3.4 Genetic Information, variation and relationship between organisms Flashcards
what is the difference between the dna in prokaryotes and eukaryotes?
prokaryotes e.g bacteria
- the dna molecules are shorter
- the dna molecule form a circle and are not associated with protein molecules, prokaryotic cells therefore do not have chromosomes
eukaryotes
- dna molecules are longer
- form a line (are linear)
- occur in association with proteins called histones to form structures called chromosomes
what type of dna does the mitochondria and chloroplasts of eukaryotic cell contain?
they contain dna which, like the dna of prokaryotes, is short, circular and not associated with protein
what is a gene?
a gene is a base sequence of dna that codes for either a polypeptide or functional RNA
what is a locus?
the fixed position of a gene on a chromosome/dna molecule
why have scientists come to the conclusion that there must be a minimum of three bases that codes for an amino acis?
- only 20 different amino acids regularly occur in proteins
- each amino acid must have its own code of bases on the dna
- only four different bases (A,T,C,G)
- if each base coded for a different amino acid, only four different amino acids could be coded for
- using a pair of bases, 16 (42) different codes are possible, which is still inadequate
- three bases produce 64 (43) different codes, more than enough to satisfy the requirements of 20 amino acids
as the code has three bases for each amino acid, each one is called a triplet. as there are 64 possible triplets and only 20 amino acids, it follows that some amino acids are coded for by one triplet.
what is this called?
degenerate code
what is meant by a degenerate code?
this is where an amino acid can be coded for by more than one base triplet
what is the advantage of having degenerate codes?
an advantage of having degenerate codes is that when a mutation occurs in a triplet code, it could still end up coding for the same amino acid
what is meant by when it is said that dna is non overlapping?
-this means that in the genetic code, each base triplet is reqad in sequence, seperated from the triplet before and after it
what is meant by when it is said that the genetic code is universal?
-the same specific base triplets code for the same amino acid in all living things
what is the name given to bases in dna which do not code for polypeptides?
introns (in the way)
what is the name given to the sections of dna that code for polypeptides?
exons (extra special)
what is the name of the proteins that dna are wound around and what do they do for dna?
- the dna molecule is wound around proteins called histones
- histones proteins help to support the dna
what is a chromosome?
a thread like structure made of protein and DNA by which hereditary information is physically passed from one generation to the next
what is a chromatid?
one of the two strands of a chromosome that are joined together by single centromere prior to cell division
what is chromatin?
the material that makes up chromosomes
-it consisits of dna and the protein histone
how is chromsome formed?
- you have a dna molecule
- the dna molecule is combined with histones
- the dna-histone complex is coiled
- coils fold to form loops
- the loops coil and pack together to form the chromosome
what are homologous chromosomes?
- a pair of chromosomes, one maternal and one paternal, that have the same gene loci and therefore determine the same features
what is a allele?
different versions of the same gene
homologous chromosomes carry the same genes but they are not genetically identical. explain why
homologous chromosomes carry different alleles
what is the diploid nummber in humans?
46
(46 chromosomes and 23 pairs of chromsomes)
what is a cell’s genome?
the complete set of genes in the cell
what is a cell’s proteome?
this is the full range of proteins that the cell is able to produce.
what does RNA stand for and what is it?
RNA stands for ribonucleic acid
-it is a polymer made up of repeating mononucleotide sub units.
what is a single strand of RNA made up off?
- the pentose sugar
- one of the organic bases (A,U,C,G)
- a phospate group
what are the two types of RNA?
- messenger RNA (mRNA)
- transfer RNA (tRNA)
state:
- what mRNA is
- which process its made in
- what it does
- what it is complementary to
- mRNA is single polynucleotide strand which has three adjacent basesd which are called condons
- mRNA is made during transcription
- mRNA carries the genetic code from the DNA to the robosomes,w where it is used to make a protein during translation
- mRNA is complementary to the DNA triplet code
state:
- what tRNA is
- which process it is involved in
- what it does
- tRNA is a single polynucleotife strand that’s folded into a clover shape and every tRNA molecule has a specific sequence of three bases at one end called an anticodon and an amino acid binding site at the other end
- tRNA is involved in translation
- it carries the correct amino acids that are used to make proteins to the ribosomes
what bonds hold the shape of the tRNA molecule together?
-hydrogen bonds
compare the size, the chain, sugar, bases, stability of DNA, mRNA and tRNA
DNA
size-largest molecule of the three
shape- double polynucleotide chain
sugar- pentose sugar (deoxyribose)
bases- A,T,C,G
stability- chemically very stable
mRNA
size- smaller than DNA but larger than tRNA
shape- single polynucleotide chain
sugar- pentose sugar (ribose sugar)
bases- A,U,C,G
stability- less stable than dna and tRNA, as its broken down in the cell in just a few days
tRNA
size- smallest molecule of the three
shape- smallest shape molecule of the three
sugar- pentose sugar (ribose sugar)
bases- A,U,C,G
stability- chemically more stable than mRNA but less stable than dna
in eukaryotic cells, where does transcription take place?
in the nucleus
in prokaryotic cells, where does transcription takes place? why is this
transcription takes place in the cytoplasm because prokaryotes dont have a nucleus
describe what happens in transcription
- )the enzyme helicase acts on a specific region of the dna molecule to break the hydrogen bons between the bases, causing the two strands to seperate and expose the nucleotide bases in that region
- ) the enzyme RNA polymerase moves alon one of the two DNA strands, know as the template strands, causing nucleotides on this strand to join with the individual complementary nucleotides from the pool which is present in the nucleus
- ) in this way an exposed guanin base on the dna in linked to the cytosine base of a free nucleotide. similarly, cytosine links to guanine and thymine joins to adenine. the exception is adenine which links to uracil rather than thymine.
- ) the enzyme helicase acts on a specific region of the DNA molecule to break the hydrogen bonds between the bases, causing the two strands to seperate and expose the nucleotide bases in that region.
what is the difference in the result of transcription in eukaryotes and prokaryotes
prokaryotes
-transcription results directly in the production of mRNA from DNA
eukaryotes
-transcription results in the production of pre-mRNa; this then splice to form mRNA
what is splicing?
- much of the eukaryotic DNA does not actually code for proteins introns (in the way) so these sections of bases are removed (spliced) before translation occurs
- the remaining exons (extra special) can then be combined in a variety of ways forming lots of different proteins.
describe the process of the translation
- ) the mRNA attached itself to a ribosome and transfer RNA moleculec carru amino acids to it. ATP provides the energy needed for the bond between the amino acid and the tRNA molecule to form.
- ) A tRNA molecule (carrying an amino acid), with an anticodon that’s complementary to the first codon on the mRNA, attaches itself to the mRNA by specific base pairing
- ) a secind tRNA molecule attaches itseld to the next codon on the mRNA in the same way
- ) the two amino acids attached to the tRNA molecule are joined by a peptide bond. The first tRNA molecules moves away, leaving its amino acid behind.
- ) A third tRNA molecule binds to the next codon the mRNA. Its amino acid binds to the first two and the second tRNA molecule moves away.
- ) the process continues, producing a chain of linked amino acids (a polypeptide chain) until there’s a stop signal on the mRNA molecule
- ) the polypeptide chain moves away from the ribosome and translation is complete.
look at this graph:
to investigate how two new drufgs affect nucleic acids and their role in protein synthesis, bacteria were grown under normal conditions for a few generations, the moved to medium containing drugs.
after a short period of time, the concentration of protein and complete strands of mRNA in the bacteria were anlysed. the results are showin the bar graph
-deduce information from the graph about the drugs
Drug 1
both mRNA and protein concentration were lower in the presence of this drug compare to the no-drug contol.
this suggest that drug 1 affects the production of full lenght mRNA, so theres no mRNA for protein synthesis during translation.
this suggests that this drug could be something like a enzyme which digests strands of mRNA so they can be used in translation to make proteins
Drug 2
-as you can see from the no-drug control mRNA production in the presence of this drug was unaffected but less protein was produced - 3mg cm-3 compared to 8mg cm-3
this suggests that drug 2 ineterfered with translation as mRNA was produced, but less protein was translated from it
this suggests that drug 2 could be something like a competitive inhibitior that works by binding to the ribsosome, blocking tRNAS from binding to it and so preventing translation.
what is a mutation?
a change in the base sequence of dna/chromosomes
when do mutations usually occur? why is this?
they can arise during dna replication as bases are exposed after the dna unzips so they are vulnerable
what is the difference between substitution and deletion
substitution is the swapping/replacing of one base for another
deletion is when a base is removed and not replaced
why can some substitution mutations be harmless?
- the degenerate nature of the genetic code means that some amino acids are coded for by more than one DNA triplet.
- This is means that not all substitution mutations wil result in a change to the amino acid sequence of the protein as some substitutions will code for the same amino acid.
why will deletion mutations always lead to a change in the amino acid sequence?
-the deletion of a base will change the number of the bases present which will cause a shift in all the base triplets after it
a mutation can lead to the production of a non-functional enzyme explain how (6 marks)
- a mutation is the change in the base sequence of DNA
- when a mutation happens it causes a change in the amino acid sequence
- this is means that there is a change in the primary structure of the enzyme which affects the secondary structure of the enzyme (folding and twisted of the sequence of the amino acid) which in turn changes the tertiary structure of the enzyme (3d shape of enzyme)
- this means that there is also a change in the hydrogen, ionic and disulphide bonds of the enzyme.
- because the 3d shape is different the enzyme’s active site will therefore be different
- so the substrate can not bind to the active site to form an enzyme substrate complex to produce a product.
what are mutagenic agents? give examples
mutagenic agents increase the rate of mutations e.g
- ultraviolet radiation
- ionising radiation
- chemicals
- viruses
during which part of the cell cycle are gene mutations likely to occur? why?
- interphase,
- because dna replication is taking place.
what does meiosis produce?
meiosis usually produces 4 daughter cells, each with half the number of chromosomes as the parent cell, all genetically different from each other.
what is a gamete?
a reproductive cell
give 2 examples of gametes in humans and in plants
human gametes
- sperm
- egg
plant gametes
- pollen
- ovules
what is a zygote?
a cell produced from the fertilisation of gametes (sperm and egg cell)
what is the difference between meiosis and mitosis?
mitosis produces two daughter cells with the same number of chromosomes as the parent cell and as each other
meiosis produces daughter cells, each with half the number of chromosomes as the parent cell