Viruses and Horizontal Gene Transfer

These flashcards cover key concepts related to viruses, horizontal gene transfer, biotechnology, genetic mutations, and gene expression as reviewed in the lecture notes.

Organization

Made up of one or more cells to be considered living.

Metabolism

The process by which living organisms convert nutrients into energy.

Homeostasis

The ability to maintain a stable internal environment despite external changes.

Reproduction

The biological process of producing new individual organisms.

Virion

An infectious particle that cannot multiply unless they invade a specific host cell.

Bacteriophage

A virus that infects and replicates within bacteria.

Obligate intracellular parasite

An organism that can only reproduce inside the living cells of a host.

Transformation

The process by which a competent cell incorporates free DNA from the environment.

Transduction

The transfer of DNA from one bacterium to another via a bacteriophage.

Conjugation

A direct transfer of DNA from one bacterium to another through cell-to-cell contact.

Capsid

The protein shell of a virus that encloses the viral genome.

Reverse transcriptase

An enzyme used by some viruses to convert RNA into DNA.

Horizontal Gene Transfer (HGT)

The movement of genetic material between organisms other than by vertical transmission.

Ecosystem benefits of GMOs

Genetically modified organisms can lead to increased crop yields and resistance to pests.

Mutation

A change in the genetic sequence that can affect an organism's traits.

Point mutation

A mutation that involves a change in a single base pair in the DNA sequence.

Frameshift mutation

A mutation that results from deleting or inserting a base pair, changing the reading frame.

CRISPR

A technology used for precise genetic manipulation and editing.

Spliceosome

A complex of enzymes responsible for removing introns from pre-mRNA.

Operon

A cluster of genes under the control of a single regulatory signal.

Transcription factors

Proteins that regulate the transcription of specific genes by binding to nearby DNA.

Quorum sensing

A system of stimuli and response correlated to population density.

Sigma factor

A protein needed for initiation of transcription in bacteria.

Gene expression

The process by which information from a gene is used to synthesize functional gene products.