For this lesson, let's take a look at the uses of Genetics and Heredity in our daily life.

Did you know that Heredity can be seen in our blood type?

Scroll down to find out how...

What are Blood Types?

Every living human has blood in their body, flowing through their veins. Howeverm this blood is not the same for all humans. Each person possesses one of the four blood types that humans have,. You may have one type, and a friend may have another type, but altogether, there are four different types of blood. The four types are called A, B, AB and O.

Your blood type is determined before you were born, when your received one gene from your father and one from your mother which then combined to decide your blood type. The genes tell the cell to produce proteins called agglutinogens which are found in your blood.. Different genes tell the body to produce different types of agglutinogens, and thus there are four differemt blood types based on the type of agglutinogens present in the blood..

Mendel's pea plant's height gene had only two versions, T and t, but there are threee versions of the blood type gene in humans : A, B and O. Some pea plants had a combination of T and t, and had the combination (Tt). In the same way, everybody has two blood type genes, and there are six possible combinations; AA, BB, OO, AB, AO, and BO..

Why is knowing my blood type so important?

The most important thing about blood is that it keeps us alive, and also that it is determined by genes from your parents, thus making it part of the process of Heredity. Blood types cannot mix and therefore, people with different blood types cannot share blood, or cannot donate blood to each other, as the blood will be rejected, and the person may die because the two different blood types reject each other.

When people lose a lot of blood after accidents or delivery of a baby, blood is taken from other people to help keep that person alive. The blood is from blood donors, who donate blood in their body to help those people who have lost a lot of blood and are in danger of dying. However, at this time, it is important to know which blood type the paitient is. If the blood type of the paitient and the donor is different, the paitient's body will reject the new blood and he or she may die. Therefore, it is important to know what your blood type is. Also, there are many generous people who donate their blood to save other people. Ask your parents if they are blood donors, and listen to their experiences. A healthy person who donates blood will not become a lot weaker because he is healthy and can produce more blood, unlike those who are injured. Try to find out more, and become a blood donor when you grow up!

Since Genes are able to control what characteristics people possess, scientists who study Biology and Genetics (Biologists and Geneticists), are also trying to find ways to use Genetics to cure people from illness, and remove certain unwanted characteristics. For example, Obesity (Overweightness).

Furthermore, scientists have noticed that the bodies of some people and even some animals produce certain chemicals and proteins which have some effects, like making them immune to some diseases, or giving them a certain appearance. However, other people do not have these chemicals. Scientists discovered that only certain people produce these chemicals because only certain people have the Genes in their body which tell their body to produce these chemicals. However, sometimes people who are sick require these chemicals to make them immune to the sickness, but cannot produce it. Scientists then take the gene to produce the immunity protein from a person who has it and make copies of it (clone it). Therefore, they are able to create enough of this gene and protein to give to the sick person to recover. Genetics can therefore be used to create a type of medicine, and thus cure and help people. This process is known as Gene Therapy and scientists believe that this method may in the future, be able to cure incurable diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s Disease, Down’s Syndrome, hemophilia, and sickle-cell anemia. Many people would then be able to avoid these deadly diseases and live a long and happy life!