Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Biology > F. Yr 13 cancer > Flashcards

F. Yr 13 cancer Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
AP® Biology flashcards Biology 101 flashcards
1
Q

What is a malignant tumour

A

A cancerous tumour

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What is a benign tumour

A

A non-cancerous tumour

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Name some characteristics of benign tumours

A
  • can grow to large size
  • grow slowly
  • must less likely to be life threatening but can disrupt organ function
  • have localised effect on the body
  • cells are often well differentiated
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Name some characteristics of malignant tumours

A
  • can grow to large size
  • grow rapidly
  • more likely to be life threatening as abnormal tissue replaces normal
  • have a systemic (whole body) effect such as weight loss and fatigue
  • cells become de-differentiated
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What happens during the development of cancer

A
  • cancer cells are derived from a single mutant cell
  • the initial mutation causes uncontrolled mitosis
  • later a further mutation in one of the descendant cells leads to other changes that cause subsequent cells to be different from normal in growth and appearance
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Name the two main types of genes that play a role in cancer

A
  • tumour suppressor genes

- oncogenes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What are proto-oncogenes

A
  • genes that stimulate a cell to divide
  • when growth factors attach to a complementary protein receptor on its cell surface membrane
  • this activates the genes causing DNA to replicate and the cell to divide
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

How do proto-oncogenes cause the cell to divide

A
  • when growth factors attach to a complementary protein receptor on its cell surface membrane
  • it activates the genes causing DNA to replicate and the cell to divide
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What happens when a proto-oncogene mutates into an oncogene

A

It becomes permanently switched on

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Why does a proto-oncogene become permanently switched on

A
  • the receptor protein on the cell-surface membrane can be permanently activated so that cell division is switched on even in the absence of growth factors
  • the oncogene may code for a growth factor that is then produced in excessive amounts again, stimulating excessive cell division
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Name two ways cancer can occur

A
  • mutation of proto-oncogenes

- mutation of tumour suppressor genes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What do tumour suppressor genes do

A
  • slow down cell division
  • repair mistakes in DNA
  • and ‘tell’ cells when to die (undergo apoptosis)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What is apoptosis

A

Cell programmed death

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

How do tumour suppressor genes prevent the formation of tumours

A

They maintain normal rates of cell division

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

How can the mutation of tumour suppressor genes cause cancer

A
  • mutation of tumour suppressor gene causes it to become inactive
  • as a result it stops inhibiting cell division
  • cells growth becomes out of control
  • therefore cancer
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

How does the hypermethylation of tumour suppressor genes cause the formation of a tumour

A
  • hypermethylation in a specific region of tumour suppressor genes (promotor region)
  • this leads to inactivation of the gene
  • transcription of the promotor regions of the tumour suppressor genes is inhibited
  • inactivation means cell growth rate cannot be controlled
  • leading to the formation of the tumour
17
Q

What is hypermethylation

A

Increased methylation

18
Q

Why does the hypermethylation of the on the tumour suppressor cause it to be inactivated

A
  • preventing the binding of transcriptional factors to the gene
  • attracting proteins that condense the DNA-histone complex (by inducing deacetylation of the histones) making the DNA inaccessible to transcription factors
19
Q

What other type of abnormal methylation can occur that leads to tumours

A
  • hypomethylation of oncogenes
  • therefore activating these oncogenes
  • therefore causing the formation of tumours
20
Q

What happens during menopause

A

Increased production of oestrogen in fat cells of breasts

21
Q

How does oestrogen cause a tumour to develop

A
  • oestrogen activates a gene by binding to a transcription factor which stimulates transcription of a gene
  • if oestrogen acts on a gene that controls cell division and growth it will be activated
22
Q

What can oestrogen cause

A

Breast cancer

23
Q

Define genome

A

The complete set of genes in a cell including those in mitochondria and or chloroplasts

24
Q

What does WGS sequencing stand for

A

Whole genome shotgun sequencing

25
Q

What is WGS sequencing

A

Researches cut the DNA into many small pieces, easily sequenced sections and then using computer algorithms to align overlapping segments to assemble the entire genome

26
Q

What is WGS sequencing used for

A

Determining the complete DNA base sequence of an organism (its genome)

27
Q

Give an example of medical advancements that have been made as a result of the human genome project

A

Over 1 million SNP’s have been found in the human genome which has advanced our understanding of diseases and disorders

28
Q

What is an SNP

A
  • single nucleotide polymorphism

- single base variations associated with disease and disorders

29
Q

What is a proteome

A

All the proteins that can be coded for by the genome

30
Q

What uses could the information gained from the human microbe project have

A

Provide knowledge if genes that can be exploited for example from organisms that can withstand extreme or toxic environments

31
Q

Why is determining the proteome of prokaryotic organisms like bacteria relatively easy

A
  • most prokaryotes have just one circular piece of DNA which is not associated with histones
  • there are no introns (non coding parts of DNA)
32
Q

What application does knowledge of the proteome project have

A
  • identification of the proteins that act as antigens on the surface of human pathogens
  • which can then be used in the production of vaccines
33
Q

Why is determining the proteome of complex organisms difficult

A

the genome contains many non-coding parts

  • genome cannot directly be translated into proteome
  • also everyone has different base sequences in their DNA, making it far more difficult

Biology (23 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions