Development

Question 1

Key Feature of Dictyostelium discoidum (an amoeba) as a model organism?

Answer 1

Used to study social behaviour, cheating and altruism

Question 2

Key Feature of Arabidopsis thaliana as a model organism?

Answer 2

Genetically Tractable Plant Model

Question 3

Key Feature of Caenorhabditis elegans (nematode) as a model organism?

Answer 3

Self-reproduction in hermaphrodites

Question 4

Key Feature of Ciona intestinalis (sea squirt) as a model organism?

Answer 4

Basal chordate

Question 5

Key Feature of Danio rerio (zebrafish) as a model organism?

Answer 5

Transparent embryos, external development

Question 6

Key Feature of Xenopus laevis as a model organism?

Answer 6

Good system for transplantation experiments, external development

Question 7

Name the three mechanisms of gene duplication

Answer 7

Whole Genome Duplication; Tandem Duplications; Segmental Duplications

Question 8

Define Orthologous, Paralogous and Homologous genes

Answer 8

Orthologous = Same gene in different organisms
Paralogous = Duplicated genes within an organism
Homologous = Genes that share a common ancestor

Question 9

What did Hans Spemann do?

Answer 9

Used baby hair ligature experiments to show that blastomeres in salamander embryos are totipotent up to 16-cell stage

Question 10

What did Hans Driesch do?

Answer 10

First to show that a 2-cell stage sea urchin is totipotent

Question 11

What did Briggs and King do?

Answer 11

They were the first to successfully transplant living nuclei into enucleated eggs

Question 12

What did John Gurdon do?

Answer 12

First to clone an animal (serial nuclear transfers)

Question 13

What did Wilmut and Campbell do?

Answer 13

First to clone a mammal (Dolly the sheep)

Question 14

What did Shinya Yamanaka do?

Answer 14

First to induce pluripotency in adult cells without nuclear transplantation

Question 15

Define Gastrulation

Answer 15

The process by which the ectoderm, mesoderm and endoderm reach their final positions within the embryo

Question 16

What is the Organiser?

Answer 16

Dorsal mesoderm at the gastrula stage, which induces overlying ectoderm to become neural, and induces neighbouring mesoderm to become muscle

Question 17

Define Homeotic Mutations

Answer 17

Mutations which result in the transformation of one body part into another

Question 18

Key Feature of Hydra as a model organism?

Answer 18

High regenerative capacity, both sexual and asexual reproduction (also radial symmetry + diploblastic)

Question 19

Key Feature of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus as a model organism?

Answer 19

Basal Deuterostome - Echinodermata; transparent embryos - imaging

Question 20

Key Feature of Ciona intestinalis as a model organism?

Answer 20

Basal Chordate - Urochordata; transgenesis, imaging

Question 21

Key Feature of Brachiostoma lanceolatum as a model organism?

Answer 21

Basal Chordate - Cephalochordate

Question 22

Key Feature of Gallus gallus as a model organism?

Answer 22

Aves; Transplantation, Overexpression, Knockdown experiments

Question 23

Key Feature of Mus musculus as a model organism?

Answer 23

Mammal with strong genetics