Genetics Flashcards
Phenotype:
Discernible properties of an individual.
Genotype:
The genetic information that influences discernible properties.
What are the two types unicellular eukaryotic organisms?
Fungi and Protoctista
What makes up eukaryotic chromosomes?
Chromatin (DNA and Histone proteins)
What is cytogenetics?
The study of chromosomes.
What is the karyotype?
The chromosome complement of an individual.
What is the p arm of a chromosome?
The “petite” (shorter) arm
What is the name of the longer arm of the chromosome?
The q arm
How many chromosomes in a healthy human are autosomes?
22
What is meant by diploid?
Two homologous chromosomes with the same genes but different alleles.
Are all eukaryotes diploid?
No.
What is a gene?
A unit of hereditary information that occupies a fixed position on a chromosome.
What are the 3 regions which typically make-up a eukaryotic protein-coding region?
The upstream flanking region, the transcriptional unit, the downstream flanking region.
Cytoplasmic inheritance?
Some DNA in mitochondria and chloroplasts. Organelles originate from ancient endosymbiotic events. As egg cell has large volume, cytoplasmic inheritance is determined by maternal inheritance.
Euchromatin:
Loosely packed chromatin.
Heterochromatin:
Condensed structure that does not allow the expression of genes in that region.
Why is there variation between cells of multicellular organism?
Specialisation (differentiation) can occur post division -> share genetic information, however differ in expression.
Why is eukaryotic DNA replication “semi” continuous?
The 5’ to 3’ leading strand is replicated continuously, whereas the 3’ to 5’ lagging strand is replicated in fragments.
G1: Cell cycle
Cell increases in size, ribosomes and RNA produced, DNA prepared for synthesis.
S phase: Cell Cycle
DNA is synthesised.
G2 Phase: Cell Cycle
Cell check for fidelity of the DNA, prepares for nuclear division.
Prophase:
Chromosomes condense -> become visible. Chromosome now comprises 2 chromatids and a single centromere.
What protein holds together sister chromatids?
Cohesin
The mitotic spindle:
Cytoskeletal structure made of microtubules (tubulin protein polymer). The spindle separates sister chromatids to daughter cells -. achieves this by shortening microtubules.
Centromeres:
Specialised region of the chromosome that direct the equal segregation of chromosomes during mitosis. Defined by specific epigenetic markers. Can be found at any point along the chromosome. Connect to microtubules by kinetochore.
Kinetochore:
Large protein complex connecting centromere to microtubules (mitotic spindle)
Metaphase:
Centromeres align at the spindle equator. Microtubules attaching to each pole cause tension holding chromosomes in place.
Anaphase:
Sister chromatid cohesion breaks down. Chromatids separates forming chromosomes. Centromeres start moving to opposite poles.
Telophase:
Chromosomes arrive at cell poles -> decondense -> nuclei form
Cytokinesis:
Division of the cell, formation of a “cleavage furrow” between poles as protein ring contacts.
Function of meiosis?
Halves the chromosome number in cells through two successive nuclear divisions.
Nuclear cycle in Saccharomyces cerevisiae:
Haploid throughout most of life cycle -> a and alpha mating types -> a and alpha combine to form diploid -> meiosis occurs -> 4 haploid products.
Meiosis 1:
Daughter cells produced have chromosomes containing chromatids of one chromosome from each pair.
What are the 5 stages of meiosis 1:
Leptotene, zygotene, pachytene, diplotene, diakinesis
Leptotene:
1st stage of meiosis 1: Replicated chromosomes contract
Zygotene:
2nd stage of meiosis 1: Chromosomes line up in homologous pairs, form synapsis. Homologous pair held together by synaptonemal complex.
Pachytene:
3rd stage of meiosis 1:
Crossing over between non-sister chromatids + genetic exchange.
Diplotene:
4th stage of meiosis 1: Chromosomes separate a bit but sites of crossing over are still visible
Diakinesis:
5th stage of meiosis 1: Chromosomes contract further -> less crossing over.
How does meiosis generate variation through independent assortment:
Orientation of bivalents on meiosis spindle is random, and the combination of inherited chromosomes in the daughter cells is random.
What is a wild type allele?
The form that predominates in nature -> makes up laboratory stock.
What types of mutation are inheritable?
Mutations in gametes
What is the effect of spontaneous mutation in meiosis?
Increased variation in progeny.
what are the 3 types of polyploidy?
Triploidy, Tertraploidy, Monoploidy
What is polyploidy?
An unusual number of chromosome sets.
What is the normal number of chromosome sets in a human?
2n
What is Aneuploidy:
One or a few individual chromosomes are extra/missing.
Sources of mutation:
Mistakes during replication (Point mutations and small insertions/deletions), Transposons, Incorrect repair of DNA,
What is a null allele:
An allele where mutation has led to complete loss of function.
What are types of point mutations?
Silent, nonsense, and missense,
What are auxotrophic mutants?
Mutants that are unable to synthesise essential compounds.
What type of auxotrophic must occur for an organisms to still be able to survive?
A non-allelic auxotrophic mutations.
Pure breeding lines:
All offspring from matings within the line have the same character (phenotypes)
Chi-square equation:
Chi^2 = sum of ( (observed - expected)^2 / expected)
Degrees of freedom:
The number of parameters that can vary independently.
What is the degree of freedom for a chi^2 test?
Number of classes - 1.
What are viruses?
Genetic elements that cannot replicate independent of a living host cell -> can exist as particles outside host.
Why does the size of viruses impact their ability to replicate?
Viruses can only carry small volume of genetic material -> doesn’t have sequences req. for independent replication.
Range of viral genome size:
0.5-1000kb (kilo bases)
They can have fewer than 5 genes.
What is virion?
The extracellular form of the viral nucleic acid surrounded by protein.
Assembly of virion: How does it reduce the need for structural genes?
Small number of protein species make up the capsid-> these don’t require as many structural genes due to self-assmebly
What ensures the transcription of viral genes over host genes upon infection?
T4 lysozomes.
Function of early proteins synthesised by viruses?
They’re involved in the replication of the DNA and to synthesise copies.
Sigma factors:
Aids transcription via RNA polymerase by providing specificity to bind to promoter region.
How do viruses trick host cells into transcribing viral rna?
Viral sigma factors lead to RNA polymerase binding to the viral genetic information.
How do viruses prevent host transcription?
The phage encodes for anti-sigma factors -> binding to host sigma factors and prevent transcription.
How are middle proteins synthesised in viral infections?
early proteins bind to host RNA polymerase and alter the alpha subunits to recognise middle protein promoters.
What’s significant about the sequential order of protein synthesis during viral infection?
Allows for the guiding of structures to synthesise middle mRNA and middle proteins to then transcribe late proteins.
Lysogeny:
Stable genetic relationship between virus and host.
Temperate bacteriophages:
Phages which have the capacity to integrate their genetic information.
Steps of initial viral infection:
Attachment -> injection of DNA/RNA -> lytic or lysogenic pathway.
Lytic lifecycle:
Viral DNA replication -> protein synthesis -> assembly -> lysis
Lysogenic Pathway:
Viral DNA integrates into Host DNA (sometimes into host chromosome and forms prophage) -> remains through cell division and replicates in synchrony with the host cell DNA.
What is induction (viral infection)?
The process of swapping from the lysogenic pathways into the lytic pathway and form virions.
What are repressors?
Proteins that switch off the lytic pathway
Induction requires what?
the inactivation of repressors or the prevention of their synthesis.
AttLambda:
The attachment site at which the viral genome integrates -> requires enzyme Lambda integrase.
What type of enzymes are integrases:
Ligases.
How is phage DNA replicated?
The “rolling circle mechanism”
“rolling circle mechanism”
DNA is continuously synthesised into concatemer using an unbroken template strand -> synthesised it acts as a secondary template for primers to attach to -> allowing for the replication of complimentary template strand -> after complete copy of genome finished -> cut and separated.
What do many animal viruses have around their coat?
A membrane to allow them to enter the host cell via endocytosis.
How do animal viruses replicate their DNA?
They integrate into host Chromosome and are transcribed.
What kind of genetic information do Animal viruses carry?
RNA or DNA based genomes.
What feature of eukaryotic cell mRNA acts as a barrier to viruses?
mRNA is processed before translation -> therefore the viral mRNA will not have the correct cap/markers to be translated.
Name the protein cage surrounding DNA:
The Capsid
Polyprotein method eukaryotic viruses:
ssRNA made to look like spliced mRNA (has a 3’ tail and 5’ VPG cap) -> allows for the ssRNA to be translated -> form viral proteins.
How do RNA viruses inhibit the action of host RNA?
They use enzymes to destroy the cap binding proteins within the host cell.
Rabies:
Uses viral RNA replicase -> used to increase RNA amount in host cell -> increase freq. of translation. -ve parental RNA strand is transcribed vRNA polymerase into mRNA (+ sense) -> translated using host enzymes. -> increased synthesis of + strand RNA.
Influenza:
-ve strand RNA genome strand is segmented. Neuraminidase to breakdown sugar coat on host cell envelope.
Complex structure with many accessory proteins. Has 8 linear ssRNA molecules.
Hemagglutinin - binds to receptors and triggers fusion of membranes.
Influenza: Replication
-Takes place within host nucleus.
-Overall pattern of genomic RNA synthesis -> resembles rabies pathway.
-viral mRNA synthesised given 5’ caps (cut from primers) and PolyA tails
What is Antigenic shift?
Portions of the RNA genome from 2 genetically distinct strains, both infecting a cell are reassorted -> leads to different surface proteins.
HIV:
-Retrovirus.
-2 strands of ssRNA
-Genome is replicated through a DNA intermediate.
-viral reverse transcriptase is used for replication.
What are the three regions of HIV’s genome?
gag, pol, and env
HIV: gag
Encodes structural proteins
HIV: pol
encodes reverse transcriptase and integrase
HIV: env
Encodes envelope proteins.