The genetic condition of having two different forms (alleles) of the same gene inherited from different parents.
From Greek 'hetero-' (different) and 'zygosis' (joining/pairing); term coined by geneticists in the early 1900s describing mixed genetic inheritance.
You're heterozygous for thousands of genes right now—one version from mom, one from dad—and this genetic mixing is literally why you're unique and (usually) healthier than if you were genetically identical to one parent.
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