Cell Biology: Chapter 7 Part I

This set of flashcards covers key terms and concepts related to the processes of transcription and gene expression.

Gene

Unit of heredity containing the instructions that dictate the characteristics or phenotype of an organism.

Transcription

The process by which the DNA nucleotide sequence is transcribed into an RNA nucleotide sequence.

Translation

The process in which the RNA nucleotide sequence is translated into an amino acid sequence to create a polypeptide.

Central Dogma of Molecular Biology

The framework that describes the flow of genetic information from DNA to RNA to protein.

Gene Expression

The process by which the information from a gene is used in the synthesis of a functional gene product.

Functional RNA Molecule

RNA molecules such as rRNA and tRNA that perform roles in the cell, distinct from proteins.

Intergenic DNA Regions

Non-coding regions of DNA located between genes, which may regulate gene expression.

RNA Polymerase

The enzyme that synthesizes RNA from a DNA template during transcription.

Promoter

A specific sequence of DNA where RNA polymerase and transcription factors bind to initiate transcription.

Termination

The final stage of transcription where RNA polymerase stops synthesizing RNA and releases the RNA transcript.

Ribozymes

RNA molecules that can act as enzymes, similar to protein enzymes.

General Transcription Factors (GTFs)

Proteins required for locating the promoter of a gene and recruiting RNA polymerase for transcription initiation.

Enhancers

Distant regulatory DNA elements that can increase the rate of transcription when interacting with activator proteins.

Eukaryotic RNA Polymerases

Three types of RNA polymerases in eukaryotes involved in transcribing different RNA molecules.

Elongation

The stage in transcription where RNA polymerase adds nucleotides to the growing RNA chain.