Biol 240 (MONA AND TRISY)

Topic 1

100

What is the Central Dogma of molecular biology?

DNA → RNA → Protein

200

What were the 3 requirements of early life?

• Genetic information storage
• Ability to catalyze biochemical reactions (ribozymes can do this) 
• Separation of the cell interior from the external environment (micelles)

300

What were the 4 conditions on early Earth?

• little O2,reducing atmosphere
• significant amounts of H2 O, CH 4, CO2 , N2 , H2 , NH3
• high temperatures (e.g., >100°C)
• energy input from various sources, including UV light

400

Name three things that Louis Pasteur did

• Found that microbes can differentiate between optical isomers (molecules that look the same ex. D-glucose and L-glucose)
• Explained the microbial nature of alcoholic fermentation
• Developed pasteurization (heating up to kill microbes)
• Introduced basic hygiene and sanitization to hospitals
• Developed vaccines for anthrax, fowl cholera, and rabies
• Disproved spontaneous generation theory in the last 1800s

500

Robert Koch's postulates: established basic rules for determining which microbes caused which diseases. The cause and effect are proven if (3 requirements):

• the suspected microbe is identified in every person with the disease, but not those without the illness a pure culture of the suspected microbe is obtained
• experimental inoculation of the suspected microbe into a healthy test host causes the same illness
• the suspected microbe is found in the experimentally inoculated host organism

Topic 2

100

What is chemotaxis?

Chemoreceptor proteins temporally sense changes in concentrations of attractants or repellents.

200

Bacteria are on average 1-2 micrometers long - but there are exceptions to bacteria size! Name an unusually large bacteria.

• Thiomargarita namibiensis - up to 700 μm in diameter
• Epulopiscium fishelsoni: 200‒700 μm x 80 μm

300

What is peritrichous bacteria?

have flagella all over the surface of the body

400

What is the purpose of a capsule?

• Provide adhesion, defense against host immunity, protection against desiccation
• Help bacteria form biofilms to provide protection and enhanced survivability in harsh environments

500

How do nutrients get through the cell wall?

• Gram-positive peptidoglycan layer has large pores throughout its matrix
•  Gram-negative cells have porins and TonB proteins in the outermembrane

Topic 3

100

Why don't lysozymes degrade the cell walls of Archaea?

because β-1,3 linkages are insensitive

200

What is the purpose of the S-layer? 

• protects against predators and viruses
• mediates adhesion

300

What was the first discovered Archaea and name one place you can find them?

Methanogens

• Anoxic sediments marshes/swamps, lakes, rice paddies, moist landfill
• Animal digestive tracts
• Geothermal H2/CO2 sources (hydrothermal vents)
• Artificial biodegradation facilities
• Endosymbiotes of anaerobic protozoa

400

What phyla are included in the TACK superphylum?

• Thaumarchaeota
• Aigarchaeota
• Crenarchaeota
• Korarchaeota

500

Describe the relationship between Ignicoccus and Nanoarchaeum... 

Ignicoccus is the host, nanoarchaeum is a parasite.

Topic 4

100

What is the lipid structure of Eukarya?

they have ester linkage

200

What is the secretory pathway?

Rough ER → Golgi apparatus → secretory vesicles → cell exterior

300

What are the cell walls of Fungi, Algae, and Protozoa made of?

Chitin, Cellulose, and none (protozoa have no cell wall)

400

What are 3 components of the cytoskeleton of Eukarya? 

• Microtubules (tubulin)
• Microfilaments (actin)
•  Intermediate filaments (various proteins)

500

Pick two members of the Fungal phylogeny and explain their functions. 

• Chytridiomycota
• Zygomycota
• Glomeromycota
• Ascomycota
• Basidiomycota

• Chytridiomycota: early branching, “watermolds”
• Zygomycota: Rhizopus, bread mold, lab contamination
• Glomeromycota: mycorrhizal fungi – extremely important for plants/trees.
• Ascomycota: “spore shooters”, cup/sac fungi, yeast
•  Basidiomycota: “spore droppers”, “club fungi”, traditional mushroom producing fungi

Random

100

What is BUGS? 

Biology Undergraduate Students 

You might be wondering what we do: 

• We rent lab coats, goggles, dissection kits and molecular modelling kits 
• We have a microwave 
• We do fun events (aka this one) 
• Student Prof-Night (coming soon!)

200

Which bacteria forms fossils? 

cyanobacteria can trap sediment and sometimes secrete calcium carbonate

300

Where is the BUGS room? 

STC 1029 

Come hang out with us ;) 

400

What is the experiment Josh Neufeld performed when he set something on fire? 

Volta experiment:

Inverted funnel traps CH4 from methanogenic freshwater sediments = flames ignite

500

What is Ascus?

An ascus is a sac-like structure in fungi where sexual spores, called ascospores, are produced. It is characteristic of fungi in the phylum Ascomycota, also known as sac fungi.