Blog 7

Write about a genetic disease that runs in your family.

Type 2 Diabetes runs in my family.

Symptoms:
Tiredness, increased urination, thirst, weight loss, blurred vision, frequent infections, slow wound healing, asymptomatic

Treatment:
Sometimes gastric surgery, lifestyle/medication treatment for remission, physical exercise, healthy weight loss, diet control

Genetics:
You can inherit a predisposition to the disease. Usually something in the environment will trigger it. Obesity tends to run in the family and they have similar eating/exercising habits.

Reference:
http://www.diffen.com/difference/Type_1_Diabetes_vs_Type_2_Diabetes
http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/genetics-of-diabetes.html

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Blog 6

Write an explanation of dominant and recessive alleles.

     The alleles determine what trait the organism has. A gene typically has 2 alleles. They are categorized into dominant and recessive alleles.
     The dominant allele is represented with a capital letter, for example, B. It produces the same phenotype whether its paired allele is identical or different. For example, if the phenotype of an organism is BB or Bb, it will have the trait of the dominant allele.
     The recessive allele is represented with a lower case letter, for example, b. It produces the same phenotype only when it is paired with another recessive allele. If an organism has phenotype bb, it will have the trait of the recessive allele.

Blog 5

If animals were capable of regeneration, how would it affect the ecosystem?

If animals were able to regenerate, the ecosystem would not be at equilibrium. There would be too many animals in the world if they couldn't die easily. The world would be overrun by animals. When there are too many animals, there wouldn't be enough food and resources to feed them all. This would lead to no more plants and starvation for every species, except for those who are carnivorous. They would have plentiful of food. There would be more prey than predators, rather than an equal amount.

Gattaca

Do you think a community like Gattaca is good or bad? Why?

        A community like Gattaca is bad because it is discrimination. Although someone's genes can predict diseases that are at high risk, genes usually do not prevent people from doing what "normal" people do. Someone with "bad" genes has as much potential as someone with "good" genes. It is a matter of effort, not genes! Genetic discrimination is as unethical as any other type of discrimination and racism. Just like with racism, even though the colored people were looked down upon, they have proven in society that they have the ability to do what white people can do. With genes, it should not matter if someone has an increased risk of a type of disease.

Ch. 10: Reproduction

Define reproduction.

        The formal definition of reproduction is the process of producing again. In science, reproduction is when a male's sperm fertilizes a female's egg to make a baby. Two haploid cells join together to make a zygote. The nuclei of both cells fuse and join both of the parents' genetic information. This creates genetic diversity. The baby's traits depend on both parents. There could be many possibilities because there could be many genes that affect one trait. In a gene, there is a dominant and recessive allele. Usually, a Punnett square is used to predict the outcome of the trait in the baby.

Should we be able to know our genomes?

Should we be able to know our genomes?

        We should be able to know our genomes because it could help with finding problems in our body. When we know our genomes, we could easily detect any problems or disease that we have. Knowledge about our genomes could also be used to predict any diseases that we might have in the future, along with medication that we should not take. Genomes could also allow us to find out about our ancestry. In the long term, genome sequencing could assist us in understanding how mutations cause or influence disease.

Career: Genetic Counseling

 Genetic Counseling

Education and Training:

To become a genetic counselor, you must obtain a Master's degree in Genetic Counseling from an ACGC Accredited program. After all the requirements are met, you must apply for the Certification Exam. Then you have to apply to get into a training program. Training involves coursework, clinical experiences, research opportunities, and internships.

Salary:

Genetic counselors typically earn $49,038-$92,349 annually.

1-4 years experience: $48,778 - $71,789

5+ years experience:  $48,892 and $79,182

References:

http://education-portal.com/articles/Genetic_Counseling_Jobs_Salaries_Duties_and_Requirements.html

http://genetics.emory.edu/gc_training/

http://www.abgc.net/Certification/become_a_genetic_counselor.asp