What term describes heritable changes in gene expression that do not involve changes in the DNA sequence?

The term that describes heritable changes in gene expression that do not involve changes in the DNA sequence is epigenetics. Epigenetics refers to modifications that can influence gene activity without altering the underlying DNA sequence. These modifications can include changes such as DNA methylation, histone modification, and non-coding RNA molecules, all of which can affect how genes are expressed and can be passed on to the next generation.

Understanding epigenetics is crucial because it highlights that gene expression can be influenced by various environmental factors and lifestyle choices, leading to important implications in fields such as medicine, developmental biology, and cancer research. This area of study reveals the complexity of genetics beyond simple inheritance patterns and emphasizes that gene expression can be dynamically regulated.

The other terms mentioned do not encapsulate the concept of heritable changes in gene expression without altering the DNA sequence. For instance, genetics broadly refers to the study of heredity and genes, while chromatin remodeling focuses more specifically on the structural changes in chromatin that can affect access to DNA. Gene therapy, on the other hand, involves directly modifying the DNA sequence to treat or prevent disease, which is not aligned with the concept of epigenetics. Thus, epigenetics is the most accurate term for the changes