Biotechnology Concepts of Biology Chapter 10

Flashcards covering key terminology, techniques, and biological applications mentioned in the biotechnology lecture, including DNA processing, GMO construction, and animal cloning.

Restriction Enzymes

Often called "scissors" for cutting DNA, these were discovered in the $1960s$ and $1970s$ and represent a core technology in moving genes.

Plasmid

Circular DNA found in bacteria and yeast used to host human genes, such as the gene for insulin.

DNA Fingerprinting

The process of identifying individuals using the $0.1\%$ difference in human DNA, which is otherwise $99.9\%$ similar between people.

Gel Electrophoresis

A technique that sorts DNA fragments by size using agarose gel and a power source; negatively charged DNA molecules move toward a positive electrode, with shorter molecules moving faster.

STRs (Short Tandem Repeats)

Identifying regions of DNA where short sequences of bases repeat a variable number of times, used as unique identifiers.

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)

A technology that copies DNA sequences by mimicking cellular DNA replication using a thermocycler.

PCR Cycles

The three-step process consisting of denaturation (high temp), annealing (lower temp), and extension (medium temp).

CODIS (Combined DNA Index System)

A system that utilizes $20$ STR locations on different chromosomes for genetic profiling.

GMOs

Also known as transgenic organisms, these are Genetically Modified Organisms that result from the transfer or editing of genes.

CRISPR

A technology used for gene editing, which involves editing an organism's own genes rather than transferring DNA from a different organism.

Agrobacterium tumefaciens

A bacterium that causes Crown Gall Disease and is adapted to deliver its DNA into plants, making it a common tool for gene transfer into crops.

Ti Plasmid

A tumor-inducing plasmid from Agrobacterium into which a desired gene is inserted to be transferred into a plant genome.

Gene Gun

An alternative tool to Agrobacterium used to insert genes into cells.

Dolly

A Finn Dorset lamb born in $1996$ that was the first animal to be successfully cloned from an adult donor cell.

CC (Carbon Copy)

The first cloned cat, which was notable because her coat color differed from her female "parent."