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Gene expression is a highly specific process in which a gene is switched on, and therefore begins production of its protein.
Each cell in the human body (except for mature red blood cells and platelets, which do not contain a nucleus) contains a complete copy of the human genome: approximately 3.2 billion base pairs, organized onto 23 pairs of chromosomes (unpaired in gametes), with an estimated 30,000 genes.
However, only a small fraction of the genes are expressed, or turned "on," in any particular type of cell.
Cells look and act the way they do because of the specific genes that they express and the amounts of gene products produced.
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