A linear arrangement of condensed DNA and associated proteins (such as chaperone proteins) which contains the genetic material (genome) of an organism.
conception
[kən-ˈsep-shən]
The act of conceiving.
gestation
[je-ˈstā-shən]
The period of time during which an infant animal or human physically develops inside the mother's body until it is born.
thalidomide
[thə-ˈli-də-ˌmīd]
A drug sold during the late 1950s and early 1960s as a sleeping aid, and to pregnant women as an antiemetic to combat morning sickness and other symptoms, but withdrawn as causing severe birth defects, such as phocomelia; currently used to treat leprosy.
perpetrator
[ˈpər-pə-ˌtrā-tər]
One who perpetrates; especially, one who commits an offence or crime.