• Question: What interests you most about DNA and genes?

    Asked by anon-220761 to Ross on 17 Jun 2019.
    • Photo: Ross Hill

      Ross Hill answered on 17 Jun 2019:

      Hello Lucy,

      Interesting question!

      Firstly, DNA is the molecule of life, it encodes all the information to make us and ALL other life in the universe (that we know of!). So what better molecule to study than DNA?

      Secondly, lots of human diseases are due to mutations (changes to the DNA). So by studying how DNA is damaged and repaired I can begin to understand why some people are born with rare disease or develop cancer when they get older.

      Also, changes to DNA can often result in genetic diversity within species, and it is this diversity which is essential for natural selection.

      So understanding how DNA is damaged and repaired has HUGE applications, from developing new medicines to understanding how life evolved.

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