The genetic material is a kind of “operating system” for an organism and contains the blueprints for all body components. In humans, the hereditary material consists of approximately 35,000 blueprints which are called 'genes'. If a new protein is needed in the body, the proper blueprint – in other words, a certain gene – has to be read first.

Not only does the genetic material contain the information for body features such as height, shape of the nose and color of the skin. At least partially, the genes also define our behavior and our abilities – for instance, whether we learn easily or how we handle stressful situations.

The human genetic material contains a sequence of about three million letters which fill thousands of books when written down consecutively.