The simplest unit of genetic material
What is "nucleotide"?
Complete name of DNA
What is "deoxyribonucleic acid"?
Complete name of RNA
What is "ribonucleic acid"?
The specificity in bonding is referred to as
complementary base pairing
species that have had genetic material added from a different species.
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs)
A nucleotide consists of three components
phosphate group
pentose sugar
nitrogenous base
Chemical formula of deoxyribose
C5H10O4
Chemical formula of ribose
C5H10O5
when mistakes in the genetic code occur during replication, transcription or translation, a __________ occurs.
mutation
The year when the first commercially biosynthetic insulin was produced using genetic engineering, inserting the human insulin gene into bacteria.
1978
The phosphoric acid molecule is ________, meaning that it can lose up to three protons by ionization in order to bond to the pentose sugar and other nucleotides by a condensation reaction.
triprotic
The two strands of DNA can be separated by overcoming the hydrogen bonds with the use of special enzymes or high temperatures above ____.
95°C
The pentose sugar molecule has many polar functional groups, such as __________ and _____________ groups, that allow it to dissolve well in aqueous environments, forming additional hydrogen bonds and dipole-dipole interactions with water molecules.
hydroxyl and carbonyl
In order for the four nitrogenous bases in mRNA to code for 20 different amino acids, translation involves a _____________
triplet code
As of 2015, only _____ countries require GMO foods to be labelled, including Australia, most of Europe and parts of Asia. A few countries have even even implemented a ban on the import and/or cultivation of GMO crops.
64
Identify the purine bases and pyrimidine bases
Purine bases-adenine and guanine
Pyrimidine bases-thymine, uracil, and cytosine
The two strands are aligned with a specific orientation. The sugar-phosphate backbones of the two strands run to each other in opposite directions.
anti-parallel
anti-parallelism
Identify the correct complementary sequence of mRNA that would form from DNA transcription with a sequence of GTTCAA.
CAAGUU
DNA transcription is a similar process to DNA replication, in that the genetic material is being copied, but the process is different. Firstly, only small portions of the genome, called _______, are accessed and copied, not the entire genome.
genes
Would improved resistance to disease be a benefit or a concern for the use of genetically modified foods?
benefit
If a particular genetically modified crop had an increased resistance to disease, then the crop would have a greater yield, being able to provide food for more people – a benefit.
The differences in the structure of pyramidine bases (hint: functional groups)
thymine has two carbonyl functional groups and a methyl group
uracil has two carbonyl functional groups
cytosine has one carbonyl and one amino functional group.
The polarities of the sugar-phosphate backbone and nitrogenous bases respectively are
polar and nonpolar
The sugar molecules in the backbone contain many polar functional groups, such as hydroxyl and carbonyl groups, making them dissolve well in water. The phosphate ions have a negative charge, allowing for ion-dipole attraction with water molecules. The nitrogenous bases consist of a single or double fused ring, which is highly nonpolar with few polar functional groups. As a result, the nitrogenous bases are on the interior of the double strand, while the sugar-phosphate backbone is on the exterior, interacting with water molecules in the aqueous cellular medium.
State the two RNA types used in DNA translation and transcription
transfer RNA (tRNA)
messenger RNA (mRNA)
The process of replicating the DNA is referred to as _______________, since the two daughter double helices each contain one new and one original polynucleotide strand.
semi-conservative
Genes from the ____________ have been inserted into a pig in order to produce higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, which aids in cardiovascular health.
roundworm