
PP New York, NY
SN 9780071664387
LK accessmedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1147722257
RD 2024/04/24
AB When  one  thinks  about  the  genetic  makeup  of  a  human,  or  indeed  any  organism,  it  is  natural  to  focus  on  the  protein-coding  genes.  After  all,  that  is  the  part  of  the  genome  that  controls  biochemical  activities  of  cells  and  the  processes  of  growth  and  development.  But  the  protein-coding  genes  whose  function  is  summarized  in  the  "Central  Dogma"  (DNA  ↔  mRNA  →  polypeptide)  account  for  only  about  3%  of  the  DNA  in  a  human  cell.  The  genome  also  contains  a  large  array  of  DNA  sequences  that  have  other  functions  (Figure  4-1)  or  that  perhaps  have  no  function  at  all.  Some  sequences  represent  the  no-longer  functional  copies  of  duplicated  genes,  pseudogenes,  produced  at  an  earlier  time  in  a  species'  history.  In  other  cases,  the  regulatory  functions  of  regions  like  microRNAs  have  only  recently  been  recognized.  Thus,  the  genome  must  be  understood  as  a  package  of  informational,  historical,  and  noncoding  DNA  along  with  regions  that  hold  secrets  that  researchers  continue  to  unravel  with  the  tools  of  molecular  biology.