The Existence and the Economic Implications of Genetic Networks : a Meta-Analysis (original) (raw)

Genetic networks are recent paradigms for the inheritance of traits from parents. They can be defined as relational structures composed of genes, some of which carry genetic information, and linkages with structural or regulating properties. Previous studies have found that biological networks are characterized by scale-free or power-law algorithms, with the development of highly influential genes with many—but sparse—connections to other genes, and with key regulatory roles in phenotypical expression. The highly influential genes are “hotspots” of regulatory functions and represent the top of the network. Seven basic typologies of genetic networks have been discovered; in these networks, genes play different roles. In this article, we address the issue of the characteristics of genetic networks and their social and economic implications by reviewing recent literature on the subject and developing a meta-analysis of a sample of recent studies. We explore the implications of a model ...