Description
Genetics is the study of how genes bring about characteristics, or traits, in living things and how those characteristics are inherited. Genes are specific sequences of nucleotides that code for particular proteins. Through the processes of meiosis and sexual reproduction, genes are transmitted from one generation to the next. Mendel’s work on pea plants established the principles of gene transmission from parents to offspring that form the foundation for the science of Genetics. Because the principles established by Mendel form the basis for genetics, the science is often referred to as Mendelian genetics. It is also called Classical genetics and differs from Molecular genetics that investigates the chemical and physical nature of genes and the mechanisms by which genes control development, growth and physiology.
Course Contents
Extensions of Mendelian Analysis: Variations on dominance, multiple alleles, lethal alleles, several genes affecting the same character, penetrance and expressivity.
Linkage I: Basic Eukaryotic Chromosome Mapping : The discovery of linkage, recombination, linkage symbolism, linkage of genes on the X chromosome, linkage maps, three-point testcross, interference, linkage mapping by recombination in humans,
Linkage II: Special Eukaryotic Chromosome Mapping Techniques: Accurate calculation of large map distances, analysis of single meiosis, mitotic segregation and recombination, mapping human chromosomes.
Recombination in Bacteria and their Viruses: Bacterial chromosome, bacterial conjugation, bacterial recombination and mapping the E.coli chromosome, bacterial transformation, bacteriophage genetics, transduction, mapping of bacterial chromosomes, bacterial gene transfer.
The Structure of DNA: DNA: The genetic material, DNA replication in eukaryotes, DNA and the gene.
The Nature of the Gene: How genes work, gene- protein relationships, genetic observations explained by enzyme structure, genetic fine structure, mutational sites, complementation.
DNA Function: Transcription, translation, the genetic code, protein synthesis, universality of genetic information transfer, eukaryotic RNA.
The Extranuclear Genome: Variegation in leaves of higher plants, cytoplasmic inheritance in fungi, extranuclear genes in chlamydomonas, mitochrondrial genes in yeast, extra genomic plasmids in eukaryotes.
Developmental Genetics: Gene Regulation and Differentiation, Crown gall disease in plants, cancer as a developmental genetic disease.
Population Genetics: Gene frequencies, conservation of gene frequencies, equilibrium, Hardy-Weinberg law, factors affecting gene equilibrium.
Course Aim
This course aims to develop understanding about core concepts of genetics
Student learning outcomes/ learning objectives
By the end of Genetics I, student should be able to:
- Differentiate Mendelian genetics from Molecular genetics
- Perform monohybrid and dihybrid crosses in eukaryotes, solving problems in incomplete dominance, multiple alleles, sex linkage and epistasis
- Explain recombination in bacteria and viruses
- Map genes by 3-point test crosses
- Understand the structure and nature of DNA and gene based on central dogma that DNA
is a template for making RNA, which encodes the order of amino acids in proteins - Understand the various patterns of inheritance associated with extranuclear genomes
- Distinguish between developmental and population genetics
Assessment methodology
This is a three-credit lecture course
Mid Term Exam 30 Marks
Final Term Marks 45 Marks
Practical Exam 15 Marks
Sessional (Attendance, assignment & presentation) 10 Marks
Readings
Concepts of Genetics Global Edition by Klug, William S. Cummings, Michael R. Spencer, Charlotte A. Michael A. Palladino (Eleventh Edition). Pearson Education Limited, 2016.
Genetics: A conceptual approach by Pierce, B. A.. W. H. Freeman and Company, New York, 2005.
Essentials of Genetics, Global Edition by William S. Klug, Michael R. Cummings, Charlotte A. Spencer, Michael A. Palladino (Ninth Edition) Pearson Education Limited, 2016.
Analysis of Genes and Genomes by Richard J. Reece. John Wiley & Sons, Limited, 2004.
