Cycle 10: DNA Technologies Flashcards
What is PCR? What is it based on?
Polymerase Chain Reaction
- take target section of genome and amplifying it (make billions of copies)
- difficult to do experiments with small amounts of DNA
- based on DNA replication
What is the process of PCR (reagents, temperatures, steps)?
reagents: parent DNA, forward and reverse DNA primers, DNA polymerase (not WT) Taq (isolated from thermophyll), dNTPs (nucleotides), MgCl2 (cofactor for Taq poly)
- denaturing 95C
- double helix unbinds - annealing 55C
- slowly cools down
- binding of forward and reverse primers on each - synthesizing 72C
- optimal Tag temp
- dNTPs added - repeat to amplify
What is multiplex PCR?
- primers flank target region
- multiple primer pairs flank target regions in same test tube
How is PCR is used for DNA profiling?
- STR (short tandem repeats) are sequences of DNA between genes (non-coding)
- everyone has same STR1 and STR2 but different number of repeats
- must analyze 13 STRs (in autosomal chromosomes) to know which person bc highly polymorphic (many versions)
- each person gets 2 chromosomes (one from each parents) and number of repeats in each chromosome can be same or different: (STR loci num rep 1, num rep 2)
How is gel electrophoresis used to analyze PCR products?
inject each samples after extracting gene on a gel
less repeats = travel further
two band appear if different number of repeats in same STR loci of diff chromosome
one thick band if same different of repeats in same STR loci of diff chromosome
What is AMEL? How can it be used for sex determination?
gene on both sex chromosome that codes for protein that maintain enamel
X AMEL gene has deletion so Y AMEL is longer
for XX –> thicker band on gel
for XY –> thin band at same length as XX and thin band above XX
How can you read an electropherogram?
- bands corresponds to peaks
- large peak means homozygous for number of repeats of STR or XX
- compared to standard
What is reverse transcription? What is it used for?
used to make cDNA from mRNA through reverse transcription
- measure gene expression (how much mRNA in cell)
- DNA sequencing
- cloning
- diagnosing disease
- pharmacogenetic
- DNA profiling (crime scene analysis or paternity testing)
What does mRNA abundance mean?
gene expression/transcript levels
How is RT-PCR used to quantify the abundance (amount) of mRNA?
Reverse Transcription PCR
- mRNA reverse transcribed to cDNA (complementary DNA) with reverse transcriptase (isolated from retroviruses)
–> cDNA only has exotic sequence bc it is made from mRNA
–> cDNA represents expressed genes
What is the process of RT-PCR? Components of reverse transcription process?
- lyse cells and add chemicals to break them into aqueous phase: RNA, interphase: DNA, and organic phase: proteins/lipids
- extract all RNA (mRNA and non coding RNA)
- target polyA tail with an Oligo dT primer complementary to polyA tail (TTTT)
- need Oligo dT, dNTPs and reverse transcriptase to create new strand
- reverse transcriptase has DNA poly activity and RNase activity: degrades RNA from RNA-DNA hybrid so only DNA present
- DNA synthesis to have double stranded DNA
- PCR
What is the difference between mRNA and cDNA?
mRNA is an RNA molecule that exists in your cells
cDNA doesn’t exist in your cells because we don’t have reverse transcriptase and can’t do reverse transcription
–> cDNA is only used for experiments
What is oligodT?
a series of TTTTT that binds to the polyA tail
primer used to select mRNA via polyA tail
How is it possible to express a human gene in a bacterial cell?
you must place the cDNA (NOT genomic DNA) sequence of the gene into the bacterial cell
The cDNA only represents exonic sequences (doesn’t have introns) so the bacteria is able to process the gene.
How is is bacteria used to synthesize human insulin?
- cDNA put into bacteria bc bacteria is fast replication, but can’t handle introns in pre-mRNA
- mRNA of human insulin –> convert to cDNA (RT) make many copies (PCR)
- put copies of cDNA into plasmid of bacteria
- lyse cell (break up cell), put antibacteria as bait to take out human insulin
- wash antibody out for purified insulin