Genotype

The term genotype refers to the genetic structure of a cell, an organism, or an individual. A common application of this term is in the case of the specific allele makeup of the individual, usually with the reference to a specific characteristic taken under consideration. In the human CFTR gene, which is responsible for encoding a protein that transports chloride ions across the cell membranes can be dominant (which means that it is the normal version of the gene) or recessive (which means that it is the mutated version of the gene). Individuals that have two recessive alleles of the human CFTR gene will be diagnosed with cystic fibrosis.

Genotype is closely related to the genomic sequence, but there are subtle differences between the two. The term genomic sequence refers to the absolute measure of base composition of an individual, or a representative of a specific species or group. The term genotype, on the other hand, refers to the measurement of an individual organism differs within a group of other individuals or a species.

The difference between genotype and phenotype is often encountered in the study of family patterns for particular hereditary diseases or conditions, such as in the case of hemophilia. There are two alleles for any given genes, especially in humans and most animals. These alleles can be of the same variety (homozygous) or of different ones (heterozygous) depending on the individual of interest. With a dominant allele, the offspring can be expected to inherit the trait in question, regardless of the second allele. In the case of a recessive allele, such as in the case of albinism, the phenotype depends on the other allele.

This category contains scientific information on genotype, the genetic structure of a cell, an organism, or an individual.