Chromosome

In the nucleus of each cell, the DNA molecule is packaged into thread-like structures called chromosomes. Each chromosome is made up of DNA tightly coiled many times around proteins called histones that support its structure.

What is a Chromosome?

Chromosomes are the basic building blocks of life where the entire genome of an organism is essentially organized and stored in the form of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) which is present inside every cell making up that organism. A chromosome is a single chain of DNA that is coiled and super coiled to form dense thread-like pieces. The term chromosome is derived from the Greek words "chroma" or color and "some" or body and is so named because chromosomes have the ability to be stained with dyes.

Chromosome History

Chromosomes in Eukaryotes

Chromosomes in Prokaryotes

Chromosome Karyotype

Human Chromosomes

Chromosomal Abnormalities

Common Chromosomal Disorders (Chromosomes 1-5 and X and Y)

What is Chromosome 1?

What is Chromosome 2?

What is Chromosome 3?

What is Chromosome 4?

See more featured articles »

What is Chromosome 5?

What is the X Chromosome?

What is the Y Chromosome?

Latest Chromosome News and Research

New drug offers hope for young boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy

A new drug offers hope for young boys with the progressive neuromuscular disease Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) by potentially offering an alternative to high-dose glucocorticoids that have significant side effects.

25 Sep 2020

Study sheds new light on the role of Y chromosome genes

New light is being shed on a little-known role of Y chromosome genes, specific to males, that could explain why men suffer differently than women from various diseases, including Covid-19.

25 Sep 2020

About 10% patients with severe disease create auto-antibodies that attack the immune system

People infected by the novel coronavirus can have symptoms that range from mild to deadly. Now, two new analyses suggest that some life-threatening cases can be traced to weak spots in patients' immune systems.

25 Sep 2020

Men are dying from COVID-19 at a higher rate than women

A new review article from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center shows people who are biologically male are dying from COVID-19 at a higher rate than people who are biologically female.

22 Sep 2020

New methods help to accurately identify cancers’ hidden genetic losses, duplications

Understanding the specific mutations that contribute to different forms of cancer is critical to improving diagnosis and treatment.

17 Sep 2020

Sex and gender not receiving enough attention in COVID-19 trials

Researchers in Denmark and the Netherlands have conducted a study showing that sex and gender are not being adequately considered in clinical trials investigating severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

15 Sep 2020

Exploring sex differences in gene expression

Males and females share the vast majority of their genomes. Only a sprinkling of genes, located on the so-called X and Y sex chromosomes, differ between the sexes. Nevertheless, the activities of our genes--their expression in cells and tissues--generate profound distinctions between males and females.

12 Sep 2020

Inherited variation in GATA3 gene is linked to relapse in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital are investigating the inherited genetics of childhood leukemia and how particular gene variations can affect treatment outcomes.

11 Sep 2020

Study uncovers genetic vulnerability in breast cancers tumors

The study, published in the scientific journal Nature, has uncovered a genetic vulnerability present in nearly 10% percent of all breast cancers tumours, and found a way to target this vulnerability and selectively kill cancer cells.

9 Sep 2020

Study sheds new light on function and regulation of APOBEC3B in adrenocortical carcinoma

The cover for issue 36 of Oncotarget features, "Knockdown of APOBEC3B is associated with a lower tumor growth in an adrenocortical carcinoma xenograft mouse model," by Gara, et al. which reported that the role of APOBEC3B in adrenocortical carcinoma and the mechanisms through which its expression is regulated in cancer are not fully understood.

9 Sep 2020

Activation of fatty acid receptor causes masculinization of Japanese rice fish

A research collaboration based at Kumamoto University (Japan) has found that activation of PPARα, a fatty acid receptor that detects fatty acids in cells and regulates physiological functions, causes masculinization of Japanese rice fish (medaka).

5 Sep 2020

Researchers identify a pattern in cancer’s chromosomal chaos

Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and the UCL Cancer Institute have identified how different cancers go through some of the same genetic mutations at the same point in their evolution.

3 Sep 2020

Misfiring brain cells may create swallowing difficulties in children with neurodevelopmental disorders

Misfiring brain cells that control key parts of the mouth and tongue may be creating swallowing difficulties in children with neurodevelopmental disorders, according to neuroscientists with Virginia Tech and George Washington University.

2 Sep 2020

Targeted therapy achieves durable objective responses Phase I/II LIBRETTO-001 trial

For patients with non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC) marked by RET gene fusions, the targeted therapy selpercatinib was well tolerated and achieved durable objective responses, or tumor shrinkage, in the majority of participants in the Phase I/II LIBRETTO-001 trial, according to researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

27 Aug 2020

Estradiol appears to help in female SARS-CoV-2 infection

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv in August 2020 shows that the risk of infection is high for pre-menopausal women but the risk of death is much higher for men in the same age group and throws light on the protective nature of estradiol therapy in post-menopausal women.

26 Aug 2020

Researchers solve a long-held mystery of X chromosome inactivation

Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have solved a mystery that has long puzzled scientists: How do the bodies of female humans and all other mammals decide which of the two X chromosomes it carries in each cell should be active and which one should be silent?

18 Aug 2020