Module 4. Medical Biotechnology Flashcards
HeLa cells were first produced from what type of cell?
human cervical carcinoma
Medical biotechnology involves the use of biotechnology tools in creating products that can be utilized in what aspects of medicine?
disease diagnosis, prevention, and treatment.
Discovery of what molecule prompted a better understanding of the genetic code?
mRNA
In 1978, synthetic human insulin is produced by inserted the gene in what microorganism?
E. coli
In 1974 recombinant genetic research created the first vaccine for what disease?
chickenpox
These are a class of antibiotics derived from microorganisms
natural antibiotics (benzylpenicillin, cephalosporins, gentamicin)
The first antibiotic discovered by Fleming was isolated from what genus of mold?
Penicillium
This class of antibiotics are derivatives of natural antibiotics that have undergone structural modifications.
Semi-synthetic antibiotics (ampicillin and amikacin)
This class of antibiotics is purely lab made.
Synthetic (moxifloxacin and norfloxacin)
Class of antibiotics characterized by having lactone (ester linkages) in a large cyclic structure.
Macrolides
This class of antibiotic is characterized by a four-membered cyclic amide.
B-lactam
Common examples of B lactams
penicillins, cephalosporins, carbapenems, and monobactams
Class of antibiotics characterized by having four-ring structure.
Tetracyclins
Class of antibiotics characterized by having cyclic sugar alcohol containing nitrogen atoms
Aminoglycosides
Class of antibiotics characterized by having sulfonamide group (SO2NH2).
sulfonamides
Class of antibiotics characterized by having bicyclic ring with a ketone group at position 4 and a nitrogen atom at position 1.
Quinolones (purely synthetic)
What are the six classes of antibiotics based on structure?
B-lactams
Macrolides
Tetracyclines
aminoglycosides
sulfonamides
quinolones
Which class of antibiotics generally acts to inhibit cell wall synthesis?
β-lactams
Which class of antibiotics generally acts to inhibit protein synthesis?
macrolides, tetracyclines, aminoglycosides
Which class of antibiotics generally acts to inhibit cell membrane functions
polymyxins
This class of antibiotics kills bacteria by inhibiting vital cellular processes.
Bactericidal
Which class of antibiotics generally acts to inhibit nucleic acid synthesis?
quinolones
Class of antibiotics that inhibits cellular processes and bacterial growth without killing the bacteria itself.
Bcateriostatic
This class of antibiotics targets a wide array of pathogenic bacteria, including both Gram+/-.
Broad spectrum (β-lactams, aminoglycosides, macrolides)
Examples of broad spectrum antibiotics.
(β-lactams, aminoglycosides, macrolides)
This class of antibiotics only target either gram-positive or gram-negative bacteria.
Narrow spectrum antibiotics
Why is narrow spectrum antibiotics preferred?
Due to specificity and decreased chances of bacterial resistance
Examples of narrow spectrum antibiotics
penicillin G, penicillin V, methicillin
Field of research concerned with how an individual’s genes may impact their response to certain drugs and medications.
PHARMACOGENOMICS
Basic premise of pharmacogenomics
DNA provide instructions for protein synthesis, and some proteins may influence how drugs work in the body. DNA may affect how well individuals’ bodies respond to drugs. cf., hiyang concept.
Certain drugs must first bind to receptors before they can perform their work. Hence, the number and types of receptors that a person’s body has may affect how well their body responds to drugs. Since the number and types of receptors that a person’s body has depend on their DNA, different people may require different doses of drugs.
By knowing how different gene variants can affect how well individuals will respond to certain drugs, doctors can determine the best drugs and dosages to prescribe their patients.
This is the first recombinant proteins used in treatment
recombinant human insulin
What are the applications of biotechnology in medicine?
Antibiotics
Recombinant proteins
Gene therapy
Stem cell therapy
Genetic testing and diagnosis
Vaccines
Before recombinant human insulin is used, insulin derived from pancreas of animals such as pig and cows provide an alternative insulin for patients with diabetes. This insulin is called?
animal insulin
animal insulin that have undergone modifications
semisynthetic
Process of recombinant insulin production
- the human insulin gene is inserted into a plasmid that was isolated from a bacterial cell.
- The plasmid is reinserted into the bacterial cell, making it a recombinant bacterium.
- The recombinant bacterium is fermented in tanks where it eventually produces human insulin using the human insulin gene.
- The human insulin is harvested and purified for use in medical treatment
Allows for genome editing via the addition, removal, or alteration of certain regions of a given DNA sequence.
CRISPR-Cas9
This part of the CRISPR-Cas9 serves as “molecular scissors” that cut DNA at a specific region to remove or add other DNA segments.
Cas9
RNA that guides the Cas9 enzyme to ensure that it cuts the right segment of the genome.
Guide RNA
Process of CRSPR-Cas9 mediated edits.
guide RNA binds to target sequence
Cas9 enzymes binds to gRNA
Cas9 enzyme cuts both strands of DNA
The cut is repaired by endogenous DNA repair mechanism resulting in the loss of mutant expression or reversal to WT genotype
This application of biotechnology involves repairing diseased, dysfunctional, or injured tissue using stem cells or their derivatives.
Stem cell therapy
Process of stem cell therapy
- Stem cells Stem cells are grown in the lab and manipulated to be a specific kind of cells.
- Differentiated cultured cells are implanted back into the patient.
- These specialized cells help the repair/regeneration of damaged cells. For example, person suffering from heart disease can be injected the specialized heart muscle cells, which aid in the repair of the injured heart muscle
Process of genetic testing
Blood or other tissues are analyzed changes in their genetic makeup or expressed proteins
What are the purposes of genetic testing?
- Confirm diagnosis made for an individual that exhibits symptoms of a genetic conditions.
- See if an individual with family history for a genetic condition has developed it or is susceptible to developing it
- Detect genetic conditions among newborns for immediate treatment
This application of biotechnology in medicine involves examining human blood or other tissues to determine changes in genetic material. This then can help diagnose genetic conditions conditions or the possibility of developing these.
Genetic testing and diagnosis
What are the three major types of genetic testing?
- Cytogenetic testing
- Biochemical testing
- Molecular testing
This type of genetic testing aims to examines entire chromosomes.
cytogenetic testing
Cytogenetic testing of the bone marrow can help diagnose which disease?
leukemia
Cytogenetic testing of the amniotic fluid cells can be used in what procedure?
prenatal diagnosis of genetic conditions
These are the most accessible cells for for cytogenetic analysis due to their rapidly dividing nature and accessiblity.
T lymphocytes (white blood cells)
Detects mutations present in different proteins (i.e., enzymes, transporters, receptors, hormones) and banks on the premise that failure of proper protein functioning leads to detrimental effects on individuals.
Biochemical testing
This type of genetic testing measures and examines proteins and requires a tissue sample (usually from blood, urine, amniotic fluid, or cerebrospinal fluid).
Biochemical testing
Biochemical testing can test which parameters.
Protein activity, levels of metabolites, and protein size or quantity
This type of genetic testing aims to detect small DNA mutations that cause genetic diseases.
Molecular testing
This is the most effective molecular test.
direct DNA testing
In molecular testing, cystic fibrosis is caused by 1000 mutations in what gene?
“cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator”
These are iological preparation that induces an immune response in an organism, particularly against any foreign agents (e.g., virus or disease).
vaccines
What are the three common vaccine platforms used today?
inactivated vaccines
live attenuated vaccines
mRNA vaccines
This vaccine platform uses a dead germ-causing disease.
Inactivated vaccines
examples of inactivated vaccines
Hepatitis A, Flu, Polio, Rabies
uses the weak form of a germ-causing disease
Live attenuated vaccines
examples of live attenuated vaccines
Measles, Chickenpox
Recombinant DNA research led to the development of the first vaccine against what disease?
Chickenpox
Recombinant protein research proved that a synthetic recombinant gene can clone a protein, which eventually paved the way for the development of the 1st vaccine for what disease?
pneumonia vaccine
Peptide antibiotics provide certain advantages over small molecule antibiotics due to their?
Nativity - less likely tendency for both host and target bacteria to recognize the antibiotic as foreign provided their peptide-based nature
Delivery and degradability - most are water-soluble that allows better delivery; can also be degraded by the body, and can therefore prevent it to be released into the environment (lowers risk of emergence of antibiotic resistance)
Functionalization - antibiotic peptides are easier to be added with functional groups than conventional Antibiotics
Beta-lactam ring provides a good general for antibiotics due to what property of its structure?
angle strain - makes it highly reactive
The beta-lactam antibiotic penicillin is characterized by what two functional groups?
b-lactam and thiazolidine
Synthetic antibiotics used to treat pan-resistance bacterial infection although not accessible due to the high price associated with synthesis.
Vanthomycin, Linezolid
A synthetic oxazolidinone antibiotic that Targets the 23S sub-unit of the 50S ribosomal subunit. The effect is the inhibition of the formation of the whole 70S ribosome, and transfer of amino acids from tRNAs.
Linezolid
What is the classification of Linezolid based on activity?
broad spectrum bacteriostatis
The gRNA of CRSPR-Cas9 system is complementary what structure found downstream of the target edit site?
protospacer-adjancent motif
What is the hallmark of huntingtin protein?
polyglutamine due to expansion of CAG and CAA repeats –> Huntington’s disease –> affects motor movements
Tay Sach’s disease is a disorder of the lipid metabolism that results from the mutations in what enzyme?
Hexoaminodase A
Hexoaminidase A, the enzyme implicated in Tay Sach’s disease functions in what metabolic process?
Ganglioside breakdown in motor neurons –> low/absent Hex A activity –> progressive neurodegenerative damage –> Tay Sach’s disease
This newly characterized transcription factors play a crucial role in cellular reprogramming, a process that can convert differentiated cells into Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.
Yamanaka transcription factors
A transcription factor that plays a central role in maintaining pluripotency in embryonic stem cells
Octamer-Binding Transcription Factor 4 (Oct4)
Collaborates with Oct4 to regulate the expression of genes associated with stem cell identity.
Sex-Determining Region Y-Box 2
Involved in various cellular processes, including cell proliferation and differentiation
Kruppel-like Factor 4 (Klf4)
Is an oncogene that plays a role in cell growth and proliferation
Cellular Myelocytomatosis Oncogene
People with MCAD cannot produce energy from dietary and endogenous fats due to a low-level functioning enzyme called?
Medium chain acyl dehydrogenase (MCAD)
Medium chain acyl dehydrogenase (MCAD) deficiency leads to accumulation of what secondary metabolite?
octanoylcarnitine
Ethical Issues associated with medical Biotechnology
Ethical Issues in Medical Biotechnology
Ethical issues associated with medical biotechnology
Risk to human subjects during clinical trials
-Death of participant Jesse Gelsinger during a gene therapy trial at the University of Pennsylvania
-Challenges include the willingness of patients, especially those in critical conditions, to participate in clinical trials regardless of risks both known and unknown
High Costs
-The high costs of products and therapies under Medical
-Biotechnology may limit the accessibility to patients who can afford them alone, depriving those who cannot of the same healthcare
Privacy
-Rapidly advancing medical technology create the risk of compromising information about individuals’ possible health conditions in the future
-This may pose significant implications for individuals’ abilities to secure employment and insurance
Threats to Bioterrorism
-Medical Biotechnology has been widely utilized to establish safety measures against possible threats of bioterrorism
-However, allocating a good amount of resources (i.e. time and money) for bioterrorism research pulls resources away from other public health policies
