Genetics Essentials

​Benjamin Pierce - received a B.S. in Biology from Southern Methodist University and a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado. Ben is currently Professor of Biology and holder of the Lillian Nelson Pratt Chair at Southwestern University, Georgetown, TX. He is a population geneticist who conducts ecological and evolutionary research on amphibians. Ben has authored a number of articles in research journals and several books, including: The Family Genetics Sourcebook, a guide to genetics for the layperson; Genetics: A Conceptual Approach, a general genetics textbook; Genetics Essentials: Concepts and Connections, a brief genetics textbook; and Transmission and Population Genetics: A Short Course, a textbook for courses in transmission and population genetics.

1. Introduction to Genetics.- 2. Chromosomes and Cellular Reproduction.- 3. Basic Principles of Heredity.- 4. Extensions and Modifications of Basic Principles.- 5. Linkage, Recombination, and Eukaryotic Gene Mapping.- 6. Chromosome Variation.- 7. Bacterial and Viral Genetic Systems.- 8. DNA: The Chemical Nature of the Gene.- 9. DNA Replication and Recombination.- 10. From DNA to Proteins: Transcription and RNA Processing.- 11. From DNA to Proteins: Translation.- 12. Control of Gene Expression.- 13. Gene Mutations, Transposable Elements, and DNA Repair.- 14. Molecular Genetic Analysis and Biotechnology.- 15. Genomics and Proteomics.- 16. Cancer Genetics.- 17. Quantitative Genetics.- 18. Population and Evolutionary Genetics.