Inhertance and Genetics Flashcards

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1
Q

What are nucleosomes made from?

A

Nucleosomes are made from DNA wrapped around histone proteins

Nucleosomes are the fundamental units of chromatin structure.

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2
Q

What is the function of nucleosomes?

A

Nucleosomes help to supercoil the DNA and regulate transcription in eukaryotes

This regulation is crucial for gene expression control.

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3
Q

What is the structure of a nucleosome?

A

A nucleosome consists of 8 histone proteins: 2 each of H2A, H2B, H3, and H4

The nucleosome is often visualized as ‘beads on a string’ of DNA.

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4
Q

What role does H1 play in nucleosomes?

A

H1 is a linker histone that helps to stabilize the structure of the nucleosome

It binds to the DNA where it enters and exits the nucleosome.

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5
Q

What type of cell would you NOT find nucleosomes?

A

You would NOT find nucleosomes in prokaryotic cells

Prokaryotes have a simpler structure lacking histone proteins.

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6
Q

How can the modification of the N-terminal tail from the nucleosome regulate gene expression?

A

Acetylation of the N-terminal tail allows expression, while methylation suppresses it

These modifications alter the interaction of nucleosomes with transcription factors.

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7
Q

What is the composition of eukaryote chromosomes?

A

Eukaryote chromosomes are linear DNA molecules associated with histone proteins

This structure is essential for DNA packaging and regulation.

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8
Q

What is ‘linker’ DNA?

A

‘Linker’ DNA refers to the stretch of DNA between nucleosomes

It connects adjacent nucleosomes and is crucial for chromatin organization.

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9
Q

What regulates gene expression?

A

Gene expression is regulated by proteins that bind to specific base sequences in DNA.

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10
Q

What impacts gene expression?

A

The environment of a cell and of an organism has an impact on gene expression.

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11
Q

What is imprinting in gene expression?

A

The epigenome does not get erased completely and results in imprinting.

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12
Q

What is an example of imprinting?

A

Lions are an example of how the father being a lion still gives the offspring traits linking it to its mother due to imprinting.

Imprinting involves epigenetic tags.

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13
Q

How does methylation affect tumor suppressor genes?

A

Methylation of tumor suppressor genes can impact their expression.

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14
Q

How does the lac operon in E. coli control gene expression?

A

In E. coli, the lac operon uses a repressor protein that binds to the promoter region for lactase. The presence of lactose will deactivate the repressor protein and allow production of lactase.

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15
Q

What changes in the E. coli environment cause changes in lactase production?

A

When lactose is present and glucose is low, glucose destroys the repressor, allowing more lactase production.

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16
Q

What is transcription?

A

Transcription is the synthesis of mRNA copied from the DNA base sequences by RNA polymerase.

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17
Q

In which direction does transcription occur?

A

Transcription occurs in a 5’ to 3’ direction.

18
Q

How can transcription be regulated?

A

Transcription can be regulated by proteins that bind to the DNA.

19
Q

What is the promoter region in transcription?

A

The promoter region is a sequence of DNA where RNA polymerase binds to initiate transcription.

20
Q

What is the TATA box?

A

The TATA box is a specific DNA sequence within the promoter region that helps position RNA polymerase.

21
Q

What role do transcription factors play?

A

Transcription factors are proteins that assist in the binding of RNA polymerase to the promoter region.

22
Q

What is DNA methylation?

A

DNA methylation is the addition of methyl groups to DNA, which can activate or repress transcription.

23
Q

How can the environment influence epigenetic factors?

A

The environment can trigger heritable changes in epigenetic factors, affecting gene expression.

24
Q

What do monozygotic twin studies show about methylation patterns?

A

Monozygotic twin studies show that methylation patterns can change with age, indicating environmental influence.

25
Q

Will identical twins become more or less similar in characteristics as they age?

A

Identical twins will become less similar due to mutations and epigenetic factors.

26
Q

List three processes that change gene expression in chromatin.

A

Methylation, acetylation, and phosphorylation of amino acid tails of histones.

27
Q

How do epigenetic tags influence inheritance?

A

Epigenetic tags can be inherited, and changes in chromatin structure can affect gene accessibility.

28
Q

Give an example of an environmental factor affecting heritable DNA.

A

Lions show how environmental factors can influence traits passed to offspring through imprinting.

29
Q

What is imprinting in the context of epigenetics?

A

Imprinting refers to the inheritance of epigenetic tags that affect gene expression without erasing the epigenome.

30
Q

What is crossing over?

A

Crossing over is the exchange of DNA material between non-sister homologous chromatids.

31
Q

What does crossing over produce?

A

Crossing over produces new combinations of alleles on the chromosomes of the haploid cells.

32
Q

What is the result of unlinked genes during meiosis?

A

Unlinked genes segregate independently as a result of meiosis.

33
Q

What does it mean for gene loci to be linked?

A

Gene loci are said to be linked if they are on the same chromosome.

34
Q

How does crossing over promote genetic variation?

A

Crossing over and random orientation promotes genetic variation.

35
Q

How does fusion of gametes contribute to genetic variation?

A

Fusion of gametes from different parents promotes genetic variation.

36
Q

What are the three processes in sexual reproduction that increase variation?

A
  1. Crossing over: when non-sister chromatids exchange DNA segments.
  2. Independent assortment: when chromosomes segregate during meiosis.
  3. Random fertilization: fusion of gametes from different parents.
37
Q

What makes independent assortment possible?

A

Independent assortment of genes is due to the random orientation of pairs of homologous chromosomes in meiosis 1.

38
Q

How does the orientation of homologous chromosomes affect variation?

A

Orientation of pairs of homologous chromosomes prior to separation is random, affecting variation in a population.

39
Q

What happens to alleles during meiosis?

A

The two alleles of each gene separate into different haploid daughter nuclei during meiosis.

40
Q

What is the result of gamete fusion?

A

Fusion of gametes results in diploid zygotes with two alleles of each gene that may be the same allele or different alleles.