Inheritance, Variation And Evolution Flashcards
What are the two types of reproduction?
Sexual reproduction - where two gametes from different parents join together
And
Asexual - which involves only one parent
What type of cell division produces cells for asexual reproduction?
Mitosis produces cells in asexual reproduction, so the offspring are genetically identical (clones) as all the DNA comes from one parent.
What type of cell division produces cells for sexual reproduction?
Meiosis produces gametes for sexual reproduction
How are gametes different to normal cells?
Gametes produced in meiosis or not genetically identical.
Also, they have half the DNA of a normal cell so when they join (fuse) the new cell has the full amount
What are the gametes called in animals?
Sperm cells are the male gametes, and egg cells of the female gametes
What are the gametes is called in flowering plants?
Pollen are the male gametes, and egg cells are the female gametes
What happens during meiosis to make gametes?
The DNA is replicated, copied.
The cell divides twice to go for gamete cells.
Each gamete is slightly different genetically to the other gametes.
Why is it important that gametes are genetically varied?
As each gamete is slightly different to the others, it mean offspring of sexual reproduction are genetically varied too.
This gives species are better survival chance.
Why do gametes have half the DNA of a body cell?
So that when the male and female gametes join during fertilisation, the new cell formed will have the normal chromosome number.
What are the advantages of sexual reproduction?
Offspring show genetic variation, which means that if the environment changes the species has a survival advantage by natural selection.
How do humans take advantage of natural selection?
Humans can take advantage of natural selection as they selectively breed offspring and choose the individuals that will increase food production.
What are the advantages of asexual reproduction?
Only one parent is needed which saves time and energy as no mate needs to be chosen. Also is this faster than sexual reproduction and many identical offspring can be produced.
Do some organisms do sexual and asexual reproduction?
Yes, many plants, fungi, and some parasites take advantage of both types of reproduction
How do plants to do both sexual and asexual reproduction?
Seeds are produced by sexual reproduction, but runners (e.g. in strawberry plants) and bulbs (E.g. daffodils) are produced asexually.
How do fungi do both sexual and asexual reproduction?
Fungi produce spores which are asexual, but if they meet another fungus of the same species, they can also reproduce sexually
What sort of parasites do both sexual and asexual reproduction?
The parasite that causes malaria, reproduces asexually inside the human host and sexually inside the mosquito
This is its normal life cycle.
What is DNA?
DNA is a chemical polymer made up of two strands joined together and coiled into a double helix shape
What is a chromosome?
A chromosome is a molecule of DNA that has been coiled up tightly to make a much shorter and fatter molecule
What is a gene?
A gene is a short section of DNA in a chromosome that codes for a single protein.
The code of the DNA in the gene is for a particular sequence of amino acids.
What is a genome?
The genome is all of the DNA of an organism. For example, the human genome is all of the DNA that every human would have.
Why is the human genome important?
Scientists have studied the human genome and now know what protein every single gene codes for. This will help scientists studying inherited disorders in the future
How can the human genome help with human history?
Scientists have used the genome to map where humans migrated from and to in the past.
What is a nucleotide?
It is the molecule of that DNA is made from.
Every nucleotide contains sugar, phosphate and the base.
There are four different bases, so there are four types of nucleotides.
So what does a single DNA strand look like?
Like half of a ladder
The sugars and phosphate alternate to make the side of the ladder with the bases bonded to the sugar molecule sticking out like the rungs
What are the different bases in a nucleotide?
These bases are called, A. T. G. C.
The base is attached to the sugar molecule in the nucleotide
How do the nucleotides code for proteins?
Three nucleotides in sequence code for one particular amino acid.
The order of bases controls the order of amino acids in a protein chain.
What are the two stages of protein synthesis?
Transcription (which takes place in the nucleus)
and then translation (which takes place in the cytoplasm at the ribosomes)
What happens during transcription?
A copy of the gene is made from a chemical called RNA.
The copy is called messenger RNA or mRNA and it can leave the nucleus and travel through the cytoplasm
What happens during translation?
A ribosome attaches to the start of the mRNA
as the ribosomes move along, small transfer RNA molecules arrive each bringing an amino acid
How are the amino acids placed in the correct order?
So mRNA is the template showing which amino acids needs to be put in the protein.
The sequence of the bases means the correct protein is made.
What happens to the protein when the ribosome reaches the end?
At the end of the mRNA the ribosome releases the protein.
The protein folds off to form a unique shape so that it can do its job
Why do proteins have specific shapes?
Many proteins need to bind to other molecules (e.g. enzymes and hormones) or need to be specific shape so they can do their job (e.g. collagen holds structures together)
What will happen if the order of bases in DNA is incorrect?
This is called a mutation as a result, the wrong amino acid could be put into a protein
Are all mutations harmful?
Many mutations have no effect on the protein made. Some have an effect that isn’t harmful and some can have helpful effects. A few mutations are harmful.
When do mutations happen?
Mutations occur all the time though some conditions can make them more likely. Often function of the protein is not affected. We are unaware of the mutation.
What happens if the mutation causes the protein to be incorrect?
Is the protein is an enzyme or a hormone it may not fit the molecule that it should bind to. If it is a structural protein (eg muscle protein) it may lose strength.
Does all of our DNA code for proteins to be made?
Some parts dont codes for proteins. Instead, they may be responsible for switching genes on and off. These non-coding parts may affect gene expression.
What is an allele?
A different version of a gene.
Different alleles occur because mutations happen.
Mutations change the DNA code and alter the amino acid sequence of a protein.
What is a genotype?
The combination of alleles that an organism has.
For each gene, every organism should have two alleles in their genotype
What is a phenotype?
The appearance of an individual is their phenotype.
It depends on the genotype and/or their environment (you can choose to dye your hair… it’s not in your genotype )
What does expressed mean in genetics?
Expressed means that a characteristic is visible in an individual because the DNA code has been read and the resulting protein is made
What is a dominant allele?
An allele that is always expressed in the phenotype. It is represented by a capital letter. eg B
What is a recessive allele?
An allele that only shows in the phenotype when there is no dominant allele in the genotype. It is represented by lowercase letter eg. b
What does heterozygous mean?
The genotype when an organism has two alleles that are different eg Bb
What does homozygous mean?
The genotype when an organism has two alleles that are the same as each other eg. BB is homozygous dominant and bb is homozygous recessive
Are all characteristics controlled by single genes?
Some characteristics are controlled by single genes eg blood group
Other characteristics are controlled by multiple genes on different chromosomes e.g. Height.
How do we show the probability of a characteristic?
Probability should always be out of one (but often you can turn it into a percentage or a fraction and still get the marks)
What is a punnet squares diagram?
A box shaped diagram that we can use to predict the probability of a particular characteristic being expressed
What is an inherited disorder?
Any disorder that can be passed on from one or both parent. For GCSE, you need to know about polydactyly and cystic fibrosis.
What is polydactyly?
This disorder gives a sufferer extra fingers and/or toes. It is caused by a dominant allele.
What is cystic fibrosis?
This disorder affects the cell membranes of sufferers and causes thick mucus to be produced which affects many parts of the body.
It is caused by a recessive allele.
What is embryo screening?
Treating DNA of an embryo to find out whether it will be a sufferer of a particular disorder. Parents can choose whether to continue the pregnancy
Why do some people think embryo screening is good?
It reduces the number of children born with inherited disorders. This reduces suffering and distress and it also reduces the cost for the NHS as fewer treatments are needed.
Why do some people think embryo screening are bad?
It results in otherwise healthy embryos being destroyed. Some people disagree with this as every embryo is a potentially a life.
How many chromosomes does a normal human have?
Every human body cell has 46 chromosomes arranged as 23 pairs. One of each pair came from each parent during fertilisation.
What are the sex chromosomes?
Pairs 1-22 code for normal characteristics. Pair 23 is the pair that control what gender are the person will be pair 23 are the sex chromosomes
What are the sex chromosomes in a female?
The two sex chromosomes are the same as eachother in females. They r both X , so we say females have XX
Wht ar the sex chromosomes in males?
The two sex chromosomes are different to eachother in males.
They have one X and one Y so we say males have XY