Differentiation Flashcards
What are organs?
Communities of specialised cell types
What is cell differentiation? 2 definitions:
The process by which unspecialised cells become specific cell types
– in the embryo (development)
– and continuing throughout life (tissue homeostasis)
How do cells differ?
Depends on the presence of different sets of proteins
- diff macromolecules
- different metabolites
- different morphologies and behaviours
Housekeeping vs specialised proteins ?
housekeeping = proteins found in most cell types for shared essential cell functions
specialised proteins = proteins specific to particular cell types (luxury functions)
Is insulin and antibody chain house keeping or cell-type specific?
cell-type specific
Cell differentiation in embryo development: egg divides to give many cells (initially ______) which must _____ into their various cell types.
- unspecialised
- differentiate
During early embryogenesis germ layers act as intermediates. what are the 3 germ layers and what does that process lead to?
Ectoderm, Mesoderm and endoderm
- eventually leads to cell destiny
Differentiation is driven by interplay between a ____ and its _____.
cell’s history (cell lineage)
environment (cell interactions)
What are progenitor cells or precursor cells?
- intermediate states of differentiation
Final cell form is _____ and it is ______
- terminal differentiation
- irreversible
Germ layers are formed during _____
Gastrulation
Mesoderm cells are more differentiated by the virtue of…
- more specific proteins
- characteristic cell behaviour
- restricted future differentiation potential
Definitions:
- cell fate determination
- cell lineages
- lineage restriction
- potency
- The process by which a cell becomes committed to a specific function or identity during development
- The developmental history or ancestry of a cell, tracing its progression from a single progenitor cell
- The process by which cells become progressively limited in their developmental potential
- The ability of a cell to differentiate into different cell types
What are the different types of potency and what cell types they can make?
Totipotent: Can form all cell types, including embryonic and extraembryonic tissues.
Pluripotent: Can form all cell types of the body but not extraembryonic tissues.
Multipotent: Can differentiate into a limited range of related cell types
Unipotent: Can produce only one cell type but retains the ability to self-renew.
How are cells differentiated (gene constancy and control of gene expression)
Cells differ in protein constituent as well as gene expression. nucleus of fertilised egg contains all genes for all possible proteins. cell specialisation is due to selective activation/inactivation of genes
What is an experiment to prove that genes are not lost in specialised cells?
nucleus of differentiated cell supports development of new organism. whole animal or plant can be cloned from a specialised cell
What is gene constancy?
all cells in a multicellular organism have a full complement of genes
What are gene expression patterns?
Cell-type-specific distribution of proteins and their mRNA
Control of gene expression in cells determines:
- their____, which in turn determines:
- their ______
- their____* during development
- their protein content, which in turn determines:
- their morphology and function
- their behaviour* during development
What is not an important concept in embryo development?
cell opportunity
Most differentiated cells retain a complete genome known as:
Gene constancy
Where is start site of transcription determined by?
helper proteins called TATA binding protein coded by TATA box that controls where transcription starts
What is a transcription factor and where does is it interpreted?
TF are proteins that are either activators or repressors that bind to enhancers to switch on or off transcription
a gene’s transcriptional activity in a cell depends on:
- what binding sites are in its DNA enhancer sequences
AND
2. whether approprioate TFs are present in cell
How does TF act via chromatin modifications?
- indirectly recruit RNA polymerase by altering chromatin structure
How does histone acetyl transferase (HAT) work?
acetylation loosens histone interaction with DNA, making the gene more accessible