gentech flashcards
what is the purpose of adult stem cells and how do they differentiate?
-to repalce old or damaged cells
-multipotent, so they only generate into the cell type where they are located
How are adult stem cells triggered?
turned on and off based on environmental or chemical changes
What is stemness and what happens when it is uncontrolled?
the ability of stem cells to self-renw and differentiate
0leads to cancers that are more difficult to treat because it causes the cancer cells to differentiate into different types of cancer cells, rendering treatment for one cell type ineffective.
what are embryonic stem cells?
cells that can differentiate into any cell in the body (PLURIPOTENT)
what doe pluripotent mean?
(of a cell) able to differentiate into every cell type in the body
what does multipotent mean?
can only differentiate into a limited number of cell types (adult stem cells could be described as multipotent)
what are cancer stem cells?
cancer cells that behave like stem cells
What are induced pluripotent stem cells (ipscs)
normal adult cells that scientists reprogram to act like embryonic stem cells
what are the applications of induced pluripotent stem cells?
used in cell replacement therapy ( damaged tissues can be repaired by IPSC reproduction), tissue regeneration,
what is asymmetric mitosis? why is it important
a special type of cell division where one daughter cell remains a stem cell while the other remains a specialized cell
-this is how cell differentiation occurs, and helps maintain the stem cell population
what is gene expression?
the process by which information form DNA is used to make proteins (controls cell functions)
what processes regulate gene expression?
transcription factors, microRNA, epigenetics, and chromatin modification
what are transcription factors?
proteins that bind to DNA and act as switches that turn genes on or off
-determine what genes are being expressed
what is microRNA?
small, non-protein coding RNA molecules that block the produiction of certain proteins by preventing mRNA from being translated
epigenetics
changes in gene expression that occur as a result of chromatin modification, and do not alter the DNA sequence
what processes influence epigenetics?
Chromatin modification, which occurs through DNA methylation and histone acetylation
what causes chromatin modification?
environment, diet, stress, and other biochemical and environmental factors
what is DNA methylation?
adding a methyl group which tightens chromatin, silencing genes
histone acetylation
adding an acetyl group which loosens chromatin, making genes more accessible for transcription
what is a somatic cell?
any bodily cell that is not involved in reproduction
-contain a full lset of chromosomes, while reproductive cells contain half
hat is somatic cell nuclear transfer and what process is it used in?
the nucleus of a somatic cell is transferred into an egg cell with a removed nucleus. This is then stimulated to develop into an an embryo WITHOUT sperm, creating an offspring that is a genetic copy of the parent.
- used in cloning
reproductive cloning?
cloning done to create a genetically identical organism
what is therapeutic cloning?
the cloning of stem cells for medical treatment.
0 the embryo is used to grow embryonic stem cells, which are then inserted into a body to regenerate tissues and cells.
what are multifactorial traits?
traits determined by multiple factors (genes, chemical, and environmental)
what is gwas (genome wide assoication studies)
a research method that compards the DNA of many people to determine which genetic variations (mutations) are linked to a certain disease
-utilizes the DNA MICRORARRAY
DNA microarray
a lab tool used to study many genes at once and detect genetic differences or changes in gene expression
what causes changes in gene expression
EPIGENETICS( aka DNA methylation and histone acetylation)
what are SNPS (single nucleotide polymorphisms)
specific/a single point mutation that affects many people
what are CNVs?( copy number variations) what do they influence?
large section of DNA that are duplicated or missing
- can influence disease susceptibility
what is the common disesase/common variant hypothesis?
common diseases are influence by common/specific genetic variations(aka SNPs an CNV)
what is whole genome evaluation/sequencing?
a technology that read all of a person’s DNA and helps detect rare mutation and predict disease risk
what is cell replacement therapy and what kind of cell does it use?
-cell replacement therapy usings IPS/ induced pluripotent stem cells, which are adult stem cells programmed to act like embryonic cells.
- cell replacement therapy is the replacement of damaged or lost cells with healthy ones using pluripotent stem cells which can turn into any cell type for repairing tissues
what are chimeric embryos?
embryos contain cells from two different species
what is CRISPR? what is cas9? how od they work together to edit the genome?
-CRISPR is a genetic sequence fund in bacteria that stores a memory of piece of viral DNA
-cas9 is an enzyme that cuts DNA at a specific location
-crispr locates the problematic gene, which cas9 cuts, modifies, and replaces it
