DNA methylation

an epigenetic mechanism that involves the addition of a methyl group to the cytosine or adenine bases of DNA and that suppresses expression of particular genes under particular circumstances. It is crucial in normal cellular development and differentiation. Errors in DNA methylation have been associated with cancer and other diseases. See epigenetics.

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Psychology term of the day

May 8th 2024

mental chemistry

a concept proposed by John Stuart Mill as an alternative to the mental mechanics described by his father, James Mill. The concept is modeled on a common phenomenon in physical chemistry, in which two chemical substances combine to form a compound with properties not present in either of the components. Similarly, Mill held that compound ideas were not merely combinations of simpler ideas but that they possessed other qualities not present in any of the constituent ideas. Thus, such an idea could be an essentially new one. See associationism; association of ideas.