Republic of the Philippines

PALAWAN STATE UNIVERSITY

College of Community Resource and Development
Quezon Campus

LEARNING MODULE IN CC7-BIO 1

PRINCIPLES OF GENETICS
 MODULE 2

THE CHROMOSOMAL BASIS OF HEREDITY

©Google.com

Prepared by:

EMMA C. PESITO
Instructor

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OVERVIEW

The human genome is packaged into a set of chromosomes, which are derived in equal
numbers from the mother and father. Each ovum and sperm contains a set of 23
different chromosomes, which is the haploid number of chromosomes in humans. The
diploid fertilized egg and virtually every cell of the body arising from it has two haploid
sets of chromosomes, resulting in the diploid human chromosome number of 46.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Upon completion of this module, you will be able to:

 Explain chromosome behavior and changes in chromosome structure and

number as a cell progresses through a cell cycle: mitosis and meiosis
 Explain eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells
 Differentiate the process of cell division (mitosis and meiosis).

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LESSON 1: THE CELL

Cells are the basic building blocks of all living things. The human body is composed of
trillions of cells. They provide structure for the body, take in nutrients from food, convert
those nutrients into energy, and carry out specialized functions. Cells also contain the
body’s hereditary material and can make copies of themselves.

Cells have many parts, each with a different function. Some of these parts, called
organelles, are specialized structures that perform certain tasks within the cell.

Discovery of cell

The term ―cells‖ was first coined in 1665 by a British scientist Robert Hooke. He was the
first person to study living things under a microscope and examined a thin slice of cork
under a microscope and observed honeycomb-like structures. Robert Hooke called
these structures as cells.

Soon after this Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek made further discoveries by inventing his
own microscope lenses that were more powerful than the microscopes of his time. He
was the first person to observe human cells and bacteria under his microscope. With
the advancements in microscopes, more discoveries were made about cells. However,
with the help of a light microscope, it became difficult to visualise the minute structures
inside the cells. As a result, a more powerful microscope, known as the electron
microscope was invented that made it easier to observe objects smaller than cells.

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 Robert Hooke Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek

Principles of Cell Theory

1. All living things are made of cells

2. Cell - smallest unit of organism
3. All cells arise from pre-existing cells (discarded spontaneous generation)

Characteristics of All Cells

• A surrounding membrane
• Protoplasm – cell contents in thick fluid
• Organelles – structures for cell function
• Control center with DNA

Microscopic cell ©Google.com

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 Cell Size

©Google.com

Cell Types

1. Prokaryotic cell

Prokaryotic cells are single-celled microorganisms known to be the earliest on earth.

Prokaryotes include Bacteria and Archaea. The photosynthetic prokaryotes include
cyanobacteria that perform photosynthesis. A prokaryotic cell consists of a single
membrane and therefore, all the reactions occur within the cytoplasm. They can be free-
living or parasites.

Prokaryotic cells have different characteristic features. The characteristics of the

prokaryotic cells are mentioned below.

a. They lack a nuclear membrane.

b. Mitochondria, Golgi bodies, chloroplast, and lysosomes are absent.
c. The genetic material is present on a single chromosome.

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 d. The histone proteins, the important constituents of eukaryotic chromosomes, are
lacking in them.
e. The cell wall is made up of carbohydrates and amino acids.
f. The plasma membrane acts as the mitochondrial membrane carrying respiratory
enzymes.
g. They divide asexually by binary fission. The sexual mode of reproduction
involves conjugation.

2. Eukaryotic cell

Eukaryotic cells are defined as cells containing organized nucleus and organelles which
are enveloped by membrane-bound organelles. Examples of eukaryotic cells are plants,
animals, protists, fungi. Their genetic material is organized in chromosomes. Golgi
apparatus, Mitochondria, Ribosomes, Nucleus are parts of Eukaryotic Cells. Let’s learn
about the parts of eukaryotic cells in detail.

Above all, eukaryotic cells are defined by the presence of a nucleus surrounded by a
complex nuclear membrane. Also, eukaryotic cells are characterized by the presence of
membrane-bound organelles in the cytoplasm. Organelles such as mitochondria, the
endoplasmic reticulum (ER), Golgi apparatus, lysosomes, and peroxisomes are held in
place by the cytoskeleton, an internal network that supports transport of intracellular
components and helps maintain cell shape. The genome of eukaryotic cells is packaged
in multiple, rod-shaped chromosomes as opposed to the single, circular-shaped
chromosome that characterizes most prokaryotic cells.

LESSON 2: THE CHROMOSOME STRUCTURE

A chromosome is a string of DNA wrapped around associated proteins that give the
connected nucleic acid bases a structure. During interphase of the cell cycle, the
chromosome exists in a loose structure, so proteins can be translated from the DNA and
the DNA can be replicated. During mitosis and meiosis, the chromosome becomes
condensed, to be organized and separated. The substance consisting of all the
chromosomes in a cell and all their associated proteins is known as chromatin. In
prokaryotes, there is usually only a single chromosome, which exists in a ring-like or
linear shape.

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The chromatin of most eukaryotic organisms consists of multiple chromosomes, as
described later in the article. Each chromosome carries part of the genetic code
necessary to produce an organism. Having the entire genetic code divided into different
chromosomes allows the possibility of variation through the different combinations of
chromosomes with the different alleles, or genetic variations that they contain. The
recombination and mutation of chromosomes can occur during mitosis, meiosis, or
during interphase. The end result is organisms that function and behave in different
ways. This variation allows populations to evolve over time, in response to changing
environments.

Function of a Chromosome

The chromosome holds not only the genetic code, but many of the proteins responsible
for helping express it. Its complex form and structure dictate how often genes can be
translated into proteins, and which genes are translated. This process is known as gene
expression and is responsible for creating organisms. Depending on how densely
packed the chromosome is at certain point determines how often a gene gets
expressed. As seen in the image of chromosome structure shown below, less active
genes will be more tightly packed than genes undergoing active transcription. Cellular
molecules that regulate genes and transcription often work by activating or deactivating
these proteins, which can contract or expand the chromosome. During cell division, all
the proteins are activated and the chromatin becomes densely packed into distinct
chromosomes. These dense molecules have a better chance of withstanding the pulling
forces that occur when chromosomes are separated into new cells.

The structure of a chromosome

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As seen in the graphic above, chromosomes have a very complex structure. DNA or
deoxyribonucleic acid makes the base of the structure, as seen on the far left. DNA is
made of a two strings of nucleic acid base pairs. The base pairs in DNA are cytosine,
adenine, thymine, and guanine. The spiral structure formed by the two strings of DNA is
due to complimentary pairing between every base with its pair on the opposite string.
Adenine pairs with thymine and guanine pairs with cytosine. The opposite side of the
bases form a phosphate-deoxyribose backbone, which keeps the strands intact.

When the DNA is duplicated, the strands are separated, and a polymerase molecule
builds a new string that corresponds to each side. In this way, the DNA is perfectly
replicated. This can be done artificially by a polymerase chain reaction in which special
enzymes and heat are used to separate and replicated the strings a number of times, to
produce many copies of the same DNA. This makes it much easier to study any string of
DNA, even whole chromosomes or genomes.

After the cell has expressed and duplicated the DNA, cell division can occur. This occurs
in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes, but only eukaryotes condense their DNA so it can
be separated. Prokaryotic DNA is so simple that relatively few structural proteins are
associated with the chromosome. In eukaryotes, many structural proteins are used.

LESSON 3: CELL DIVISION: MITOSIS, MEIOSIS

How Do Cells Know When to Divide?

In cell division, the cell that is dividing is called the "parent" cell. The parent cell divides
into two "daughter" cells. The process then repeats in what is called the cell cycle. Cells
regulate their division by communicating with each other using chemical signals from
special proteins called cyclins. These signals act like switches to tell cells when to start
dividing and later when to stop dividing. It is important for cells to divide so you can grow
and so your cuts heal. It is also important for cells to stop dividing at the right time. If a
cell cannot stop dividing when it is supposed to stop, this can lead to a disease called
cancer.

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 Cell division of cancerous lung cell (Image from NIH)

Some cells, like skin cells, are constantly dividing. We need to continuously make new
skin cells to replace the skin cells we lose. Did you know we lose 30,000 to 40,000 dead
skin cells every minute? That means we lose around 50 million cells every day. This is a
lot of skin cells to replace, making cell division in skin cells is so important. Other cells,
like nerve and brain cells, divide much less often.

How Cells Divide

Depending on the type of cell, there are two ways cells divide—mitosis and meiosis.
Each of these methods of cell division has special characteristics. One of the key
differences in mitosis is a single cell divides into two cells that are replicas of each other
and have the same number of chromosomes. This type of cell division is good for basic
growth, repair, and maintenance. In meiosis a cell divides into four cells that have half
the number of chromosomes. Reducing the number of chromosomes by half is important
for sexual reproduction and provides for genetic diversity.

Mitosis Cell Division

Mitosis is how somatic—or non-reproductive cells—divide. Somatic cells make up most
of your body's tissues and organs, including skin, muscles, lungs, gut, and hair cells.
Reproductive cells (like eggs) are not somatic cells.
In mitosis, the important thing to remember is that the daughter cells each have the
same chromosomes and DNA as the parent cell. The daughter cells from mitosis are
called diploid cells. Diploid cells have two complete sets of chromosomes. Since the

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daughter cells have exact copies of their parent cell's DNA, no genetic diversity is
created through mitosis in normal healthy cells.

Prophase Early metaphase Metaphase

Daughter Cells Telophase and Cytokinesis Anaphase

Mi Mitosis cell division creates two genetically identical daughter diploid cells. The major
steps of mitosis are shown here. (Image by Mysid from Science Primer and National
Center for Biotechnology Information)

The Mitosis Cell Cycle

Before a cell starts dividing, it is in the "Interphase." It seems that cells must be
constantly dividing (remember there are 2 trillion cell divisions in your body every day),
but each cell actually spends most of its time in the interphase. Interphase is the period
when a cell is getting ready to divide and start the cell cycle. During this time, cells are
gathering nutrients and energy. The parent cell is also making a copy of its DNA to share
equally between the two daughter cells.

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 The mitosis division process has several steps or phases of the cell cycle—interphase,
prophase, prometaphase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase, and cytokinesis—to
successfully make the new diploid cells.

Mitosis type of cell reproduction which produces two daughter cells that are genetically
identical to the parent cell.

 Growth and Asexual Reproduction v

 One division – 2 diploid cells
 Genetically same as original
Meiosis type of cell reproduction which produces 4 cells which half the number of
chromosomes as the original parent cell.

 Gametes for Sexual Reproduction

 2 divisions – 4 haploid cells

Stages of Meiosis I

 The first meiotic phase is prophase 1.

 As in mitosis, the nuclear membrane dissolves, chromosomes develop from the
chromatin, and the centrosomes push apart, creating the spindle apparatus.
 The tight pairing of the homologous chromosomes is called synapsis
 These paired up chromosomes—two from each parent—are called tetrads.
 The point the points of contact, the physical link, between two (non-sister) chromatids
belonging to homologous chromosomes is the chiasmata
 Homologous (similar) chromosomes from both parents pair up and may exchange
DNA in a process known as crossing over. This results in genetic diversity.
 In metaphase 1, some of the spindle fibers attach to the chromosomes' centromeres.
 The fibers pull the tetrads into a vertical line along the center of the cell.
 Anaphase 1 is when the tetrads are pulled apart from each other, with half the pairs
going to one side of the cell and the other half going to the opposite side.
 It is important to understand that whole chromosomes are moving in this process,
not chromatids, as is the case in mitosis.
 At some point between the end of anaphase 1 and the developments of telophase 1,
cytokinesis begins splitting the cell into two daughter cells.

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  In telophase 1, the spindle apparatus dissolves, and nuclear membranes develop
around the chromosomes that are now found at opposite sides of the parent cell /
new cells.

Stages of Meiosis II

 In prophase 2, centrosomes form and push apart in the two new cells.
 A spindle apparatus develops, and the cells' nuclear membranes dissolve.
 Spindle fibers connect to chromosome centromeres in metaphase 2 and line the
chromosomes up along the cell equator.
 During anaphase 2, the chromosomes' centromeres break, and the spindle fibers
pull the chromatids apart.
 The two split portions of the cells are officially known as "sister chromosomes" at this
point.
 As in telophase 1, telophase 2 is aided by cytokinesis, which splits both cells yet
again, resulting in four haploid cells called gametes.
 Nuclear membranes develop in these cells, which again enter their own interphases.

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 Gamete Formation:

1. Spermogenesis – 4 mature sperm cells from meiosis.

2. Oogenesis – 1 egg and 3 polar bodies

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REFERENCES

Books:

 Ayala, F. J and J.A Kiger, Jr. 1984. Modern Genetics (2nd Edition). Benjamin
Cummings Pub. Co., Inc. Calif.
 Good enough, U.1984. Genetics. (2 nd edition)

Websites:

 https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/understanding/basics/cell/
 https://byjus.com/biology/discovery-of-cells/
 https://byjus.com/biology/prokaryotic-cells/
 https://www.toppr.com/guides/biology/cell-the-unit-of-life/eukaryotic-cell/
 https://biologydictionary.net/chromosome/

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