Modification of genetic information

A retrovirus is a virus that inserts a DNA copy of its RNA genome into the DNA of a host cell that it invades, thus changing the genome of that cell. After invading a host cell's cytoplasm, the virus uses its own reverse transcriptase enzyme to produce DNA from its RNA genome, the reverse of the usual pattern, thus retro (backward). The new DNA is then incorporated into the host cell genome by an integrase enzyme, at which point the retroviral DNA is referred to as a provirus. The host cell then treats the viral DNA as part of its own genome, transcribing and translating the viral genes along

semiparasitic DNA sequence, a major fraction of eukaryotic genomes

cellular process

production of offspring with combinations of traits that differ from those found in either parent

planned genetic alteration of a cell by uptake of genetic material from the environment

movement of genetic material between organisms other than by transmission from parent to offspring

phenomenon that results in unusual rearrangement of chromosomes

mutation that removes a part of a DNA sequence

transfer of genetic information to a bacterium from a bacteriophage, or between bacterial or yeast cells, mediated by a phage vector

natural genetic exchange of bacteria

duplication of a gene sequence within a genome

mutation of a single gene

reordering of genes in a DNA-sequence

DNA recombination process

genetic point mutation that results in an amino acid change in a protein

point mutation in a sequence of DNA that results in a premature stop codon, or a nonsense codon in the transcribed mRNA, and in a truncated, incomplete, and usually nonfunctional protein product

point mutation where a codon is substituted with another codon that encodes the same amino acid

in genetics, loss of one allele at a specific locus, caused by a deletion mutation; or loss of a chromosome from a chromosome pair, resulting in abnormal hemizygosity

DNA recombination process that results in the unidirectional transfer of genetic material from a donor sequence to a highly homologous acceptor

Recombinases are genetic recombination enzymes.

thumb|163x163px|Paramutation was first observed by the effect it had on the color of corn kernels in maize plants In epigenetics, a paramutation is an interaction between two alleles at a single locus, whereby one allele induces a heritable change in the other allele. The change may be in the pattern of DNA methylation or histone modifications. The allele inducing the change is said to be paramutagenic, while the allele that has been epigenetically altered is termed paramutable. A paramutable allele may have altered levels of gene expression, which may continue in offspring which inherit that

chromosome abnormality involving a change in the structure of the native chromosome

repair of a replication-born double-strand DNA break in which the DNA molecule is repaired using the homologous sequence of the sister chromatid as template

the result of gene fusion