Importance of the Genetic Code

The genetic code is the code found in the cells of any organism, a code that establishes the procedures that will be used to translate the characteristics of said organism and that will serve at the time of reproduction to account for the characteristics of a new living being. The genetic code therefore establishes the guidelines present in each organism to develop. Today it has been unraveled thanks to the intense investigative work of the scientific sector. It should be said in this regard, that this expression is sometimes used in an erroneous way because it is used as a synonym for genotype, of a particular sequence that refers to a particular organism; Instead, the genetic code is the set of rules present in all living beings and that makes possible the appearance of each genotype.

The idea of ​​a genetic code refers us to the notion of certain basic patterns that regulate the functioning of all forms of life. Thus, despite the notorious differences that we can find in all living things, there is a clear set of rules that apply to disparate living things. These rules refer to different nitrogenous bases for both DNA and RNA; they are organized in trios called triplets, each of which will determine an amino acid; it will also be possible that there is determination of an amino acid by more than one triplet. These types of rules are universal, present in all living beings with regard to the functioning of the cell nucleus. Thus, these regularities were studied in some living beings with the knowledge that they could be extrapolated to all others, a circumstance that for the moment experience has corroborated.

The importance that this type of discovery had and still has for science and for humanity in general is extraordinary. Indeed, it makes it possible to genetically modify organisms to better serve human needs. An example of this circumstance can be offered by the existence of vegetables modified foods that are more resistant to pests or have some kind of nutritional advantage. On the other hand, there is a wide field of application related to medicine, with the treatment of diseases. However, not everything is color of roses, this type of knowledge can give rise to improper and unscrupulous uses that entail dangers that are difficult to accurately assess.