Bioinformatics

Diploid

containing two complete sets of chromosomes, one from each parent.

domiant allele

An allele whose trait always shows up in the organism when the allele is present, regardless of its pair.

gene linkage

the tendency of DNA sequences that are close together on a chromosome to be inherited together

base pairs

A-T

G-C

3'-TAAGCATG-5'

find the complementary strand of DNA for the sequence 5'-ATTCGTAC-3'

DNA polymerase

Enzyme involved in DNA replication that joins individual nucleotides to produce a DNA molecule

3 components of a nucleotide

sugar, phosphate, base

Rosalind Franklin

Woman who generated x-ray images of DNA, she povided Watson and Crick with key data about DNA

Okazaki fragments

Small fragments of DNA produced on the lagging strand during DNA replication, joined later by DNA ligase to form a complete strand.

leading strand

complementary DNA strand synthesized along the template strand in the 5' to 3' direction

lagging strand

The strand that is synthesized in fragments using individual sections called Okazaki fragments

Gene

sequence of DNA that codes for a protein and thus determines a trait

polygenic traits

traits controlled by two or more genes

Principle of Segregation (Mendel's First Law)

Principle of heredity discovered by Mendel that states that the parents' alleles are separated during meiosis

Oswald Avery

man who proved that DNA is the genetic material of bacteria

Hydrogen Bonds

type of bonds which allow for base pairing

primer

Strand of DNA that provides a 3'-OH group to which new nucleotides can be added during replication

3' end of DNA strand

The end of a DNA strand nucleotides are attached to during replication

single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)

One base-pair variation in the genome sequence

short tandem repeats (STRs)

sections of a chromosome in which DNA sequences are repeated

strand slippage

a mutation process during DNA replication where a strand is displaced, resulting in mispairing of the complementary bases

Three domains of life

Bacteria, Archaea, Eukarya

20

number of amino acids

tRNA (transfer RNA)

type of RNA molecule that transfers amino acids to ribosomes during protein synthesis

64

number of possible codons

Uricil

nitrogen base in RNA that pairs with adenine--replaces thymine

Translation

decoding of a mRNA message into a polypeptide chain (amino acid sequence)

Ribosome

site of protein synthesis

secondary structure

The second level of protein structure; the regular local patterns of coils (alpha helices) or folds (beta sheets) of a polypeptide chain.

R group (side chain)

part of amino acid that differentiates it from other amino acids and determines the molecule's physical and chemical properties

5'-AUGCGAAUCC-3'

find the primary transcript for the template strand 3'-TACGCTTAGG-5'

synonymous mutation

a change in the DNA sequence that does not change the encoded amino acid

codon degeneracy

redundancy of genetic code exhibited by multiple codons encode a single amino acid

Francis Crick

man responsible for articulating the Central Dogma of Molecular Biology

Transcription

synthesis of an RNA molecule from a DNA template

3' end of RNA strand

The end of a RNA strand nucleotides are attached to during transcription

TATA box

crucial promoter DNA sequence

Introns

Noncoding segments of nucleic acid that lie between coding sequences.

Exons

expressed sequence of DNA; codes for a protein

alpha carbon

protein backbone around which rotations occur

C-terminus (carboxyl terminus)

the side of a polypeptide where amino acids are added that ends with the last amino acid's carboxyl group

alternative splicing

the selective skipping of certain exons

four basic principles of natural selection

variation, heritability, overproduction, reproductive advantage

fitness

Ability of an organism to survive and reproduce in its environment

True

All living things on earth use DNA/RNA to encode genetic information