2.4
This semi-conservative process ensures each daughter cell receives one original DNA strand and one new strand.
DNA Replication
This term refers to the occurrence of new DNA sequences in gametes that can be passed onto offspring.
What is mutation?
This nucleic acid carries codons from the nucleus to the ribosome to code for proteins.
What is mRNA?
What is the first step of meiosis and mitosis?
What is DNA replication?
What is the mitochondrion?
These are the two stages of photosynthesis: one that splits water and one that forms glucose in the chloroplast stroma.
Light dependent and Light dependent reaction
When homologous chromosomes line up during meiosis, the random way they arrange on either side of the equator leads to different allele combinations in gametes. What is this process called?
What is independent assortment?
The three-letter mRNA sequence that codes for an amino acid.
What is a codon?
The movement of water from high-water potential to low-water potential across a semi-permeable membrane is called this.
What is osmosis?
Name the process of cell division that halves chromosome number to form gametes.
What is meiosis?
Name one factor—besides temperature and pH—that can influence the rate of an enzyme’s activity.
What is substrate concentration, enzyme concentration, co-enzyme/co-factor, or an inhibitor?
The random change in allele frequency in a small population, which can include effects like bottlenecks or founder effect.
What is genetic drift?
Mutating a base to a stop codon early in the sequence leads to this kind of mutation, producing a truncated protein.
What is a nonsense mutation?
A metal ion or organic molecule necessary to complete an enzyme’s active site is called either this.
What is a coenzyme/cofactor?
The 3 methods in which genetic variation occurs
1. Crossing over
2. Independent Assortment
3. Segregation
This type of membrane transport moves molecules down a concentration gradient using channel proteins, without requiring energy.
What is facilitated diffusion?
When genes located on the same chromosome are inherited together—this reduces variation between offspring.
What are linked genes?
During translation, the ribosome moves along the mRNA strand and matches each codon with a tRNA anticodon. What type of bond forms between the amino acids to build the polypeptide chain?
What is a peptide bond?
What term describes a cell with two chromosome sets, one from each parent?
What is a diploid?
These small structures are the site of protein synthesis.
What is a ribosome?
Explain how anaerobic respiration differs from aerobic respiration in terms of products and cellular location.
Anaerobic: occurs in the cytoplasm, produces lactic acid (in animals) and 2 ATP. Aerobic: occurs in mitochondria, produces CO₂, H₂O, and ~36 ATP.
A small founding population of birds is blown to a new island. Over time, this population shows very different allele frequencies compared to the original mainland group. Name this effect and explain why it reduces genetic diversity.
What is the founder effect? It reduces genetic diversity because only a small, non-representative sample of alleles from the original population is carried to the new population, meaning some alleles are lost or become over-represented. Harmful alleles become more prevalent.
Explain how the redundancy of the genetic code (degeneracy) protects against some point mutations.
Because multiple codons can code for the same amino acid, some mutations don’t change the protein (silent mutations).
Explain why genetic diversity is important for the survival of a species in a changing environment.
Greater diversity increases the chance some individuals have beneficial traits to survive new conditions (e.g., disease, climate change). Populations with low diversity are more vulnerable to extinction.
Describe what happens with a deletion or insertion mutation?
shifts the reading frame → changes all downstream amino acids, usually severe.