BIOL-L 211Exam # 1 Study Guide Lectures: 1 - 11Lecture 1 (August 25)Molecular Biology in the NewsRecall the article "New Life for Ancient DNA" –Scientific American, August 2012.What is the role of hemoglobin, and how does its activity generally change in cold temperatures?Hemoglobin is a protein that delivers oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body, but in cold temperatures, it cannot readily release the oxygen to which it bindsHow was E. Coli incorporated into this experiment?After the mammoth hemoglobin gene was sequenced, it was introduced to E. Coli in order to rapidly generate copies of the gene. When the E. Coli was exposed to cold temperatures, its hemoglobin was able to function better than usual, proving that the sequence truly coded for a hemoglobin adaptation. Lecture 2 (August 27) Mendelian Genetics- From the Greeks to Gregor MendelWhat was the theory of "Pangenesis" and what types of evidence disputed its validity?The theory of Pangenisis was proposed by the Greeks and suggested that "Pangenes" flow from all parts of the body to the reproductive system. However, when amputees had children, the amputations were not passed on, which suggested that there might be more to genetics.What genetic theory did Jean-Baptist Lamarck propose, and what experiment disproved it?Lamarck's theory was known as Lamarckism, and suggested that traits developed over a lifetimecould be passed on to offspring (such as a giraffe, repeatedly stretching to reach food developing a longer neck). In 1893, August Weismann performed an experiment on mice, repeatedly cutting off their tails. After following the mice for generations, no changes developed. He instead proposed "Germ Plasm Theory."What was the "Germ Plasm Theory" from the previous answer?This theory suggests only germ cells (sperm and egg) possess genetic information.What was the flaw in the Blending Theory of Inheritance?If this theory were true, ultimately all traits would converge to one, reducing diversity (which does not occur).What were Gregor Mendel's two laws? Explain.Mendel's laws were Independent Segregation and Independent Assortment. Independent Segregation states that in gamete formation (sex cell formation), each daughter cell has the potential to receive different alleles for the same gene, despite coming from the same parent cell. This variation is possible due to the nature of meiosis and the fact that each parent cell can have multiple alleles (some dominant, some recessive) for a given gene.Independent Assortment states that alleles of different genes can assort themselves independently in order to express numerous varied combinations of traits, but this law only applies to genes on different chromosomes.Lecture 3 (August 29)Drosophila as a Model SystemDescribe typical characteristics of model organisms.Model organisms are non-human, have an easily sequenced genome, and are similar (enough) to humans.What are some of the characteristics of Drosophila Melanogaster that make it such a useful model organism?Drosophila Melanogaster has only four chromosomes, which facilitates genetic manipulation, and they have a life cycle of only ten days, which dramatically accelerates research.What discovery did IU Professor Herman Muller make in 1946 in his fruit fly research?He demonstrated that X-rays cause mutations.How were sex-linked traits discovered?Note: Mendel did NOT discover them. Sex-linked traits were found in fruit fly research, through the white-eye trait. Only males exhibited this trait, and it was concluded that the trait traveled on the X-chromosome.What is crossing over, when does it occur, and what variables affect it?Crossing over is a type of recombination that occurs in Prophase I (not mitosis), and involves thephysical exchange of genetic material between non-sister chromatids of homologous chromosomes, and is directly influenced by the distance between a set of genes on a chromosome.What is the difference between incomplete dominance and co-dominance?Incomplete dominance explains how an organism can have a blend of parental traits, while co-dominance explains how an organism can exhibit two traits equally (not blended).Lecture 4 (September 3)Bacteria and BacteriophageWhat characteristics of bacteria make them easy to research in a lab?They have only one chromosome (aka nucleoid), they grow fast, and are easy to manipulate (similar to the characteristics of Drosophila Melanogaster)What are the primary functions of bacteria?Bacteria cycle carbon, produce oxygen, decompose waste, and perform nitrogen fixation.What is the microbiome? Explain one of its modern applications.The microbiome consists of the some hundred trillion bacteria inside humans and the human gut. A modern application is fecal transplants, which are successfully used to treat clostridium difficile infections by relocating part of the microbiome of a healthy individual to a sick one.What is the transformation principle?Frederick Griffith discovered the transformation principle in 1928. It shows that a heat-killed bad strain of bacteria has the potential to convert a healthy strain to a bad strain by exchange ofgenetic information (which is still preserved, even after the bacteria is killed).What are the two types of bacteriophage and what cycles do they undergo?The two types of bacteriophage are Lytic and Lysogenic/Temperate. They undergo the Lytic and Lysogenic Cycles respectively. In the Lytic Cycle, a phage infects a bacterium and injects its genome, which is replicated, producing phage particles that burst out of the bacteria releasing more phage particles. In the Lysogenic Cycle, a phage infects a bacterium and injects its genome, but its DNA is integrated (instead of duplicated) into the DNA of the bacterium, producing a prophage. The prophage is replicated with its new genome. Note that the LysogenicCycle can switch to the Lytic Cycle.Who deduced the double helix structure of DNA?Watson and Crick (1953)What is the difference between the proteins that react at the major groove and the proteins that react at the minor groove?The proteins reacting at the major groove are DNA binding proteins. Histone proteins interact atthe minor groove.What are Chargaff's Rules?Adenine (purine) binds with Thymine (pyrimidine) with two hydrogen bonds. Guanine (purine) binds with Cytosine (pyrimidine) with three hydrogen bonds. DNA strands run antiparallel and complementary to each other.Lecture 4 (September 5)What is the relationship between DNA,