Overview of the Importance of DNA

1575 Words4 Pages

Discoveries in DNA, cell biology, evolution, and biotechnology have been among the major achievements in biology over the past 200 years with accelerated discoveries and insight’s over the last 50 years. Consider the progress we have made in these areas of human knowledge. Present at least three of the discoveries you find to be the most important and describe their significance to society, heath, and the culture of modern life. DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is a self-replicating molecule or material present in nearly all living organisms as the main constituent in chromosomes. It encodes the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and many viruses. Simply put, DNA contains the instructions needed for an organism to develop, survive and reproduce. The discovery and use of DNA has seen many changes and made great progress over many years. James Watson was a pioneer molecular biologist who is credited, along with Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins, with discovering the double helix structure of the DNA molecule. The three won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1962 for their work (Bagley, 2013). Scientist use the term “double helix” to describe DNA’s winding, two-stranded chemical structure. This shape looks much like a twisted ladder and gives the DNA the power to pass along biological instructions with great precision. The scientific and medical progress of DNA as been emense, from involving the identification of our genes that trigger major diseases or the creation and manufacture of drugs to treat these diseases. DNA has many significant uses to society, health and culture of today. One important area of DNA research is that used for genetic and medical research. Our abi... ... middle of paper ... ...rom http://www.dnaforensic.org/index.html. What is Biotechnology?. (n.d.). In BIO. Retrieved December 29, 2013, from http://www.bio.org/node/517. Clean Air and Water, Green Products. (April 20, 2009). In BIO. Retrieved December 29, 2013, from http://www.bio.org/node/517. ALCOR. (2013). Cryonics. In Alcor Life Extension Foundation. Retrieved December 30, 2013, from http://www.alcor.org/. Wolf, A. (2011). What is cryonics?. In Institute for Evidence-Based Cryonics. Retrieved December 30, 2013, from http://www.evidencebasedcryonics.org/what-is-cryonics/. Watson, S. (2013). How Cryonics Works. In Science How Stuff Works. Retrieved December 29, 2013, from http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/genetic/cryonics2.htm Best, B. (n.d.). Cryonics − Frequently Asked Questions. In Ben Best. Retrieved December 30, 2013, from http://www.benbest.com/cryonics/CryoFAQ.html#_VD_.

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