3.8.3 Using genome projects (A-level only) Flashcards
What have sequencing projects read?
Entire genomes.
Genome definition:
The entire set of DNA, including all the genes in an organism.
The genome is fixed and does not change.
What have improvements in technology allowed us to sequence?
The genomes of a variety of organisms, from bacteria to humans.
What do gene sequencing methods only work on? What does this mean?
Fragments of DNA. So if you want to sequence the entire genome of an organism, you need to chop it up into smaller pieces first. These smaller pieces are sequenced and then put back in order to give the sequence of the whole genome.
What did the Human Genome Project, which was completed in 2003, map?
The entire sequence of the human genome for the first time.
What does sequencing the genome of simple organisms, help to identify?
Their proteins.
Proteome definition:
All the proteins that are made by an organism.
The proteome is variable and not fixed in different cells.
Simple organisms, such as bacteria, do not have much non-coding DNA which means that it is relatively easy to determine what?
Also what can this be useful in? + example
Their proteome from the DNA sequence of their genome.
This can be useful in medical research and development.
E.g. identifying the protein antigens on the surface of disease-causing bacteria and viruses can help in the development of vaccines to prevent the disease.
Why is it harder to translate the genome of complex organisms?
Because more complex organisms contain large sections of non-coding DNA.
They also contain complex regulatory genes, which determine when the genes that code for particular proteins should be switched on/off. —– Genome cannot easily be translated into the proteome as its harder to find the bits that code for proteins among the non-coding and regulatory DNA.
Sequencing methods are continuously updated, in the past, many sequencing methods were labour-intensive, expensive and could only be done on a small scale, what are these techniques now?
Often automated, more cost-effective and can be done on a large scale.
What does it mean for scientists, if there are newer, faster techniques such as pyrosequencing available?
That they can now sequence whole genomes much more quickly.
