Midterm 1 Flashcards
Chromosomes
Long double-stranded DNA molecules
What is the purpose of DNA packaging?
Increases organization, thus no messes
What is the structure of bacteria chromosomes?
Single, circular DNA
Chromatin
DNA and protein
Homologous chromosomes
The maternal and paternal chromosomes of a pair
What technique does chromosome painting use?
DNA hybridization
How does chromosome painting work?
Different colours of fluorescent dye are applied to the chromosome which can form base pairs (hybridize) to certain ones
What is the traditional way of staining?
Dyes that bind to certain DNA sequences, such as those with A-T vs G-C, producing different bands
Karyotype
A display of the full set of 46 chromosomes with homologous one numbered and arranged in pair
Gene
Segment of DNA that contains instructions to make a functional protein or RNA molecule
What do the RNA molecules produce?
A protein or can be the final product itself
Genome
The total genetic information carried by all the chromosomes in a cell or organism
What genomes are very compact?
Bacteria
What additional DNA do eukaryotes have?
Junk DNA that doesn’t code (intron)
What is the purpose of junk DNA?
Evolution of species or for activity of the genes
Does junk DNA differ between organisms?
No, it’s highly conserved
What is the relationship between gene number and total genome size?
There isn’t a relationship just that it’s roughly correlated with species complexity
What makes up the cell cycle?
Interphase and mitosis
Interphase
Where chromosomes are duplicated and the cell grows
Mitosis
The chromosomes are distributed to two daughter nuclei
How do the chromosomes appear during interphase?
Long, thin threads that can’t be seen under a microscope
Replication origin
Where DNA replication begins based on a sequence
How many replication origins are in a eukaryote?
Multiple that occur bidirectionally
What is the structure of a telomere?
Repeated nucleotide sequences
What is the purpose of a telomere?
Prevent DNA from being broken during cellular division (at the ends) and aids in replication of chromosome ends
How do chromosomes appear in mitosis?
Condensed and can be viewed under a microscope
What are the basic points in mitosis?
- Chromosomes condense
- Nuclear envelope breaks down
- Mitotic spindles attach to sister chromatids
- They pull apart to opposite sides
- Nuclear envelope reforms and two separate cells are formed (split)
What three DNA sequence elements are important?
- Telomere
- Replication origin
- Centromere
What is the purpose of a centromere?
Attaches the duplicated chromosomes to a mitotic spindle, thus allowing segregation of the two and holds the chromosomes compact
How do chromosomes exist within the interphase nucleus?
Occupy a particular region either on the nuclear envelope or in the nuclear lamina
What is the purpose of the nuclear lamina?
The protein meshwork that supports the envelope
What exists within the nucleolus?
Parts of the different chromosomes that carry genes to encode for ribosomal RNA
What is the purpose of heterochromatin?
Contain noncoding DNA and few genes where dense chromosomes exist
What is the purpose of histones?
Packing chromatins
What is the structure of a nucleosome?
Core particle with wrapped DNA, linker DNA, and H1