Gene Therapy
...in the body. A series of coded instructions are inscribed in its nucleus to coordinate its operations. The cell continuously reads and interprets instructions to carry out its functions. These instructions are called genes. Genes are elements of hereditary elements that a transferred from parents to offspring during reproduction and determine the inherited traits of the offspring (Romanuik, 2004). They are composed of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) that can be passed down and inherited from one generation to the next. DNA is a sequence of nucleotide bases, whose sequences carry the information required for constructing proteins which is critical for determining the properties of an organism. But how is it, exactly, that a gene is able to carry out all these functions?
Genetics is defined as the study of genes, how genes produce characteristics and how the characteristics are inherited (Hartl & Jones, 2005). Genetics involves studies on how cell's genetic material affects what goes on inside our body. There are several researches going on in the field of genetics to understand and manipulate our genes in order to improve health conditions. One of the many fields in Genetics involved in improving health conditions through gene manipulation is gene therapy. It would be discussed in detail in this paper.
Introduction to Gene Therapy
Gene therapy is a rapidly growing and promising field of medical research that involves the use of genes as medicine to fight against diseases and also prevent the development of diseases. This procedure does not involve the use of any form of medicine in terms of drugs and surgery. Gene therapy is defined as the transfer of therapeutic genes into specific cells of an individual in order to repair a faulty or absent gene which is responsible for the disease (Centre for Genetics Education, 2004; Hecht 2004). It could be simply...
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