Mutation
-a permanent change of the nucleotide sequence of the genome of an organism, virus, or extra chromosomal DNA or other genetic elements
-results in damage to DNA that's not repaired or to RNA genomes, errors in the process of replication, or from the insertion or deletion of segments of DNA by mobile genetic elements
-can be caused by random mistakes in DNA replication or by environmental influences like UV rays and chemicals
--changes at the nucleotide level go on to influence the transcription and translation from gene to protein expression
-changing 1 nitrogen base in a sequence can alter the amino acid expressed by that DNA codon aka the protein
-the can be harmless, potentially fatal, or somewhere in between

	Small-Scale Mutation
	-affects a small gene in one or a few nucleotides
	-affects DNA at the molecular level by changing the normal sequence of nucleotide base pairs
	-occurs during the process of DNA replications.

		2 Types of Gene Mutations:
			>Point Mutation
			-change of a single nitrogen base in a DNA sequence
			-the least harmful type of DNA mutation
			-depending on the placement of a nitrogen base in the codon, a point mutation may have no effect on the protein

				3 Major Types by Substitution:
					*Silent Mutation
						-nucleotide is replaced, but codon still produces the same amino acid
					*Missense Mutation
						-codon now results in a different amino acid, which may or may not significantly alter the protein's function
					*Nonsense Mutation
						-codon results in a "stop" command, truncating the protein at the location where the mutated codon is read
						-almost always leads to a loss of protein functionality

			>Frame-Shift Mutation
			-generally more serious and often more deadly than point mutations
			-though only one nitrogen base is affected, the single base is either completely deleted or an extra one is inserted into
			 the middle of the DNA sequence