Summary Of The Video 'Ghost In Your Genes'

The title of the video, “Ghost in your Genes”, is very appropriately titled because it discussed the various appearances of phenotypic differences among organisms with identical genomes. In the mid to late 1900s, scientists were convinced that DNA sequences were solely responsible for every trait evident in organisms. After the human genome experiment, which involved compiling and analyzing genomes of thousands of different people, it was determined that humans have around 25,000 genes, far fewer than plants. This is a peculiar number because humans are much more complex than plants, so it would be expected that they would have more complex genetic material. In the years following this experimentation, anomalies emerged. Fraternal twins, …show more content…
Epigenetics are responsible for the “ghost” of the genome, enabling organisms identical by genotype to differ significantly in phenotype. It is referred to as a ghost because it was previously undetectable, and therefore mysterious. One important experiment to epigenetics involved a gene in mice that tell their body when to stop eating. In a mouse that is yellow and fat, the gene is turned off by the epigenome, whereas in a brown skinny mouse the gene is turned on. Interestingly, when the fat mouse was only allowed to eat extremely nutritional food, it bore only pups with the gene turned on. This is evidence of maternal actions affecting an offspring’s phenotype, contrary to the old belief that genes were passed down generations regardless of their health/life choices. This concept is important not only in analyzing biological properties, but also in parenthood. It we must take care of ourselves in order to keep the best interest of our children and grandchildren in mind. Therefore, the epigenome is crucial to our genome, but we still haven’t found what makes the “ghost” do what it