Lecture 12: Gene structure and Expression Flashcards
unique nucleotide sequences are part of what
your chromosomes
How do we know that genes encode proteins
- 1896: Garrod studied alkaptonuria disease
observations:
- metabolic disorder
- produce chemical that turns black in air
- inherited**!!
- 1940: Beadle and Tatum studied orange bread mould
- mould grows on minimal media (make their own amino acids)
- used x-rays to produce nutritional mutants (they cant grow on minimal anymore because of a mutation)
- hypothesis: each mutant had defective gene for enzyme needed to synthesize a particular nutrient
- the enzyme won’t work properly
what is alkaptonuria disease
- alteration in a gene that encodes the enzyme that metabolizes this chemical
What was the beadle and Tatum experiment
- Arginine Synthesis Pathway
- How Arginine is built
Each step is controlled by a gene that encodes an enzyme for that step
- enzyme catalyzed reaction
- bc x-ray affects chromosomes, so it was caused by a gene defect
why is the wild type the ctrl group
- bc it can do everything (a.a, and growth)
rlnship btwn genes and proteins
1) one gene-one enzyme hypothesis
- direct relationship between genes and enzymes
2) one gene-one polypeptide hypothesis
- not all proteins are enzymes
- functional proteins sometimes contain 1 or more polypeptides
- different genes encode each polypeptide (coded by different genes)
How to get from genes to proteins
- transcription
- nucleotide sequence in DNA is copied into a complementary sequence in an RNA molecule
- template strand of DNA is used to create messenger (mRNA)
- Translation
- sequence of nucleotides in mRNA molecule specifies amino acid sequence in polypeptide
- ribosome assembles the amino acid sequence
Genetic Code
- how many nucleotides for how many combinations
- 4 nucleotide bases in DNA or RNA
- 20 different amino acids in polypeptides
Code:
- 1 nucleotide…only 4 combinations
- 2 nucleotides…only 16 combinations
(not enough combinations since we have 20 amino acids, and these are both smaller)
- 3 nucleotides…64 combinations
DNA vs RNA codes
DNA: three letter code-triplet
RNA: three letter code- codon
(complementary to each other)
1 CODON encodes 1 AMINO ACID
How do you build vs Read DNA
Built: 5-3
Read: 3-5
Features of the Genetic Code
Sense codons
- 61 codons specify amino acids
- most amino acids specified by several codons (redundancy)
- Ex. CCU, CCC, CCA, CCG all specify proline
- Nucleic acid codes are sequential
- no spaces between codons
- start AUG establishes the reading frame (repetition)
Start vs Stop codons
START
- also called the initiator codon
- AUG (applicable to most proteins)
- 1st codon recognized during translation
- Specifies amino acid Methionine
STOP
- end of a polypeptide encoding mRNA sequence
- UAA, UAG, UGA
* don’t code for any a.a.*
How do we know the genetic code is universal
- same codons specify the same amino acids in all living organisms and viruses
- genetic code was established very early in the evolution of life and has remained unchanged evolutionary= been around for a long time
Transcription (DNA to RNA)
- Info in DNA is transferred to a complementary RNA copy
- Similar to DNA replication except:
1) only 1 DNA strand is used as a template
2) Only transcribes the genes (unlike how in replication the entire chromosome is replicated)
3) RNA polymerase is used
4) RNA are single strands (replication: 2 by 2 stranded DNA molecules)
5) U replaces T (replication: uses Thymine)
RNA Polymerase
- No primers needed to start complementary copy
- RNA is made in the 5’-3’ direction
- DNA template strand is read 3’-5’
Eukaryotes: RNA polymerase does not bind directly to DNA, it needs A TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR
Prokaryotes: RNA polymerase binds directly to DNA
- start replication immediately/asap to make RNA copy
-bind to transcription data (indirectly)
TRANSCRIPTION OVERVIEW
- begins as RNA polymerase binds to DNA
- DNA double helix begins to unwind
- RNA polymerase adds RNA nucleotides sequentially according to DNA template
- Enzyme and completed RNA transcript are released from DNA template
- and DNA returns to OG form before transcription started
Organization of a gene
PROMOTER:
- control sequence initiates transcription
- upstream of transcritional unit
- where RNA polymerase binds
TRANSCRIPTIONAL UNIT:
- portion of gene that is copied into RNA (don’t transcribe everything)
TERMINATOR:
- signals the end of transcription of a gene
3 Stages of transcription
1) initiation
- RNA polymerase 2
euk: have TATA box in promoter
transcription factors: binds promoters
RNA polymerase 2, binds both transcription factors
UWINDS DNA + BEGINS TRANSCRIPTION
2) elongation
3) termination
- Termination of transcription differs in eukaryotes (polyadenylation signal, cells cleave to stop it)
- prokaryotes have terminators
TATA Box sequence
5’…TATAAAA…3’
3’…TATAAAA…5’
- TATA box in the promoter is about 30 base pairs
- determines where transcription will initiate
what is the poladenylation signal
- marks the end of transcription
- cells stop it to terminate RNA synthesis and ensure proper mRNA processing
Transcription of Non-Coding regions
- Non-coding genes do not code for protein but instead code for rRNA and tRNA
eukaryotes: use RNA polymerase 3 for tRNA and 1 rRNA - use RNA polymerase 1 for 3 rRNAs
- different promoters
Prok- use RNA polymerase 2 for all transcription
- same promoters
eukaryote: different genes
- coding region flanked 5’ and 3’ untranslated regions (UTRs)
- additional noncoding elements (introns)
pre-mRNA
1) precursor-mRNA (pre-mRNA)
- must be processed in nucleus to produce translatable mRNA
2) 5’ cap
- reversed guanine containing nucleotide
- site where ribosome attaches to mRNA
3) Poly A tail
- 50 to 250 adenine nucleotides added to 3’ en d by polA polymerase
- protects mRNA from RNA-digesting enzymes
stabilize mRNA to prevent degradation
- adding in opposite order
INTRONS VS EXONS
Introns
- Non-protein coding sequences in pre-mRNA
- must be removed before translation (to go from pre-mRNA to mature mRNA transcript)
Exons
- Amino acid coding sequence sequences in pre-mRNA
- Joined together sequentially in final mRNA
How do we remove introns
- mRNA splicing
- eukaryotes need to process mRNA for translation, prokaryotes don’t