Bio – Genetics & DNA Review

- Answer in complete sentences on separate sheet of paper!

1. Where is DNA located in Prokaryotes and Eukaryotes

DNA in Prokaryotes is located in the cytoplasm. DNA in Eukaryotes is located in the nucleus

2. What are the parts of a Chromosome

The DNA double helix in its true shape (twisting) is hard to see and read. DNA is often drawn as
a ladder, with each complementary base pair acting as a rung on the ladder. This would make
the sugar backbone a straight line. This simplifies the DNA structure and highlights the base
pairs making them easier to see and read

3. What is an Autosome and a Sex Chromosome

Gametes

4. How many chromosomes and pairs of chromosomes do humans have

Humans have 46 chromosomes and 23 pairs of chromosomes

5. What is a haploid and diploid chromosome and what is the difference between them
A haploid number is the amount of chromosomes inside the nucleus of one chromosomal set.
The main difference between haploid cells and diploid cells is diploid cells have two complete
sets of chromosomes, while haploid cells only have one complete set of chromosomes

6. What is meiosis and what are the similarities and differences between it and mitosis
Meiosis and mitosis both have the same phases, but meiosis goes through the cycle twice

7. What is crossing over

During synapsis the cromatids within a homologous pair twist around each other. Portions of the
chromatids might break off and attach to the other chromatid. When this happens this is called
crossing over. This process allows the exchange of genetic material – This is why you look kind
of like your parents but not exactly alike

8. What happens during each step of meiosis

Prophase I is mostly the same except that the homologous chromosomes line up next to each
other this is called a synapsis

Metaphase I is very similar to Metaphase. The chromosomes line up randomly in the center and
are pulled to each end by spindle fiber

During both anaphase and telophase I the homologous chromosomes reach the ends and the
cleavage furrow begins to form. The first part of meiosis has created 2 cells that each contain
one chromosome from each homologous pair

Meiosis II occurs in the cells that just went through Meiosis I. In some animals the Nuclear
membrane and the nucleolus reform and then disappear before starting Meiosis II. The steps of
Meiosis II are the same as Mitosis and Meiosis I, except end with a II on the end  MEIOSIS II.
The chromatids move to the end and the cell splits again. The 4 resulting cells contain half the
genetic information as the original cell. This genetic information is the genes you get from either
your father or mother (23 from each)

9. Be able to identify or draw pictures of each step of meiosis

10. What is a gamete

Sex cell

11. What is oogenesis and spermatogenesis

Men produce spermatids that eventually develop into sperm cells. This is called
spermatogenesis

Women produce ova and these develop into egg cells. This is called Oogenesis

12. Who was Gregor Mendel and what is heredity

Gregor Mendel was the first person to recognize that things can be passed down. Which is that,
heredity is genes that can be passed down.

13. What was Mendel’s experiment and what results did he get
Mendel’s experiment was on pea plants. He studied the length of the peas after he crossed
pollinated them.

14. What is pollination and cross-pollination

Pollination is when the pollen goes from the female plant part to the male plant part. Cross-
pollination is when you, for example, cross a pea plant with long peas with one with small peas.

15. What is a recessive and dominant trait and how is each expressed
Recessive traits are shown by a lowercase letter. Dominate traits are expressed by a capital
letter.

16. What is the Law of Segregation

allele pairs separate or segregate during gamete formation and randomly unite at fertilization

17. What is the Law of Independent Assortment

the alleles of two (or more) different genes get sorted into gametes independently of one
another

18. Who are the scientists who first looked at DNA and what were there experiments
Griffith was a British medical officer, who, in 1928, began looking at bacteria (s. pneumoniae)
He was trying to develop a vaccine against it.
After 1940’s an American named Oswald Avery decided to see if it was DNA or RNA. Avery used 3
different enzymes to separately destroy the proteins, the S type that had missing RNA and proteins still
killed the mice. But the group that did not have DNA did not transform and the mouse lived.

19. Explain the results of the experiments and how the next scientist used them
The first two experiments, Griffith injected live R and S type bacteria into mice. Only the type S
mouse died, RIP mickey. He then killed the S type bacteria with heat and injected it into
another mouse and it lived. For the last experiment, Griffith injected the mouse with the heat
killed S type and the R type bacteria, the mouse died. This led Griffith to determine that the heat
killed S type was transferring genetic information to the harmless R type making it harmful. He called
this transformation.

After 1940’s an American named Oswald Avery decided to see if it was DNA or RNA. Avery used 3
different enzymes to separately destroy the proteins, the S type that had missing RNA and proteins still
killed the mice. But the group that did not have DNA did not transform and the mouse lived.

1952 after Avery had shown that it was the DNA that controlled the transformation, two Americans
Martha Chase & Alfred Hersey started Experimenting

20. What are the 2 reasons that Franklin is often not given credit for the DNA structure
discovery
One she is a she and two she is dead.

21. What are the 3 parts to every nucleotide

A 5-carbon sugar – Deoxyribose. A phosphate group – Phosphorus bonded to 4 Oxygen. A
nitrogenous base.

22. What are the 4 nitrogen bases in DNA and what are the 4 nitrogen bases in RNA
Gcta

Gcua

23. What is a purine and a pyrimidine and how are they complementary to each other
Purine is the one that bonds with the nucliotides. Pyrimidine bonds with the purines.

24. What is the base pairing rule and who developed it

A biochemist by the name of Erwin Chargaff noticed while observing DNA that there are always
seemed to be the same number of Adenine to Thymine. Also there was the same number of
Cytosine to Guanine.

25. What holds the nitrogen bases to each other and to their complementary pair
Cytosine always binds with Guanine & Adenine always binds with Thymine

26. What are the 3 steps of DNA replication

Transcription, code, translation
27. What are the differences and similarities between prokaryote and eukaryote replication?
In prokaryotic cells the DNA is circular but the process is mostly the same. 2 Replication forks
are formed and move in opposite directions. This continues until they meet on the opposite
side and then replication is complete

28. What is a mutation and what can it lead to

A mutation is when a codon doesn’t translate properly.

29. What is a gene

A gene is a segment of DNA that is located on the chromosome

30. What are the 3 types of RNA and what does each one do in the cell
mRNA is the messenger, tRNA translates the RNA, rRNA is ribosomes

31. What are the 4 ways that RNA is different from DNA
1 – RNA contains the sugar Ribose (not Deoxyribose)
2 – RNA contains Uracil instead of Thymine
3 – RNA is only a single strand (chain) not a double strand
4 – RNA is shorter usually only containing 1 gene (DNA contains hundreds or thousands of
genes)

32. What is transcription, be able to explain the process of transcription

Transcription is the process by which DNA (instructions) is transferred to RNA

33. What is a codon and anti-codon

Codon is the mRNA and anti codon is tRNA

34. How does a codon code for a specific amino acid (be able to read a Codon Wheel)

35. What is translation and what are the 5 main steps of translation
Step 1- The Ribosome, tRNA and mRNA join together. Attached to each tRNA on one end is a
specific amino acid. On the other end is the anticodon, these are 3 nucleotides that are
complementary to the sequence of a codon on the mRNA. In almost all amino acid chains start
with Methionine because the start codon in mRNA is AUG.
Step 2- A second tRNA carrying the second amino acid pairs with the codon on the mRNA. The
amino acid is then released from the first tRNA. A peptide bond forms between the first and
second amino acids. After releasing the amino acid the tRNA exits the ribosome and goes to get
another amino acid. Each tRNA has only 1 anticodon and can only carry 1 type of amino acid.

Step 3- The ribosome then moves 1 codon down the mRNA. As the ribosome moves down the
mRNA strand the polypeptide chain gets longer.
Step 4- The ribosome continues to move until it reaches a stop codon at that point it stops and
the polypeptide chain falls off.

Step 5- At this point translation is done, the tRNA, mRNA and ribosome all separate from each
other and move on to translate somewhere else. Sometimes the ribosome might translate the
same mRNA again or many ribosomes are translating the same mRNA at the same time.

36. What bond holds the amino acids together

The bond that holds together the two amino acids is a peptide bond

37. What is the Human Genome Project and what is Bioinformatics

They are trying to figure out exactly what each sequence of DNA encodes for (we know some).
A new scientific field called Bioinformatics is being tasked with finding out the information