Hula's Pre-Ap Biology Ch. 11 Vocab

Front 1

carcino-

Back 1

cancer

Front 2

-gen

Back 2

produce

Front 3

homeo-

Back 3

similar

Front 4

nucle-

Back 4

nucleus

Front 5

-some

Back 5

body

Front 6

onco-

Back 6

tumor

Front 7

pro-

Back 7

before

Front 8

proto-

Back 8

first, original

Front 9

-onco

Back 9

tumor

Front 10

trans-

Back 10

across

Front 11

activator

Back 11

a protein that switches a gene or group of genes

Front 12

adult stem cell

Back 12

a cell present in adult tissues that generates replacements for nondividing differentiated cells. they are capable of differentiating into multiple cell types, but they are not as developmentally flexible as embryonic stem cells

Front 13

alternative RNA splicing

Back 13

a type of regulation at the RNA-processing level in which different mRNA molecules are produced from the same primary transcript, depending on which RNA segments are treated as exons and which as introns

Front 14

Barr body

Back 14

a dense body formed from a deactivated X chromosome found in the nuclei of female mammalian cells

Front 15

carcinogen

Back 15

a cancer-causing agent, either high-energy radiation (such as x-rays or UV light) or a chemical

Front 16

clone

Back 16

as a verb, to produce genetically identical copies of a cell, organism, or a DNA molecule. as a noun, the collection of cells, organisms, or molecules resulting from cloning; colloquially, a single organism that is genetically identical to another because it arose from the cloning of a somatic cell

Front 17

differentiation

Back 17

the specialization in the structure and function of cells that occurs during the development of an organism; results from selective activation and deactivation of the cells' genes

Front 18

DNA microarray

Back 18

A glass slide carrying thousands of different kinds of single-stranded DNA fragments arranged in an array (grid.) It is used to detect and measure the expression of thousands of genes at one time. Tiny amounts of a large number of single-stranded DNA fragments representing different genes are fixed to the glass slide. These fragments, ideally representing all the genes of an organism, are tested for hybridization with various samples of cDNA molecules.

Front 19

embryonic stem cell (ES cell)

Back 19

cell in the early animal embryo that differentiates during development to give rise to all the different kinds of specialized cells in a body

Front 20

enhancers

Back 20

a eukaryotic DNA sequence that helps stimulate the transcription of a gene at some distance from it. It functions by means of a transcription factor called an activator, which binds to it and then to the rest of the transcription apparatus.

Front 21

epigenetic inheritance

Back 21

the inheritance of traits transmitted by mechanisms not directly involving the nucleotide sequence of a genome, such as the chemical modification of histone proteins or DNA bases

Front 22

gene expression

Back 22

the process whereby genetic information flows from genes to proteins; the flow of genetic information from the genotype to the phenotype

Front 23

gene regulation

Back 23

the turning on and off of genes within a cell in response to environmental stimuli or other factors (such as developmental stage)

Front 24

histones

Back 24

a small protein molecule associated with DNA and important in DNA packing in the eukaryotic chromosome

Front 25

homoeotic gene

Back 25

a master control gene that determines the identity of a body structure of a developing organism, presumably by controlling the developmental fate of groups of cells

Front 26

microRNA (miRNA)

Back 26

a small, single-stranded RNA molecule that associates with one or more proteins in a complex that can degrade or prevent translation from happening with a a complementary sequence

Front 27

nuclear transplantation

Back 27

a technique in which the nucleus of one cell is placed into another cell that already has a nucleus or which that nucleus has been previously destroyed

Front 28

nucelosome

Back 28

the bead-like unit of DNA packing in a eukaryotic cell; consists of DNA wound around a protein core made up of eight histone molecules

Front 29

oncogene

Back 29

a cancer-causing gene; usually contributes to malignancy by abnormally enhancing the amount or activity of a growth factor made by a cell

Front 30

operator

Back 30

in prokaryotic DNA, a sequence of nucleotides near the start of an operon to which an active repressor protein can attach. the binding of a repressor prevents RNA polymerase from attaching to the promoter and transcribing the genes of the operon. the sequence thereby acts as a "genetic switch" that can turn all the genes in an operon on or off as a single functional unit

Front 31

operon

Back 31

a unit of genetic regulation common in prokaryotes; a cluster of genes with related functions, along with the promoter and operator that control their transcription

Front 32

promoter

Back 32

a specific nucleotide sequence in DNA located near the start of a gene that is the binding site for RNA polymerase and the place where transcription begins

Front 33

proto-oncogene

Back 33

a normal gene that, through mutation, can be converted to a cancer-causing gene

Front 34

regeneration

Back 34

the regrowth of body parts from pieces of an organism

Front 35

regulatory gene

Back 35

a gene that codes for a protein, such as a repressor, that controls the transcription of another gene or group of genes

Front 36

repressor

Back 36

a protein that blocks the transcription of a gene or operon

Front 37

reproductive cloning

Back 37

using a somatic cell from a multicellular organism to make one or more genetically identical individuals

Front 38

RNA interference (RNAi)

Back 38

a biotechnology technique use to silence the expression of specific genes. Synthetic RNA molecules with sequences that correspond to particular genes trigger the breakdown of the gene's mRNA

Front 39

signal transduction pathway

Back 39

in cell biology, a series of molecular changes that converts a signal on a target cell's surface to a specific response inside the cell

Front 40

therapeutic cloning

Back 40

the cloning of human cells by nuclear transplantation for therapeutic purposes, such as the generation of embryonic stem cells

Front 41

transcription factors

Back 41

in the eukaryotic cell, a protein that functions in initiating or regulating transcription. They bind to DNA or to other proteins that bind to DNA

Front 42

tumor-suppressor gene

Back 42

a gene whose products inhibits cell division, thereby preventing uncontrolled cell growth. A mutation that deactivates a tumor-suppressor gene may lead to cancer

Front 43

X chromosome inactivation

Back 43

in female mammals, the inactivation of one X chromosomes in each somatic cell