Major Milestones of Genetics

Question 1

What are the four major milestones in the study of genetics?

Answer 1

• Gregor Mendel: the rules of inheritance (Published in 1866, “Experiments in Plant Hybridisation” is still
  internationally renowned)
• James Watson and Francis Crick: the structure of DNA (1953)
• The Human Genome Project: the detailed analysis of
  human DNA (Sequencing DNA and Cataloguing Genes)
• Genome Editing (CRISPR/Cas9)

Question 2

Give a broad description of a gene

Answer 2

A hereditary factor responsible for traits

Question 3

What are Alleles?

Answer 3

Different forms of genes

Question 4

What are the rules of inheritance?

Answer 4

• Alleles of the same gene separate during gamete formation

- Alleles of different genes are inherited independently

Question 5

What are Genes made up of?

Answer 5

• Genes are made of nucleic acids which, themselves, are made up of building blocks called nucleotide’s.

Question 6

What are Nucleotide’s made of?

Answer 6

Nucleotide’s have three components

• Sugar molecule (ribose or deoxyribose)
• Phosphate molecule
• Nitrogen-containing molecule (adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine, uracil)

Question 7

What does RNA and DNA stand for?

Answer 7

• RNA is ribonucleic acid

- DNA is deoxyribonucleic acid

Question 8

How are nucleotide’s linked (meaning the individual strands of the DNA)?

Answer 8

Nucleotide’s are linked in a chain through sugar phosphate interactions

Question 9

How is the structure of the DNA strand formed?

Answer 9

DNA molecules are made of two chains of nucleotide’s wound around each other in a helix structure, where base pairs hold the chains together:

• A (Adenine) pairs with T (Thymine)
• G (Guanine) pairs with C (Ctyosine)

Question 10

Who actually discovered the double helix structure of DNA and why weren’t they recognised for their work?

Answer 10

Rosalind Franklin – a researcher in Wilkins‘ group generated the critical X-ray diffraction image of DNA but wouldn’t publish her results until convinced of the data. Due to illness Franklin left King’s College in London, but her work and lab books had to stay there

Question 11

How did Watson and Crick discover the structure of the double helix?

Answer 11

Watson and Crick made a number of models but couldn’t get the model to work. Wilkins provided Franklin’s unpublished results to Watson and Crick. Franklin results allowed the modern model of DNA to be constructed

Question 12

What is a Genome?

Answer 12

The complete set of genes or genetic material present in a cell or organism.

Question 13

What is Genomics?

Answer 13

The analysis of DNA sequences that make up a genome

Question 14

What did the Human Genome Project determine?

Answer 14

The Human Genome Project determined the sequence of nucleotides in the DNA of the human genome

Question 15

What is CRISPR-Cas9?

Answer 15

CRISPR-Cas9 is a unique technology that enables geneticists and medical researchers to edit parts of the genome by removing, adding or altering sections of the DNA sequence. It is currently the simplest, most versatile and precise method of genetic manipulation

Question 16

Draw a diagram of a nucleotide

Answer 16

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Nzo4FTzXCbwOZjpoc_J_4IF3gsOXPcoyC2BowELmx0U/edit?usp=sharing

Question 17

Draw a diagram of the double helix structure and the base pairs.

Answer 17

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Nzo4FTzXCbwOZjpoc_J_4IF3gsOXPcoyC2BowELmx0U/edit?usp=sharing