• Question: why do you like genes

    Asked by wengan to Adam, Joanna, Louise S, Louise W, Marcus on 12 Nov 2012.
    • Photo: Adam Paige

      Adam Paige answered on 12 Nov 2012:

      DNA is pretty amazing. How this molecule that is so tiny, wrapped up in the nucleus of each of our cells, and made out of only four building blocks (A, C, G and T), is still able to provide every instruction our body needs in order to build a human and make it do everything we are capable of.

      I found it so exciting trying to understand how our DNA works, what switches the genes on and off, how does it protect itself from damage, how does it copy itself into every new cell in our body, and how does it build a new person. As soon as I started learning genetics at university I knew that is what I wanted to work on. And I still enjoy working in this area of science.

    • Photo: Louise Walkin

      Louise Walkin answered on 12 Nov 2012:

      Adam is right! It’s amazing how much information the DNA actually contains. Understanding someone’s genes gives us so much information! 🙂

    • Photo: Louise Stanley

      Louise Stanley answered on 12 Nov 2012:

      I find it amazing that a simple mistake such as the replacement of one nucleotide for another (e.g A instead of C) can predispose someone to cancer or can cause muscular dystrophy. Some small errors can have huge consequences.

    • Photo: Joanna Giles

      Joanna Giles answered on 12 Nov 2012:

      Genes are AMAZING! If you look around at all the different people around you every day, and how different all these people look from one another – it is mind blowing that they actually share 99.9% of their DNA but can look so different!

      Tiny differences at the genetic level can make huge differences in the end and this fascinates me!

      What do you think?

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