Epigenetic characteristics

Epigenetic characteristics are as follows:

Phenotype, also known as traits, refers to the traits or characteristics that can be observed by organisms (or cells) and is the result of the interaction between specific genotypes and the environment. Including the shape and function of individuals, such as height, skin color, blood type, enzyme activity, drug tolerance and even personality.

Classical genetics refers to the change of gene sequence (such as gene mutation, etc.) leading to the change of gene function. ), which leads to the hereditary change of phenotype; On the other hand, epigenetics refers to the heritable change of gene function without changing the DNA sequence of the gene, which eventually leads to phenotypic changes.

It has always been believed that genomic DNA determines all phenotypes of organisms, but it is gradually found that some phenomena can not be explained by classical genetic theory, such as identical twins with identical genes, who will have great differences in personality and health after growing up in the same environment.

This shows that some phenotypes of organisms have changed, but the DNA sequence has not changed. Therefore, scientists put forward the concept of epigenetics, which is a frontier discipline gradually developed in the process of studying many life phenomena that are inconsistent with classical genetics. It is a concept corresponding to classical genetics.

Now people think that the genome contains two kinds of genetic information, one is genetic information in the traditional sense, that is, genetic information provided by genomic DNA sequence, and the other is epigenetic information, that is, modification of genomic DNA, which provides instructions on when, where and how to apply DNA genetic information.