Chapter 44

"Check the chromosomes, of course, I can do that!" Xia Linfei looked at Su Yuan with some curiosity, "Why are you suddenly interested in this?"

"It's nothing, just a sudden curiosity."

In fact, what Su Yuan was curious about was whether the chromosomes in her body were XX or XY. If they were XY, from a genetic perspective, she would be in a dilemma, because her current appearance was likely a false state, and science could not yet explain why such an inconceivable thing had happened. But if they were XX, at least her appearance would match her genetic makeup, and there would be no recurring issues. Her future life might be more stable.

So when she heard that chromosomes could be checked here, Su Yuan immediately felt an impulse.

"The human body has a total of twenty-three pairs of chromosomes, forty-four autosomes, and two sex chromosomes. The sex chromosomes in males are XY, and in females, they are XX. During reproductive inheritance, males undergo meiosis to produce X or Y type gametes, while females can only produce X type gametes."

"I know that. Males provide X or Y sperm, and females provide X eggs. If the fertilized egg is XX, it's a girl; if it's XY, it's a boy. So whether a child is a boy or a girl actually depends entirely on the male, because only males have the Y chromosome."

Xia Linfei nodded with a smile, "It's good that you studied biology, so you understand it easily."

"Since you're curious about chromosomes, I happen to be researching a topic on human genetic polymorphism. How about providing some samples for my research?"

"Use my samples?" Su Yuan was a bit hesitant.

She had to be cautious about this. The transformation was already bizarre, and although it could be attributed to alien intervention, Su Yuan believed more in a problem with her genetic makeup. The human body has about 3 billion base pairs and nearly 100,000 genes. So far, the Human Genome Project has discovered about 25,000 genes, which is fewer than the expected 100,000.

But who knew if her genetic information contained a gene that caused the transformation?

If it did, it could cause major trouble if it leaked out.

"Reluctant?" Xia Linfei raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "For this genetic polymorphism research, I, along with my mentor and a few senior and junior students, have collected over ten thousand samples from the public. One more from you won't make a difference. What's there to be reluctant about?"

Su Yuan was still uneasy and asked curiously, "What exactly does genetic polymorphism research?"

"Simply put, the genes that control a trait are not fixed. When genetic codes are transmitted, they need to maintain a certain level of accuracy but also have some flexibility. Different populations adapt to different environments, so the genes that control the same trait are not entirely the same. While the trait is maintained, the length of the DNA segment, the DNA repeat sequences, and the scattered single bases can vary."

"For example, the genes that control single or double eyelids can be different even if they all express as single eyelids."

Su Yuan nodded, "I understand. It means that the useful information carried by a gene is the same, but the non-coding regions or regions without important functions in the DNA sequence can vary due to environmental factors, leading to genetic mutations."

"Pretty much, yes." Xia Linfei gave her an approving look, "These variations can be caused by the deletion, repetition, and insertion of single bases, leading to changes in 'restriction enzyme' sites, which in turn cause changes in DNA length. They can also be due to variations in the number of repeat sequences, or the deletion, insertion, and substitution of scattered single bases."

"Our research focuses on the distribution patterns of genetic polymorphisms caused by these three conditions."

"Does that mean you select specific genes for comparison?" Su Yuan asked.

"Yes. We mainly selected the genes that control single or double eyelids, hair color, and the presence or absence of earlobes."

"I thought you were checking all the genes!" Su Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.

Xia Linfei patted her shoulder and laughed, "Checking all the genes? Do you think we're the Human Genome Project? It took several countries years of joint effort to complete. Even if our research group only selected three genes, we still need to divide the team into three groups to work simultaneously, and the workload is enormous."

"I didn't know that!"

Su Yuan was also a bit amused. The human genome is incredibly complex. Selecting just three specific genes for polymorphism analysis is already a massive project. She had been worried about unknown genes being exposed, which was really absurd.

Genes cannot be easily observed with the naked eye. Xia Linfei's research only targeted three specific genes, and the other genes were completely undetectable.

It was one thing for laypeople to be unaware, but she had started to worry unnecessarily.

"You were curious about chromosomes, right? If you provide a sample, I can let you see your own chromosomes!"

"Wouldn't that be a lot of trouble?" Su Yuan thought about how busy Xia Linfei was with her research and whether her "curiosity" would add to her workload.

"Don't worry, it's just a small additional task."

Hearing this, Su Yuan didn't refuse.

Xia Linfei brought a lab chair and tiptoed to the top cabinet to fetch a disposable blood collection needle and two blood sample tubes.

Seeing the blood collection needle and the two blood sample tubes, Su Yuan's eyes turned green, and she stammered, "Do... do we have to draw blood?"

"How else can we get the genes? Come on, roll up your sleeve."

"I thought we could use skin cells or oral cells." Su Yuan grumbled but obediently rolled up her sleeve.

She was wearing a light purple long-sleeved casual shirt, which was quite uncomfortable in such hot weather. No wonder she always went to the air-conditioned library.

"For the experiment, we need peripheral blood."

Rolling up her sleeve, her white, smooth skin was exposed. Xia Linfei glanced at it and praised, "Su Yuan, your skin is so white."

Su Yuan chuckled and closed her eyes, "Go ahead."

Tying a tourniquet, she gently patted her arm, and the sharp needle approached.

Su Yuan suddenly opened her eyes, "Wait! Xia, are you familiar with drawing blood? Can you do it in one go?"

Xia Linfei was annoyed, "Don't you know I went to medical school? Drawing blood is a piece of cake. Your arm is so white, and the veins are quite clear. I guarantee I'll get it in one go!"

"Oh." Feeling a slight sting, Su Yuan watched as the fresh red blood flowed from the needle and quickly filled the two blood sample tubes.

"Done."

"What's next?" Su Yuan followed Xia Linfei, pressing a disinfectant cotton ball.

"We need to culture the cells. Each chromosome can be seen as a double-stranded DNA molecule coiled and contracted. To see them more clearly, we need a large number of dividing cells."

Su Yuan nodded.

She understood this. The blood sample contained a lot of red blood cells, which do not have genetic characteristics or DNA. Through culturing, we can obtain other cells in the blood that have genetic characteristics.

"How long will it take?"

Xia Linfei thought for a moment and said, "Three days. Culturing with a cell growth stimulant, 'phytohemagglutinin,' at 37 degrees for three days will yield observable dividing cells."

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