Gene-silencing Sentence Examples

Homozygous refers to the state or condition that occurs when an individual inherits the same DNA sequence for a certain gene from both biological parents. When a particular gene has identical alleles (versions) of chromosomes inherited from both parents, the gene is homozygous. A homozygous trait is referred to by two capital letters (XX) for a dominant trait, and two lowercase letters (xx) for a recessive trait.

Genotype and phenotype are two fundamental terms in the science of genetics. The two terms are often used at the same time to describe the same organism, but there is a difference between genotype and phenotype:

• An organism’s genotype is the set of genes in its DNA responsible for a particular trait.
• An organism’s phenotype is the physical expression of those genes.

For example, two mice that look virtually identical could have different genotypes. But if they have visibly different traits - say, one has white fur and the other has black fur - then they have different phenotypes.