When is a baby’s genetic make-up decided?

A baby’s genetic make-up is decided right from the time when the egg is fertilized. A very important part of cell division involves the nucleus. Each nucleus contains two sets of genes. One came originally from the person’s father and one from the mother. So before a cell divides, both sets of genes are copied. This is termed DNA replication. Each new offspring cell then receives a full double set of gens, one from the father and one from the mother.

Every human body gets half its genes from each parent, therefore it inherits some of the features of both the mother and the father. This is why all kinds of characteristics, for example height, run in families.

However, every human body has its own unique physical circumstances, such as the food we eat, our environment and the illnesses that we catch.

We also each have our own behavioral and mental development. So we inherit a mix of physical features from our parents, but also we are all individual and unique.

Fact File:

A long thread or axon extends from the body of a neurone, and it is along this that the nerve impulses are carried.

 

Picture Credit : Google