HOSA FS: Techniques of DNA Analysis

Purines

Nitrogen-containing compounds such as adenine and guanine are classified as this

Pyrimidines

Single-ringed nitrogen bases (Cytosine and Thymine)

Control region

In mDNA, the non-coding portion is located here

Locus

The specific location of a gene on a chromosome

Allelic pair

A pair of alleles that make up a gene (each one is on a separate chromosome strand)

Polymorphism

Variation in DNA sequence

Variable number tandem repeats

(VNTR) When the same base sequence repeats throughout a locus

Chelex 100

This is often used for DNA extraction as it is cheaper and faster

Gel electrophoresis

Uses the electrical charge of DNA to analyze and classify it

STR and SNP

These two tests replaced gel electrophoresis

Mitochondrial DNA

DNA that mutates rarely (unchanged from mother to child) ; found in places where nuclear DNA does not exist (especially in a very decayed body)

Follicular bulbs

Nuclear DNA is found in this, attached to a hair

Heteroplasmy

The existence of two or more mitochondrial (or chloroplast) DNA variants that confer distinct phenotypes when one of the other variants comes to dominate in number

Revised Cambridge reference sequence

When mitochondrial DNA sequencing is used for genealogical purposes, the results are often reported as differences from this set

Haplotype

Genetic profile based on Y-STR

CODIS

The DNA equivalent of the AFIS

Karyotyping

The analysis of chromosomes