Genes and the Triplet Code

Question 1

What is the nature of a gene?

Answer 1

A gene is a section of DNA that contains the coded information for making polypeptides and functional RNA.

Question 2

How do genes code for polypeptides?

Answer 2

-Genes code for the amino acid sequence of a polypeptide
-Genes code for a functional RNA, including ribosomal RNA and transfer RNAs

Question 3

What is the meaning of the following terms for the genetic code:
-Degenerate
-Non-overlapping
-Universal

Answer 3

DEGENERATE: Most amino acids are coded for by more than one triplet
NON-OVERLAPPING: Each base in the sequence is read only once (i.e. split up into sections of three numbers)
UNIVERSAL: Each triplet codes for the same amino acid in all organisms.

Question 4

What are exons and introns?

Answer 4

Exons are non-coding sequences that do not code for polypeptides.
Introns are non-coding sequences that separate exons even further.