How likely are you to develop diabetes if one of your parents had it? Do certain genes make you more susceptible to contracting severe COVID-19? Genetics can help you to answer these questions. Genetics is the study of heredity and the variation of traits passed from one generation to the next. Genetics improves personal and public health, contributing to disease diagnosis, prevention, and treatment. In this course, you will explore the structure and function of genes and chromosomes, and how we use genetics research to better understand basic biology.