Chromosomes
ILLUSTRATION - LIVING WORLD 2021
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The chromosome is the highly compacted structure of the DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid) molecule containing the genetic information, i.e. the blueprint for the construction of living beings. The chromosomes shown here are human chromosomes. In humans, a total of 46 chromosomes contain this genetic information. In the form of little sticks stuck together, we receive half of this genetic information from our biological mother and the other half from our biological father. These chromosomes are made up of 1.5% of the genes that code | design for the construction of living beings. The remaining 98.5% is mainly composed of other essential information, known as non-coding information: regulatory sequences, for example, which partly regulate the coding regions. Malfunctions and diseases can occur when mutations occur in the chromosomes or when their number is abnormally low or, on the contrary, excessive. Although their number, composition, length, complexity, etc. vary from species to species, chromosomes are shared by all living things, from bacteria to plants to humans.
