DNA MUTATION

AND
RECOMBINANT

Prepared by:

MON D. BALANI
DNA Mutations
• Mutations are random changes that occur
within the sequence of bases in DNA.
• DNA mutations can be caused by mistakes
made by the DNA polymerase during
replication.
• The two main kind of mutation are known as
Transition and Transversion mutations.
DNA Mutations
• A transition mutation is a point
mutation that changes a purine nucleotide
to another purine (A ↔ G) or a pyrimidine
nucleotide to another pyrimidine (C ↔ T).
Whereas, a transversion refers to the
substitution of a purine for a pyrimidine or
vice versa.
DNA Mutations
• Mutagenesis, or the process of generating
DNA mutations, can lead to changes that
are harmful, or beneficial, or have no
effect.
• When a mutation is caused by an
environmental factor or a chemical agent,
that agent is called a mutagen.
Types of Mutations
• Germline mutations occur in gametes,
the sex cells, such as eggs and sperm.
• Somatic mutations occur in other cells
of the body.
Mutations also differ in the way
that the genetic material is
changed. Mutations may change
an entire chromosome or just
one or a few nucleotides.
Chromosomal Alterations
• are
mutations
that change
chromosome
structure or
number.
Point Mutations
• a point mutation, affects a single base and
most commonly occurs when one base is
substituted or replaced by another.
Mutations also result from the addition of
one or more bases, known as an insertion,
or the removal of one or more bases,
known as a deletion.
Point Mutations
TYPE DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE EFFECT

Silent mutated codon codes for the CAA (glutamine) → None

same amino acid CAG (glutamine)

Missense mutated codon codes for a CAA (glutamine) → Variable

different amino acid CCA (proline)

Nonsense a mutated codon is a CAA (glutamine) → Serious

premature stop codon UAA (stop) usually
Recombinant DNA
• Molecules of DNA from two different
species that are inserted into a host
organism to produce new genetic
combinations that are of value to science,
medicine, agriculture, and industry. This
results to the production of GMOs
(Genetically Modified Organisms)
 Common
Applications of
Recombinant
DNA Technology
AGRICULTURE
• Recombinant DNA is used in
agriculture to produce pest resistant
products. It is also used to modify the
taste, size, and color of a certain crop.
AGRICULTURE
a. BT Corn- A gene of a bacteria Bacillus thurengensis is
inserted to a corn to modify its taste and size.
b. Pinkglow Pineapple- the genetic material is modified
so that the enzymes that make the flesh yellow are
suppressed, resulting in a pinkish pigment
c. Large American Tomato- Lycopene β-cyclase genes
introduction into the plastid genome of tomato enhances
the lycopene conversion into provitamin A and slowed
the ripening.
HEALTH AND DISEASES
• Gene Therapy- Many different cancers
including lung, gynecological, skin,
urological, neurological, and
gastrointestinal tumors, as well as
hematological malignancies and
pediatric tumors, have been targeted
through gene therapy.
HEALTH AND DISEASES
• Production of Antibodies and Their
Derivatives- Plant systems have been
recently used for the expression and
development of different antibodies and
their derivatives which are useful in
treating some diseases.
HEALTH AND DISEASES
• Development of Vaccines and Recombinant
Hormones- Recombinant DNA has been used to
produce vaccines and hormones which are helpful
to people. A large number of patients are being
treated through r-FSH (follicle stimulating
hormone). Most interestingly, r-FSH and
Luteinizing Hormone (LH) recombination was
made successful to enhance the ovulation and
pregnancy.
ENVIRONMENT
• Genetic engineering has wide
applications in solving the
environmental issues. The release of
genetically engineered microbes, for
example, Pseudomonas fluorescens is
used for bioremediation purposes.
ENVIRONMENT
• Herbicide remediation using genetically
modified E. coli bacteria.
 Genetic
Engineering
Genetic Engineering
• sometimes called genetic modification,
is the process of altering the DNA in an
organism’s genome.
• This may mean changing one base pair
(A-T or C-G), deleting a whole region of
DNA, or introducing an additional copy
of a gene.
Genetic Engineering
• It may also mean extracting DNA from
another organism’s genome and
combining it with the DNA of that
individual.
• It can be used to produce plants that
have a higher nutritional value or can
tolerate exposure to herbicides.
How does genetic engineering work?
• Normally insulin is produced in the pancreas, but
in people with type 1 diabetes there is a problem
with insulin production. People with diabetes
therefore have to inject insulin to control their
blood sugar levels. Genetic engineering has been
used to produce a type of insulin, very similar to
our own, from yeast and bacteria like E. coli. This
genetically modified insulin, ‘Humulin’ was
licensed for human use in 1982.
 STEPS in Genetic Engineering
1. The isolation of DNA fragments from
a donor organism.
2. The insertion of an isolated donor
DNA fragment into a vector genome
3. The growth of a recombinant vector in
an appropriate host.