1.6 What are mutations - Oronda/Molecular_biology_concepts GitHub Wiki

Mutation is any change in the DNA of an organism. Mutations reside in the DNA of an organism but the results of these changes is seen in either the protein or RNA of the cell. Germline mutations occur in the eggs and can be passed on to the offspring while somatic mutations occur in the body cells and are not inherited. Mutations can occur spontaneously, or as a result of exposure to identifiable factors like;

• UV light which drives thymine dimer formation
• Chemicals
• Urea
• Nitrous acid-randomly modifies the base adenine so that it looks like hypoxanthine which pairs with cytosine instead of thymine
• Transposons
• Infection by viruses