Bio Test 2

Front 1

base pairing

Back 1

the interaction between the nitrogen bases of 2 nucleotides on opposite strands of dna to create double stranded dna

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chromosome

Back 2

a more highly organized form of double stranded dna that uses proteins to compact a dna double helix

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deoxyribose

Back 3

the five carbon sugar ring that is a component of dna nucleotides, it has only an h at the 2 prime carbon as opposed to the oh found at the 2 prime of ribose

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DNA

Back 4

deoxyribonucleic acid a polymer composed of nucleotide monomers that stores genetic information

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DNA Polymerase

Back 5

the protein enzyme whose function is to create new single strands of DNA by using the opposite strand of DNA single strand as a template

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double helix

Back 6

the term used to describe a double stranded dna molecule

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genetic information

Back 7

another term for the information which is stored within DNA

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genome

Back 8

a single copy of all of the genetic information in your cell also known as a complete set of chromosomes

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helicase

Back 9

the protein enzyme whose function is to unwind double stranded dna into two single strands

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nitrogen base

Back 10

a structure which is attached to the one prime carbon in a dna and rna nucleotide. dna nucleotides can have one of four different nitrogen bases

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nucleotide

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the monomer unit of a dna polymer it is composed of a five carbon ring a phosphate group and a nitrogen base

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protein

Back 12

a polymer made of amino acid monomers the are the functional form of information within the cell that carries out duties specified by the information enclosed in dna

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phosphate group

Back 13

found at the five prime carbon of a nucleotide they interact with the three prime carbon of another nucleotide to create single strands of dna

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purines

Back 14

nitrogen bases with two rings, adenine and guanine

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pyrimidine

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nitrogen bases with one ring cytosine and another thymine

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replication

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the process by which new dna is made using a single strand of dna as a template for the opposite strand of dna

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ribose

Back 17

the five carbon sugar ring that is a component of rna nucleotides it has an oh group at the two prime carbon as opposed to the h found at the two prime carbon of deoxyribose

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rna

Back 18

a polymer made up of nucleotide monomers mRNA is messenger rna which transports copies of dna information to other locations in the cell

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semi conservative replication

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process of dna replication where one double stranded dna makes two new ones each consisting of half old and half new

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cytoskeleton

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the scaffolding or skeleton made from proteins found within the cytoplasm of a cell

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deletion

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a type of mutation where nuleotides are missing from the dna sequence

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disease

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an impairment of the nowmal state of the living animal or one of its parts that interrupts or modifies the performance of the vital functions, typically manifested by distinguishing signs and symptoms

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dmd gene

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the gene that encodes the protein dystrophin

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dystrophin

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a protein associated with a protein complex important for the strength of skeletal muscle cells and is absent or mutated in duchenne muscular dystrophy

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frameshift

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a mutation caused by insertions or deletions of a number of nucleotides that is not evenly divisible by three from a dna sequence. Due to the triplet nature of gene expression by codons, the insertion or deletion can disrupt the reading frame, or grouping of the codons, resulting in a completely different translation from the original

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helicase

Back 26

the protein enzyme whose function is to unwind double stranded dna into two single strands

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insertion

Back 27

the addition of one or more nucleotide base pairs into a genetic sequence (DNA)

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mutation

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changes of the nucleotide sequence of the genetic material (DNA) of an organism

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promoter

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a portion of a gene, a promoter is a dna sequence found before the series of codons that make up a gene

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rna polymerase

Back 30

the protein enzyme that creates an mRNA from the template strand of DNA

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transcription

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the process of creating an mRNA from dna using the protein enzyme rna polymerase

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translation

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the process by which the ribosome uses tRNAs to make a protein from an mRNA by translating the nucleotide codons into amino acids

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WRN gene

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the gene that encodes the Werner helicase protein which plays a role in DNA replication and is mutated in Werner syndrome

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AUG start codon

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the first three nucleotides or codon of any gene, this codon helps indicate where the ribosome should begin translating RNA into a protein

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amino acids

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monomers which are used to make up protein polymers, the amino acid sequence of a protein is encoded in dna

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anti-codon

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the three base sequence in tRNA complementary to a codon on mRNA

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coding strand

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the single strand within a dna double helix that contains the nucleotide codons in the correct order to be read, this dna strand has the same sequence as the transcribed mRNA (given U in rna and T in dna)

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codon

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words of the dna/rna language, sets of three nucleotides that code for a particular amino acid

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cytoplasm

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the major volume of the cell outside of the nucleus which contains all other organelles including ribosomes

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gene

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a series of codons within a dna sequence also includes regulatory regions of dna such as a promoter

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genetic code

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sets of three nucleotides that specify amino acids or stop codons during the process of translation at the ribosome, the set of rules by which information encoded in genetic material (dna or rna sequences) is translated into proteins (amino acid sequences)

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gene expression

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the process by which information from a gene (DNA) is made into a functional gene product (protein) using mRNA

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messenger RNA

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a molecule of rna encoding a chemical blueprint for a protein product, mRNA is transcribed from a DNA template and carries coding information from the nucleus to the sites of protein synthesis in the cytoplasm, the ribosomes

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non coding strand

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the dna strand that forms the template for the transcribed mRNAm this strand is the opposite of the coding strand

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nucleus

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the organelle in a cell, which contains the cell's chromosomal DNA. Transcription of mRNA from DNA occurs in the nucleus

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open reading frame

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a sequence of nucleotide codons from start to stop that encode one protein

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ribosome

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cellular organelle where proteins are translated from mRNA

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stop codon

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nucleotide codon that signals the end of an open reading frame and causes the termination of transcription because there is no tRNA with the corresponding anti-codon

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transfer RNA

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a small rna that transfers a specific amino acid to a growing polypeptide chain at the ribosomal site of protein synthesis during translation

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uracil

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nitrogen base with one ring that is found in RNAs instead of thymine

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cell cycle

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a process of cell division, allowing the duplication of cells

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kinases (phosphotransferase)

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a type of enzyme that transfers phosphate groups from high energy donor molecules, such as ATP, to specific target molecules (substrates); the process is termed phosphorylation

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chromatin

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the complex of DNA and protein that makes up chromosomes

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histones

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the chief protein components of chromatin that act as spools around which dna winds and they play a role in gene regulation

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nucleosomes

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from the fundamental repeating units of eukaryotic chromatin

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prophase

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stage of mitosis in which chromatin condenses into a highly ordered structure called a chromosome

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prometaphase

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the phase of mitosis following prophase and preceding metaphase in eukaryotic somatic cells

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metaphase

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the stage of mitosis in the eukaryotic cell cycle in which the condensed chromosomes carrying genetic information align in the middle of the cell before being separated into two daughter cells

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anaphase

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the stage of mitosis when chromosomes separate in a eukaryotic cell

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telophase

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a stage in either meiosis or mitosis in a eukaryotic cell reversing the effects of prophase and prometaphase

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gamate

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a mature sexual reproductive cell, as a sperm or egg, that unites with another cell to form a new organism

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cancer

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a group of diseases characterized by uncontrolled growth and spread of abnormal cells

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oncogenes

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genes that promote cancer and code for proteins that promote cell growth and division

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proto-oncogenes

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normal version of an oncogene

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tumor suppressor genes

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genes that protect against cancer and code for proteins that stop or regulate cell growth and division

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apoptosis

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programmed cell death

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metastasis

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the process in which cancer cells break away from the original tumor mass and establish new tumor sites elsewhere in the body

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risk factors

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behaviors or substances that increase the chances that a person will develop cancer

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benign tumor

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a noncancerous mass of cells that does not spread to other parts of the body

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malignant tumor

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a mass of cancer cells that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant areas of the body

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carcinogenesis

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the process by which cancer develops

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chromosome

Back 72

a structure of dna and protein found in the cell nucleus. each chromosome contains hundreds of thousands of genes

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allele

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one of the variant forms of a gene at a particular locus, or location, on a chromosome

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homozygous

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having two identical alleles for a given gene

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heterozygous

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having two different alleles for a given gene

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epigenetic inheritance

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inheritance of a molecular modification of dna (methylation or chromatin structure) that affects gene expression

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splicing

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the removal of introns and joining of exons to form a continuous coding sequence of dna

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transcription factors

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proteins in eukaryotes that regulate the transcription of other genes by binding to regulatory sequences of the gene

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genotype

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the inherited genetic code of an organism for a specific trait

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phenotype

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the observable characteristics of an individual which result from expression of that organism's genes, such as its morphology, development, biochemical or physiological properties or behavior

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diploid

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containing two copies of each chromosome

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haploid

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having one copy of each chromosome, gametes are haploid cells

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dna methylation

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an endogenous process in the cell which adds a methyl group, -CH3, to dna, resulting in gene silencing or failure of the gene to become expressed

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chromatin

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the organization and dense packaging of dna in the nucleus of cells

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evolution

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the process of change in the inherited traits of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. genes that are passed on to an organism's offspring produce the inherited traits that are the basis of evolution

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charles darwin

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realized and demonstrated that all species of life have evolved over time from common ancestors through the process called natural selection

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natural selection

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the process by which favorable heritable traits become more common in successive generations of a population of reproducing organisms, and unfavorable heritable traits become less common, due to reproduction of genotypes enabling them to adapt to environmental pressures, predators, changes in climate, competition for food or mates, will tend to survive and reproduce in greater numbers than others of their kind

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fossil

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the preserved remains of an organism from a remote past

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paleontologist

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a scientist who studies prehistoric life forms

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radioactive clock

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the age of any fossil can be measured if the geological stratum where it was found is known

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fossil record

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the totality of fossils with their placement in rock formations and sedimentary layers

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homologies

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if all life forms on earth share a common ancestor, then evolution predicts that related organisms will share similar characteristics

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analogous

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the relations between the source and the target themselves, which is often, though not necessarily, a similarity

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continental drift

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the movement of the earth's continents relative to each other

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genes

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the basic units of heredity in a living organism

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human genome project

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an international scientific research project with a primary goal to determine the sequence of chemical base pairs which make up dna and identify the approx. 25,000 genes of the human genome from both a physical and functional standpoint

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phylogeny

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the study of evolutionary relatedness among various groups of organisms (i.e. species, population)

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speciation

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the evolutionary process by which new biological species arise

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clades

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a taxonomic group comprising a single common ancestor and all the descendants of that ancestor

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homologous characters

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any similarity between characters that is due to their shared ancestry

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taxa

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a name designating an organism or a group of organisms

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variation

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the uniqueness of every individual and a characteristic of every sexually reproducing species

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species

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the major subdivision of a genus or subgenus, regarded as the basic category of biological classification, composed of related individuals that resemble one another, are able to breed among themselves, but are not able to breed with members of another species

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population

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a group of individuals of the same species living in the same area at the same time

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heritable

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the proportion of phenotypic variation in a population that is attributable to genetic variation among individuals

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gene flow

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the alteration of the frequencies of alleles of particular genes in a population, resulting from interbreeding with organisms from another population having different frequencies

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bottleneck effect

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a significant reduction in the size of a population due to a random event such as a natural disaster

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genetic drift

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random changes in the frequency of alleles in a gene pool, usually of small populations

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founder effect

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when a small subset of a population splits off and starts a new population in a new location

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germ line mutations

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any detectable and heritable variation in the lineage of germ cells

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fitness

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the genetic contribution of an individual to the next generation's gene pool, usually measured by the number of offspring or close kin that survive to reproductive age

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adaption

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any alteration in the structure or function of an organism or any parts that results from natural selection and by which the organism becomes better fitted to survive and multiply in its environment

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speciation

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the formation of new species as a result of geographic, physiological, anatomical, or behavioral factors that prevent previously interbreeding, populations from breeding with each other, allopatric, peripatric, parapatric, and sympatric

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sexual selection

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the theory proposed by Darwin that states that certain evolutionary traits can be explained by intraspecific competition

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artificial selection

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a process in the breeding of animals and in the cultivation of plants by which the breeder chooses to perpetuate only those forms having certain desirable characteristics

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sickle cell anemia

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a blood disorder characterized by red blood cells that assume an abnormal, rigid, sickle shape

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malaria

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a vector bone infectious disease caused by protozoan parasites

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mimicry

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occurs when a group of organisms have evolved to share common perceived characteristics with another group, the models, through the selective action of a signal receiver or dupe

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vestigal structure

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features that apparently serve no function in an organism and are allegedly holdovers from an evoultionary past

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niche

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the function or position of a species within an ecological community. A species' niche includes the physical environment to which it has become adapted as well as its role as producer and consumer of food sources

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coevolution

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the change of a biological object triggered by the change of a related object, predator/prey, parasite/host, competitive species, and mutalistic species

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microevolution

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evolutionary change involving the gradual accumulation of mutations leading to new varieties within a species

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macroevolution

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a scale of analysis of evolution in separated gene pools

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extinction

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the cessation of existence of a species or group of taxa