noun
genetics
The scientific study of genes and heredity. Used as a noun in academic and general contexts.
彼女は大学で遺伝学を専攻している。
She is majoring in genetics at university.
遺伝学の進歩は医療に大きな影響を与えた。
Advances in genetics have had a major impact on medicine.
遺伝 means 'heredity' or 'inheritance' as a phenomenon, whereas 遺伝学 is the scientific discipline.
Compound of 遺伝 (いでん, 'heredity') and 学 (がく, 'study'). The term is a modern coinage for the scientific field of genetics.