Definitions Flashcards
Genome
An organism’s entire hereditary information encoded in its DNA
Mutation
A random change to genetic material
Single gene mutation
An alteration of one or two DNA nucleotides in a sequence of DNA resulting in an altered protein
Missense mutation
The result of one amino acid being changed for another, which may either result in a non-functional protein being produced or having little effect
Nonsense mutation
The result of a premature stop codon being produced, so no amino acid is made and translation stops, creating a shorter protein
Splice-site mutation
The result of some introns being retained or exons not being included in the mature transcript, creating an abnormal protein
Frame shift mutation
The insertion or deletion of nucleotides, which changes all the amino acids after the mutation, having a major effect on the structure and function of the protein produced.
Vertical gene transfer
The transfer of genes from parent to offspring
Species
A group of organisms that can interbreed with one another to produce fertile offspring
Speciation
The formation of new biological species brought about by evolutionary change
Allopatric speciation
When gene flow is prevented by a geographical isolation barrier (mountains, rivers, deserts)
Sympatric speciation
When populations live in close proximity to one another in the same environment but become genetically isolated due to behavioral or ecological barriers
Metabolism
The collective term for all the chemical reactions that take place inside living cells
Transcription
The synthesis of mRNA from a section of DNA
Promoter
A region of DNA in a gene where transcription is initiated
