Anay Gupta, a student of Grade 10, has won a partial scholarship of 10% to take part in summer programs at Oxford, Cambridge and LSE through the Immerse Education Essay Competition 2022.<\/p>
The Immerse Education Essay Competition provides students aged between 13 and 18 with the opportunity to submit essays related to their chosen subject. Anay presented his essay with \u2018Do humans own their own genetic information?\u2019 as the prompt.<\/p>
Anay\u2019s essay stood out amongst the other entries by bringing forward well formulated and clearly expressed thoughts on his chosen subject. We are proud of your achievement, Anay. Best of luck for all future endeavours!<\/p>
\u00a0<\/p>
IMMERSE ESSAY COMPETITION\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p> Question: <\/strong>Do Humans own their own genetic information?<\/p> Subject: <\/strong>Biology<\/p> Age Group: <\/strong>16-18 years<\/p> THE ESSAY:<\/p> It is accepted worldwide that apes, who lived on trees, were the modern man\u2019s ancestors. The traits of\u00a0 those precursor apes were passed on from generation-to-generation, as they kept on reproducing.\u00a0 There is limited evidence on how they and the other early humans did the same, but that evidence\u00a0 suggests that they, like the modern-day humans, underwent the procedure of coitus. One plaque from\u00a0 the \u00c7atalh\u00f6y\u00fck archaeological site, on its one side depicted two such prehistoric figures embracing \u00a0each other and that very plaque displayed a mother and her child on its other side. Certain variations are seen in these traits so-passed, which, in actuality are the causes of remarkable differences between\u00a0 the apes and the modern man.<\/p> These genetic variations are corollaries of changes within the genome \u2013 the genetic part and inter genetic spaces (chromosomes inclusive) of individuals. There can be additions and deletions of\u00a0 genetic components, which can change a large segment of the DNA macromolecule. Nucleotides (recurring units of DNA) of the chromosomes passed on by the parent can undergo point mutation, in\u00a0 which, a single pair of the nitrogenous bases is altered. That particular nucleotide can end up getting\u00a0 deleted, or being replaced in position with another nucleotide. Inversion and Translocations of\u00a0 Chromosomes are other examples of such genomic changes.<\/p> An inversion occurs when a chromosome breaks in two places, after which, the resulting piece of \u00a0DNA is reversed and re-inserted into the chromosome. Genetic material may or may not be lost as a \u00a0result of the chromosomal breakage. A translocation occurs when a piece of one chromosome breaks\u00a0 off and attaches to another chromosome. Unbalance during translocation can cause gain and loss of\u00a0 genetic material, causing variations. These variations occur in such a manner that the progeny become\u00a0 more suited for survival, and has some genetic advantage, causing human evolution to continue on the\u00a0 path of life. The principle of \u201cthe survival of the fittest\u201d, originating from the Darwin\u2019s Theory of\u00a0 Evolution, is seen. This axiom helps us to understand better how the leaf-eating primitive apes, who\u00a0 lived on trees, were replaced on the planet by the modern man. It certainly states that the offspring has reproductive benefits, which in itself is responsible for mankind\u2019s development.<\/p> To sum up, we, as humans, have genetic information, which is both- partially ours and someone\u00a0 else\u2019s. We can be given the credit to be the \u201cowners\u201d of our own chromosomal constitution, because\u00a0 the changes, to which it was subject, always take place within us. These changes are different for\u00a0 every human, through which, the genetic constitution varies among each person, making him unique.\u00a0 Our ancestry, though, should also relinquish the title of such \u201cowners\u201d, because it is their features,\u00a0 which, in spite of changing almost completely, are endemic to our body.<\/p> BIBLIOGRAPHY <\/strong><\/p> WEBSITE LINKS<\/u><\/p> Ku, C., Loy, E., Salim, A. et al. <\/em>The discovery of human genetic variations and their use as disease \u00a0markers: past, present and future. J Hum Genet <\/em>55, <\/strong>403\u2013415 (2010).<\/p> https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1038\/jhg.2010.55<\/u><\/p> National Library of Medicine 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894. U.S. Department of Health \u00a0and Human Services. National Institutes of Health. <\/strong>\u201cCan changes in the structure of chromosomes \u00a0affect health and development?\u201d. Last updated and Reviewed: 10th <\/sup>May 2021 https:\/\/medlineplus.gov\/genetics\/understanding\/mutationsanddisorders\/structuralchanges\/ <\/u><\/p> National Library of Medicine<\/u> 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894 U.S. Department of Health<\/u> and Human Services<\/u> National Institutes of Health<\/u>. \u201cHow are gene variants involved in evolution?\u201d.\u00a0 Last updated and reviewed: 5th <\/sup>August, 2021.<\/p> https:\/\/medlineplus.gov\/genetics\/understanding\/mutationsanddisorders\/evolution\/<\/u><\/p> National Institutes of Health, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, Maryland 20892. U.S Department of\u00a0 Health and Human Services. \u201cPoint Mutation\u201d. 20 October,2009.<\/p> https:\/\/www.genome.gov\/genetics-glossary\/Point-Mutation<\/u><\/p> ONLINE DICTIONARY: Oxford University Press, Oxford University, Oxford OX1 2JD, United\u00a0 Kingdom. \u201cThe Oxford English Dictionary\u201d. 2021.<\/p> https:\/\/languages.oup.com\/research\/oxford-english-dictionary\/<\/u><\/p> The Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company. \u201cHow Did Humans Figure out that Sex Makes\u00a0 Babies.\u201d 10 January, 2013.<\/p> https:\/\/slate.com\/technology\/2013\/01\/when-did-humans-realize-sex-makes-babies-evolution-of reproductive-consciousness-of-the-cause-of-pregnancy.html <\/u><\/p> BOOKS<\/u><\/p> Vishnoi, H.S; Fernandez, Mary; Srivastava, Preeti; Selina Publishers Pvt. Ltd, 4725\/21-A, Dayanand\u00a0 Marg, Daryaganj, New Delhi. Concise Biology Class 10- ISCE. November 2020.<\/p> Oxford University. Pocket Oxford Dictionary (Eighth Edition). Oxford OX1 2JD, United Kingdom.\u00a0 1984. [Address taken in from Wikipedia]<\/p> YOUTUBE VIDEOS<\/u><\/p> OnHow. \u201cHow To Find When a Website Was Published.\u201d 26 June, 2021.<\/p> https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=xinD9yYmHjM<\/u><\/p> HelenaCollegeLibrary. \u201cHow to cite a Website in APA Style.\u201d 15 January, 2016. https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=RIkZu92J_pg&t=29s<\/u><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Anay Gupta, a student of Grade 10, has won a partial scholarship of 10% to take part in summer programs at Oxford, Cambridge and LSE through the Immerse Education Essay Competition 2022.The Immerse Education Essay Competition provides students aged between 13 and 18 with the opportunity to submit essays related to their chosen subject. Anay…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":8216,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n