Midterm!!! Flashcards
What is DNA?
Deoxyribonucleic acid
What are genes?
Sequences of DNA that code for RNA and protein
How long is our DNA?
Two meters long
How many chromosomes do we have?
46
How many genes do we have?
about 300,000
Where is meiosis happening now?
In human gonads (males only)
What is chromatin?
DNA and proteins found during interphase
What is a nucleosome?
A basic unit of packaging for DNA
What are histone proteins?
The proteins that DNA always wraps around (even when decondensed). This is the first “level” of DNA packaging.
What is the second level of DNA packaging?
Beads-on-a-string packaging, where nucleosomes are connected to one another.
What is the third level of DNA packaging?
The 30 nm fiber.
What are the two 30 nm models?
The solenoid model and the Zig Zag model.
What is the zig zag model?
The beads-on-a-string zig zag across each other
What is the solenoid model?
The beads-on-a-string form a super coil
What are the fourth and fifth levels of DNA packaging?
The models are unclear, but loops are likely formed.
What’s a karyotype?
A profile of chromosomes.
How are chromosomes in a karyotype arranged?
From largest to smallest.
How are chromosomes in a karyotype matched?
They are paired by size, centromere position, and banding patterns
What is a homologous chromosome?
Two chromosomes that make up a pair (one from mom, one from dad)
What are the characteristics of homologous chromosomes?
They will have the same length, position, and banding patterns, and will both have genes with the same characteristics.
What is the exception to the patterns of homologous chromosomes?
The X and Y chromosomes
What are the sex chromosomes?
The X and Y chromosomes
What are the autosomes?
The other 22 pairs of chromosomes.
What are gametes?
Sperm and egg cells.
How many sets of chromosomes are in gametes?
1 set or 1n (haploid)
What are somatic cells?
Body cells
How many sets of chromosomes are in somatic cells?
2 sets or 2n (diploid)
Why do we perform meiosis?
To halve the number of chromosomes in gametes
What are the gonads in humans?
Testes and Ovaries
How do the gamete cells restore the diploid condition?
Fertilization
What are some advantages of asexual reproduction?
Reproduction is faster, there can be more offspring, they don’t need to spend energy looking for a mate
What are some disadvantages of asexual reproduction?
Lack of variation means an entire population can be wiped out by an environmental change.
What are some advantages of sexual reproduction?
Variation lets the species adapt and survive if the environment changes, less offspring means more time for child rearing
What are some disadvantages of sexual reproduction?
Two parents are needed for sexual reproduction to take place.
When would an asexual lifecycle be favored by evolution?
When the environment is static
When would a sexual lifecycle be favored by evolution?
When the environment is dynamic
In what types of organism does binary fission occur?
Prokaryotes, some single-celled eukaryotes
What type of DNA is found in prokaryotes?
One circular chromosome
What are some differences between mitosis and binary fission?
Binary fission does not go through mitosis (Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, Telophase), there is no mitotic spindle, and the DNA will replicate quickly and all throughout its lifecycle
What is the general process of binary fission?
Replication begins at the origin of replication (ori), the two new origins of replication start migrating to the poles, the plasma membrane is synthesized between the DNA and around the cell to elongate it, FTsZ is a protein that forms a ring to help pinch in the cell, and the cell wall forms a septum with the plasma membrane between the new daughter cells.
What is a spore?
The gamete cells for a fungi; haploid and single-celled
What is mycelium?
A mass of thread like proteins; the vegetative part of a fungus, capable of reproduction
What is the Hyphae?
Each individual fibrous strand of mycelium
What is the fungus lifecycle?
• There are two cycles, one asexual and one sexual
• The only thing that fuses at first is the cytoplasm, not the nuclei
◦ Protective layer called ascus
• Four ascospores undergo mitosis to create eight haploid cells
What is true breeding?
When all of the offspring of a parent are the same