Chapter 7 Flashcards
One gene one enzyme hypothesis
Beadle and Tatum. Each gene is unique and codes for the synthesis of a single enzyme.
Why was the one gene one enzyme hypothesis incorrect
many proteins are not enzymes and consist of more than one subunit called a polypeptide
One gene- one polypeptide hypothesis
Each gene is unique and codes for the synthesis of a single polypeptide.
Central dogma
Information flows from DNA to RNA to proteins
Transcription
Information coded in the nucleic acids of DNA is copied into the nucleic acids of RNA
First step of protein synthesis
Initiation- Transcription
RNA polymerase binds to the DNA and unwinds it near the begging of a gene at a promoter (nucleotide sequence that lies just before a gene and allows for the binding of RNA polymerase)
The TATA box is a region of the promoter that enables the binding of RNA polymerase, prokaryotes have a TATAAT sequence for the same purpose
AT have 2 hydrogen bonds whereas GC have 3
Elongation
Coding strand: The DNA strand that is not being copied but contains the same sequence as the new RNA molecule
The new RNA strand elongates as new nucleotides are added 1 by 1and a RNA DNA double helix is formed
Once this unwinds, the DNA double helix reforms
If there is room at the promoter, another strand of RNA will begin to form
Termination- Transcription
Happens when RNA recognizes a termination sequence (a sequence of bases at the end of a gene that signals the RNA polymerase to stop transcribing)
In prokaryotes, one mechanism involves a protein binding to the mRNA and stopping transcription, another involves the RNA forming a loop and binding with itself.
In eukaryotes, one termination sequence is a string of adenines which are transcribed as a string of uracil’s on the RNA
4) Post- transcriptional modifications
Pre-mRNA must undergo additional transformations before it exits the nucleus and enter the ribosome
The poly(A) tail is a chain of adenine nucleotides that are added to the 3’ end of the pre-mRNA molecule to protect it from enzymes in the cytosol
Capping and tailing is when a 5’ cap is added. This is a sequence of 7 G’s that care added to the start of a pre-mRNA molecule, ribosomes recognize this site and use it as the initial site of attachment
Introns
non- coding sequences of DNA and they need to be removed. If they were left in, they would alter the sequence of the amino acids that are used to build the protein. It would not fold correctly and therefore would not function correctly
mRNA splicing
splicing removes the introns. This occurs at the spliceosome, an enzyme protein complex formed between the mRNA and the snRNPs
Small ribonucleic proteins
proteins are proteins that bind to introns and signals them for removal
Alternative splicing
is a process that produces different mRNAs from pre-mRNA, allowing more than one possible polypeptide to be made from a single gene. Helps to explain why humans with 20 000 genes can make about 100 000 proteins.
Spontaneous mutations
Caused by an error in DNA replication
Induced mutation
Caused by the effect of an environmental agent
Mutagen
An environmental agent that directly alters the DNA within a cell
Radiation
can create/ break bonds which also results in mutations
Mutations
Changes in the DNA sequence
90% of our DNA is non coding so we don’t notice most mutation, mutations are much more likely to be noticed in prokaryotes
Small scale mutations (point mutations)
A change in a single nucleotide within a gene (substitution, inversion, insertion, deletion)
missense mutation
changes a single amino acid in the coding sequence
nonsense mutation
results in a premature stop codon
silent mutation
does not alter the resulting sequence of amino acids
frameshift mutation
shift in the reading frame resulting in multiple missense and/or nonsense effects
Large scale mutations (chromosome mutations)
Can involve multiple nucleotides, entire genes or whole regions of chromosomes
Translocation
is the movement of entire genes or sequences of DNA from one chromosome to another. Usually occurs when pieces of chromosomes break off and switch places
Transposable elements
move freely around the genome and if they are near a gene sequence they may alter it
Inversion
when a portion of a DNA molecule reverses its direction
Trinucleotides
can sometimes become unstable and expand uncontrollably (CAG CAG CAG CAG). Results in hunting’s desiese