Exam 2 Flashcards
What is heredity?
Inheritance or transmission of traits from parent to off spring.
What is genetics?
The study of how information is transmitted from one living organism to the next.
How is every living thing organized?
Via coded material called genetic material
What happens to genetic material during reproduction?
It is duplicated and transmitted to the next generation of living organism.
What is a gene?
It is a sequence of DNA that codes for a single genetic instruction. Typically the instruction is for the building of a protein, but the protein may also activate genes in a cell of neighboring cell.
Is every aspect of our species constructed based on code from DNA?
Yes, it is.
How is the information contained in DNA translated into living organism?
Via cytological machinery or cellular machinery. Two words for the same thing.
Are the impact of genes predictable?
No, genes are impacted by other gene and the environment.
What is an allele?
Different versions of the same gene. Moreover, we all have genes for eye color. But, one allele might code for blue, another for green and a another for brown.
For each gene, we typically get one allele from mom and another from Dad. As in I got two alleles for blue eyes.
What is an example of a small change in DNA code having a big impact?
In humans, if GAG is recoded GUG, sickle cell anemia results.
What are prokaryotes?
Simplest, oldest and most common organism on earth. Almost always single celled. They have much smaller genomes than eukaryotes.
What are the four principle blood types?
A, B, O and AB
What a pure-breeding or true-breeding line?
Consists of individuals that produce offspring identical to themselves when they are mated with themselves. Said another way, they are individuals of the same phenotype that when crossed always produce individuals of the same phenotype. Moreover, they are homozygous for the gene in question.
What is a hybrid?
A a offspring that is a cross between two homozygous parents. Hybrids are always heterozygous.
What is a reciprocal cross?
A cross in which the phenotype of the male and he female are reversed and compared with a prior cross. These types of crosses are intended to test the role of parental sex on inheritance patterns.
Prezygotic isolation mechanism
This type of isolation prevents mating. Leads to what is called allopatric speciation. Moreover, populations that geographically divided do not have the gene flow to stay a unitary species. And, by genetic drift, natural selection, and new mutations evolve into separate species.
Once the geographic barrier is removed the two incipient species might meld together by allele flow and again become one species. Or they might remain reproductively isolated.
Postzygotic isolation mechanism
Isolation leads to speciation. This type of isolation prevents fertilization after mating has occurred.
polyploidy
Organisms containing more than two sets of chromosomes.
Sympatric Speciation
When species whose geographic region overlap, evolve into new speciation. This is usually due to polyploidy and and non-random mating.
Cladogenesis
When a new species evolves from a parents species that continues to exist.
Phylogeny
family tree describing how species are related.
Systematics
The study of phylogeny
Taxonomy
The process of describing and naming organisms
What is the most widely accepted school of systematics?
Clasistics which infers phyogenic patterns based on homologies.
What is a homologous characteristic?
A character state two species inherited from a common ancestor.
How are phylogenic trees constructed?
They are constructed based on homologous characteristics
What is homoplasy?
When a trait evolves in multiple places. Moreover, it is not homologous (ie evolving from the same ancestor). Moreover, two species have the same trait but no common ancestor.
Testcross
When a homozygous recessive individual is crossed with a individual with the dominant phenotype but an unknown genotype. This cross is typically used to determine the genotype of the parent with the dominant phenotype.
That phenotype can either be heterozygous dominant or homozygous dominant.
What was Mendel’s first step?
He crossed pure lines that differed in just one trait. In his first experiment it was whether the seeds were round or wrinkled.
What did Mendel find in the F1 of his first round wrinkled cross?
Every single pea in the F1 was round. This meant that round seeds were dominant. Proving that blending inheritance could not be the method of inheritance.
What is the ratio of the F2 generation for a single loci cross? Assuming the parent generation was a monohybrid cross?
3:1
What did Mendel do after his monohybrid cross of round and winkled seeds resulted in all rounds seeds?
He allowed the F1 to self-polinate
What causes Huntington’s disease?
It is caused by a dominant gene.
Are dominant alleles automatically more common than recessive?
No, dominant alleles just refers to what wins in a given situation not to the overall frequency.
What other traits did Mendel test with early monohybrid crosses? What ratio did he consistently find in the F2 for the ration of the dominant trait to the recessive trait?
Seed shape, seed color, pod shape, pod color, flower color, flower and pod position, stem length. 3:1
What is the null hypothesis?
The commonly accepted point of view. In this class the null hypothesis will typically be independent assortment.