Lecture 1 Exam 1

Question 1

Define evolution

Answer 1

changes in allele (an alternate form of a gene) frequencies over time

Question 2

Differentiate between pattern and process

Answer 2

pattern: observable and quantifiable evidence from the natural world
process: is what causes the patterns

Question 3

Hypotheses Testing: Define the following
1. Manipulative Experiments
2. Natural Experiment
3. Observational studies

Answer 3

1. A controlled experiment in which the scientist manipulates some aspect of the system and observes its behavior. usually involve a treatment and control group
2. the scientist takes advantage of some natural event that perturbs the system in some way that allows the hypotheses to be tested
3. the scientist makes predictions about a system that has not yet been studied based on the hypothesis and then collects data to see if the predictions are upheld

Question 4

How is malaria transmitted? Give scientific names

Answer 4

• malaria is known as strain plasmodium falciparum and reproduces in mosquitoes from genus anopheles
• malaria must complete its growth cycle in mosquito
• when infected female mosquito takes blood meal from humans, it injects sporozoites into the bloodstream
• ## they replicate in the liver cells and then infect erythrocytes (red blood cells) and reproduce asexually there

Question 5

Give the geographic distribution of malaria

Answer 5

• found in tropical areas around the equator where ~41% of the world population lives
• plasmodium falciparum cannot complete its growth cycle in temperatures lower than 20C/68F and thus cannot be transmitted

Question 6

Give key events in Malaria research

Answer 6

• Charles Laveran discovered malaria in blood
• Ronald Ross demonstrated its transmission through mosquitoes
• Youyou Tu discovered Artemisinin, an anti-malarial agent that has significantly reduced mortality rates
• Eradication of malaria with DDT, window screens, draining swamps,

Question 7

Describe malaria resistance to pyrimethamine

Answer 7

• resistance exists through DHFR mutation by decreasing the binding affinity of the drug
• from 7,8-dihydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate

Question 8

How does sickle cell cause disease?

Answer 8

• A single change in the amino acid of the hemoglobin protein
• the deformed cells block the flow of cells and interrupt the delivery of oxygen

Question 9

Describe the sickle cell trait

Answer 9

• AA: people are susceptible to death from malaria
• SS: susceptible to death from complications with sickle cell disease
• AS: have a greater chance of surviving malaria and do not suffer adverse consequences from the hemoglobin S allele

Question 10

Describe the scientific method including the steps

Answer 10

1. Observation
2. Formulating the hypothesis: create models/experiments with testable predictions
3. Testing hypothesis: using patterns from nature or data from experiments to test predictions

Question 11

What is a model?

Answer 11

hypotheses, scientific laws, or theories

Question 12

rank the following: community and ecosystem, biosphere, population, and landscape

Answer 12

1. population
2. community and biosphere
3. landscape
4. biosphere

Question 13

evolution occurs in ____ and selection occurs in _____

Answer 13

1. populations
2. individual

Question 14

What is a theory?

Answer 14

• ideas that have a broad explanatory power and have passed numerous attempts to falsify
• examples are theory of plate tectonics and theory of relativity

Question 15

How do hypotheses compare to theories?

Answer 15

• they are much less supported by data and less broad in scope

Question 16

What drugs is malaria resistant to?

Answer 16

• chloroquine and pyrimethamine