What is a somatic mutation?

somatic mutation is a genetic mutation that occurs in a somatic cell after conception. These mutations can lead to various health problems and layers commonly associate them specifically with cancer. Somatic mutations can be identified by examining genetic material in a dubious cell and comparing it with a cell elsewhere in the body; DNA in two cells will vary even though it should not be.

There are two types of cells: somatic cells and germ cells. The germ cells eventually cause gamets, while somatic cells evoke everything else. If there is a somatic mutation in the uterus, all cells from somatic cell will have a mutation. This results in a situation called a genetic mosaic in which some of the cells in the body have DNA, which differs from other cells. In other cases, someone may be left with a mosaic, but no external problems. After birth, somatic mutation can lead to cancer development if the growth regulators are in cell afterdamage, which causes the cell to settle out of control replication and create new cells that will do the same.

somatic mutations cannot be inherited because they do not include germ cells. This type of mutation is sometimes called a "acquired mutation" and refers to the fact that this is not the result of inheritance of mutation from the parent. For example, a woman who develops breast cancer does not pass the breast cancer to her child. However, the risk of somatic mutation can be increased by the presence or absence of certain inherited genes, which means that children of women with breast cancer can be exposed to increased risk and can be tested to find whether genes associated with breast cancer are present in their DNA.

somatic mutations may occur for various reasons. Some seem to be the result of exposure to toxins or radiation that disrupts the cell division process. Others are spontaneous and occur as a result of random errors in the process of doingcells. Due to the length of the genome, there are occasional errors in individual cells and in fact the body is coded to destroy the somatic cells that mutated, although it is not always successful.