of Naples, Italy
Thematic Network
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University Federico II of Naples, Italy |
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European Chemistry Thematic Network |
CONTENTS | Comments and contacts | Credits |
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How are the characteristics of individuals (blond or dark, tall or short, male or female, etc…) passed on from parents to their offspring? What determines which traits we inherit? In other words, how can genetic heredity be transmitted from one generation to the next?The biological inheritance that the parents leave to their children contains a random and unpredictable selection from the genetic characters of both parents. |
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The genetic heritage of any living organism is constituted of thousands of characters. The precise sequence of such characters makes up the unique characteristics of every individual.
The total genetic information is like a huge encyclopedia, constituted by hundreds of volumes. Each page contains thousands of characters.
The molecules that carry and transmit this big amount of information are known as nucleic acids.
There are two kinds of nucleic acids: deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA).