Each of the body's 50,000 to 100,000 genes contains the code for a specific product, typically, a protein such as an enzyme. A subunit of DNA or RNA, consisting of one chemical base plus a phosphate molecule and a sugar molecule. Surgery to remove the breasts of women at high risk of developing breast cancer is known as prophylactic mastectomy. The sequence of the amino acids and thus the function of the protein is determined by the sequence of the base pairs in the gene that encodes it. Proteins are essential to the structure, function, and regulation of the body.
Examples are hormones, enzymes, and antibodies.
Autosomal recessive disorders develop in persons who receive two copies of the mutant gene, one from each parent who is a carrier. Each mature reproductive cell carries a single set of 23 chromosomes. The several classes of RNA molecules play important roles in protein synthesis and other cell activities. The mRNA then carries this information to the cytoplasm, where it serves as the blueprint for the manufacture of a specific protein. This process takes place in the cytoplasm, on structures called ribosomes.