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What are genetics? How are they relevant to COVID-19?
Introduction:
Throughout consumer publications, genetics are portrayed as a holy grail of clinical medicine. While health outcomes area bit more complicated than this singular topic, it has demonstrated clear associations with some diseases. In this article, I will be providing an easy to understand description of genetics for those without a science background. Given the urgency of the COVID-19 pandemic, I will then provide a brief review of how genetics are relevant to the pandemic.
What is genetics?
Genetics is the study of DNA and its products. Think about it like looking at several generations of family members. A grandparent is like DNA. Grandparents got together and produced parents, the RNA. The parents then got together and produced children, proteins. DNA is used to produce RNA that is used to produce proteins.
Why study genetics?
Genetics is useful to research because it can be used to better understand what contributes to human health, like how you would likely need to talk to a grandparent to better understand your ancestry. As one quickly learns, knowing who your…
