unit 4, genetic code Flashcards
what is a gene?
codes for an amino acid sequence
what does locus mean?
location of a gene
what is a triplet code?
the bases, that code for an amino acid
what are the characterisitcs of the triplet code?
-degenarate
-universal
-non overlapping
what does degenerate mean? and what is the advanatge of this?
-more than one triplet code can code for an amino acid
- the advanatge is that if there is a mutation and one nitrogenous base is changed, then the amino acid may stay the same
what does universal mean?
each triplet code will code for the same amino acid in every organism
what does non overlapping mean? and what is the advantage of this?
-each base is only in one triplet code
- the advanatage to this is that is only one amino acid base is altered due to mutation it will only effect one triplet, preventing harm
what is an intron?
- does not code for polypeptides
what is an exon?
- codes for amino acids
what is a genome?
complete set of genes in a cell
what is a proteome?
full range of proteins that a cell is able to produce
why do proteomes constantly change?
it changes depending on what proteins are needed
