2006 National DNA Day Online Chatroom Transcript
This is just one question from an archive of the National DNA Day Moderated Chat held in April 2006. The NHGRI Director and many genomics experts from across NHGRI took questions from students, teachers and the general public on topics ranging from basic genomic research, to the genetic basis of disease, to ethical questions about genetic privacy.
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Is it possible for DNA to mutate on its own?
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Les Biesecker, M.D.: It is not only possible, it is essentially universal. Every offspring has a number of genetic differences when compared to their parents. This is how genetic variation is generated. Most such variations are harmless or cause no recognizable effect. A small number do. Sometimes the recognizable effects occur in the first holder of the mutation (whom we call the "founder") or sometimes the recognizable effects are later recognized in their descendents. |
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