B6. Unraveling Chromosomes

The role of DNA in carrying our genetic information is universally appreciated, but less attention is paid to chromosomes that carry the genetic information. In each human cell, 2 meters of DNA is highly compacted and organized by RNA and proteins into 46 distinctive microscopic chromosomes. The dynamic organization of chromosomes controls which genes are expressed at which time(s) and in which cells. The precise organization of DNA into chromosomes is essential to inheritance and plays an important role in gender determination.  In this course, we’ll discuss the structure and inheritance of chromosomes, as well as epigenetics, the processes that control gene expression throughout our lives.  

Clare O’Connor is a cell biologist who received her Ph.D. from Purdue and led a research lab at the former Worcester Foundation for Experimental Biology in Shrewsbury from 1984-1995. From 1995 to 2017, she was a professor in the Boston College Biology Department, where she taught     both introductory and advanced courses in genetics and molecular cell biology. Since retiring in 2018, she has taught several WISE courses in these same subject areas.