Genetics

The course main goal is providing the student with the basic knowledge on how genetic information is used to produce the phenotype and inherited through the generations, in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. It also provides information on the structure and changes of the hereditary material from a molecular standpoint, emphasizing the evolutionary implications of those changes. The student will understand the basic principles of population genetics and the role they play in the evolution and differentiation of species.

Students are going to acquire a basic knowledge of the analysis of Mendelian genetic traits and will develop skills in the construction of genetic maps and about the necessary tools to correlate mutations in genes and genomes with effects at the level of the gene product and the phenotype.
Moreover, the student will acquire knowledge concerning the molecular mechanisms leading to mutations and she/he will be able to evaluate the effect of those mutations on the phenotype of an individual and on how they might affect its fitness.