Genetics: The Fundamentals
How do we know what we know about heredity? Enhance your scientific thinking and experimental design skills with this in-depth adventure through genetics.
Genetics: The Fundamentals
How do we know what we know about heredity? Enhance your scientific thinking and experimental design skills with this in-depth adventure through genetics.
This is the first genetics course in a multi-part series. Building upon the concepts from biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology from our 7.00x Introductory Biology MOOC, these genetics courses go to a new level of depth. How do we know what we know about heredity and how can we design experiments to test hypotheses in genetics?
What you'll learn
- How to appreciate the applications of genetics to everyday life.
- How to apply terminology appropriately to concepts in genetics.
- How to justify the use of specific techniques and methods for answering different genetic questions.
- How to design genetic crosses to make conclusions about genotypes, modes of inheritance, and linkage.
- How to use a quantitative approach to determine different genetic probabilities and calculate genetic distances.
- How to interpret genetic relationships and modes of inheritance of a trait given a pedigree.
Prerequisites
Undergraduate introductory genetics and and molecular biology (as found in 7.00x Introductory Biology)
Meet your instructors
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Associate Professor of Biology; Intramural Faculty of the Koch Institute -
Professor of Biology; Associate Department Head; Core Member and Associate Director of the Whitehead Institute; Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator -
Director of Blended and Online Initiatives; Lecturer, Department of Biology -
Instructor of Blended and Online Initiatives, Department of Biology -
MITx Digital Learning Fellow, Department of Biology -
PhD candidate, Health Sciences and Technology, MIT
Michael T. Hemann
Michael T. Hemann
Associate Professor of Biology; Intramural Faculty of the Koch Institute
Professor Michael Hemann’s lab addresses the issue that many human cancers do not respond to chemotherapy, and oftentimes those that initially respond eventually acquire drug resistance. They use high-throughput screening technology — combined with mouse stem cell reconstitution and tumor transplantation systems — to investigate the genetic basis for this resistance. The goal is to identify novel cancer drug targets, as well as strategies for tailoring existing cancer therapies to target the vulnerabilities associated with specific malignancies. Learn more from the lab website.
Peter Reddien
Peter Reddien
Professor of Biology; Associate Department Head; Core Member and Associate Director of the Whitehead Institute; Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator
Professor Peter Reddien’s lab investigates how stem cells are regulated to regenerate missing tissues. They study the cellular events involved in this process and the attendant roles for regulatory genes that control regeneration steps. They utilize an array of methodologies, including high-throughput sequencing, RNA interference (RNAi) screening, and numerous assays and tools for phenotypic analysis to characterize regeneration regulatory genes. Learn more from the lab website.
Mary Ellen Wiltrout
Mary Ellen Wiltrout
Director of Blended and Online Initiatives; Lecturer, Department of Biology
Mary Ellen earned her Ph.D. from the Department of Biology at MIT in 2009 and returned in 2013 to create 7.00x Introduction to Biology with Professor Eric Lander. Mary Ellen oversees the execution and evolution of MIT Department of Biology’s digital learning strategy. The group develops digital learning content for MIT students, advises evidence-based teaching practices, creates MITx courses, and studies the impact of design on learner engagement in their research. In 2016, Mary Ellen earned the MIT Infinite Mile Award. In 2019, their work received a silver award at the Reimagine Education science of learning category.
Darcy Gordon
Darcy Gordon
Instructor of Blended and Online Initiatives, Department of Biology
As a core member of the MITx Biology course development team, Darcy blends her pedagogical and scientific expertise to foster authentic learning experiences online, including the creation of visual resources and assessments. Previously, she completed her Ph.D. in the Traniello lab studying the evolutionary neurobiology of social insects, and additionally developed curricula for outreach programs while at Boston University.
Caitlin Friend
Caitlin Friend
MITx Digital Learning Fellow, Department of Biology
Caitlin Friend is a Digital Learning Lab Fellow postdoctoral associate for the Department of Biology and former Learning Technologist. She completed her PhD with her project entitled “The Roles of the Helicase Double-Hexamer Complex and the ssDNA-Binding Protein RPA During Eukaryotic DNA Replication" in Steve Bell’s lab at MIT. Since January 2020, Caitlin has been a core member of the MITx Biology course development team.
Mingyu Yang
Mingyu Yang
PhD candidate, Health Sciences and Technology, MIT
Mingyu (Ming) Yang is a PhD student in Medical Engineering and Medical Physics at MIT with interests in educational research and the application to classroom practice. Ming helped develop the 7.06x Cell Biology course series and continues with the 7.03x Genetics series.