BIO 340 ACTUAL FINALS ANSWERS AND QUESTIONS
SET A+
✔✔locus - ✔✔position of a gene on a chromosome
✔✔Meselson and Stahl (1958) - ✔✔Bacterial cells were grown in a heavy isotope of
nitrogen, 15N
All the DNA incorporated 15N
Cells were switched to media containing lighter 14N
DNA was extracted from the cells at various time intervals
✔✔central dogma - ✔✔theory that states that, in cells, information only flows from DNA
to RNA to proteins
✔✔translation - ✔✔decoding of a mRNA message into a polypeptide chain
✔✔initiation of translation - ✔✔mRNA is attached to a subunit of the ribosome, the first
codon is always AUG
✔✔template strand - ✔✔the strand of DNA that specifies the complementary mRNA
molecule
✔✔nontemplate strand - ✔✔The un-transcribed partner of the template strand of DNA
used in transcription.
✔✔RNA polymerase - ✔✔enzyme that links together the growing chain of RNA
nucleotides during transcription using a DNA strand as a template.
✔✔polypeptide - ✔✔long chain of amino acids that makes proteins
✔✔amino acids - ✔✔building blocks of proteins
✔✔triplet codon - ✔✔three nucleotide sequence on mRNA that codes for specific amino
acid
, ✔✔start codon - ✔✔codon that signals to ribosomes to begin translation; codes for the
first amino acid in a protein (AUG)
✔✔stop codon - ✔✔UAG, UAA, or UGA; the codon that ends all RNA sequences.
✔✔Charles Darwin (1809-1882) - ✔✔English naturalist who postulated a theory of
evolution by natural selection.
✔✔Alfred Wallace (1823-1913) - ✔✔"Father of Biogeography," was the first to propose
that animal species have "geographies"
✔✔natural selection - ✔✔a process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits
tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because of those
traits.
✔✔descent with modification - ✔✔principle that each living species has descended,
with changes, from other species over time
✔✔mutation - ✔✔a random error in gene replication that leads to a change
✔✔silent mutation - ✔✔a mutation that changes a single nucleotide, but does not
change the amino acid created.
✔✔missense mutation - ✔✔a point mutation in which a codon that specifies an amino
acid is mutated into a codon that specifies a different amino acid.
✔✔nonsense mutation - ✔✔a mutation that changes an amino acid codon to one of the
three stop codons, resulting in a shorter and usually nonfunctional protein.
✔✔frameshift mutation - ✔✔a mutation that shifts the "reading" frame of the genetic
message by inserting or deleting a nucleotide
✔✔insertion - ✔✔a mutation involving the addition of one or more nucleotide pairs to a
gene.
✔✔deletion - ✔✔a change to a chromosome in which a fragment of the chromosome is
removed.
✔✔genetic drift - ✔✔a change in the allele frequency of a population as a result of
chance events rather than natural selection.
✔✔gene flow (migration) - ✔✔movement of alleles from one population to another
SET A+
✔✔locus - ✔✔position of a gene on a chromosome
✔✔Meselson and Stahl (1958) - ✔✔Bacterial cells were grown in a heavy isotope of
nitrogen, 15N
All the DNA incorporated 15N
Cells were switched to media containing lighter 14N
DNA was extracted from the cells at various time intervals
✔✔central dogma - ✔✔theory that states that, in cells, information only flows from DNA
to RNA to proteins
✔✔translation - ✔✔decoding of a mRNA message into a polypeptide chain
✔✔initiation of translation - ✔✔mRNA is attached to a subunit of the ribosome, the first
codon is always AUG
✔✔template strand - ✔✔the strand of DNA that specifies the complementary mRNA
molecule
✔✔nontemplate strand - ✔✔The un-transcribed partner of the template strand of DNA
used in transcription.
✔✔RNA polymerase - ✔✔enzyme that links together the growing chain of RNA
nucleotides during transcription using a DNA strand as a template.
✔✔polypeptide - ✔✔long chain of amino acids that makes proteins
✔✔amino acids - ✔✔building blocks of proteins
✔✔triplet codon - ✔✔three nucleotide sequence on mRNA that codes for specific amino
acid
, ✔✔start codon - ✔✔codon that signals to ribosomes to begin translation; codes for the
first amino acid in a protein (AUG)
✔✔stop codon - ✔✔UAG, UAA, or UGA; the codon that ends all RNA sequences.
✔✔Charles Darwin (1809-1882) - ✔✔English naturalist who postulated a theory of
evolution by natural selection.
✔✔Alfred Wallace (1823-1913) - ✔✔"Father of Biogeography," was the first to propose
that animal species have "geographies"
✔✔natural selection - ✔✔a process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits
tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because of those
traits.
✔✔descent with modification - ✔✔principle that each living species has descended,
with changes, from other species over time
✔✔mutation - ✔✔a random error in gene replication that leads to a change
✔✔silent mutation - ✔✔a mutation that changes a single nucleotide, but does not
change the amino acid created.
✔✔missense mutation - ✔✔a point mutation in which a codon that specifies an amino
acid is mutated into a codon that specifies a different amino acid.
✔✔nonsense mutation - ✔✔a mutation that changes an amino acid codon to one of the
three stop codons, resulting in a shorter and usually nonfunctional protein.
✔✔frameshift mutation - ✔✔a mutation that shifts the "reading" frame of the genetic
message by inserting or deleting a nucleotide
✔✔insertion - ✔✔a mutation involving the addition of one or more nucleotide pairs to a
gene.
✔✔deletion - ✔✔a change to a chromosome in which a fragment of the chromosome is
removed.
✔✔genetic drift - ✔✔a change in the allele frequency of a population as a result of
chance events rather than natural selection.
✔✔gene flow (migration) - ✔✔movement of alleles from one population to another
