Medical genetics, as the name implies, is a branch of human genetics confined to, and concerned with, studying structure and function of the genetic material in relation to health and disease states of human beings. Within this context, it comprises the study of causes and mechanisms of pathogenesis of genetic disorders, clinical characterization of different types of these disorders and their modes of inheritance, study of diagnostic techniques used in their diagnosis and delineation of effective prophylactic and therapeutic measures resorted to in managing patients and carriers of these diseases. A plausible classification of the wide spectrum of the different fields of medical genetics, based on the subjects and aims of the different branches of each of these fields, recognizes six main fields of medical genetics: basic, clinical, diagnostic, prophylactic, therapeutic and applied genetics. In humans, the term embryo refers to the ball of dividing cells from the moment the zygote implants itself in the uterus wall until the end of the eighth week after conception. Mohammad Saad Zaghloul Salem, Medical Genetics: An Overview.
Last date updated on April, 2024
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