Template:Introduction to genetics glossary
A long molecule that looks like a twisted ladder. It is made of four types of simple units and the sequence of these units carries information, just as the sequence of letters carries information on a page.
A package for carrying DNA in the cells. They contain a single long piece of DNA that is wound up and bunched together into a compact structure. Different species of plants and animals have different numbers and sizes of chromosomes.
A segment of DNA. Genes are like sentences made of the "letters" of the nucleotide alphabet, between them genes direct the physical development and behavior of an organism. Genes are like a recipe or instruction book, providing information that an organism needs so it can build or do something - like making an eye or a leg, or repairing a wound.
The different forms of a given gene that an organism may possess. For example, in humans, one allele of the eye-color gene produces green eyes and another allele of the eye-color gene produces brown eyes.
When people change an organism by adding new genes, or deleting genes from its genome.
An event that changes the sequence of the DNA in a gene.