CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY MIDTERM EXAM NEWEST 2024 ACTUAL EXAM 100 QUESTIONS
AND CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
Acetylcholine - (answer) neurotransmitter, a signalling molecule that falls under "amines", an excitatory
mediator (i.e. causes a nerve cell to "fire off a message"
acetylcholine causes a muscle to contract
Activator - (answer) In Transcriptional Regulation: Activators (transcription Factors) bind to
enhancers...these stabalize the initation complex and increase the rate of transcription
Adenylyl - (answer) Alpha subunit of trimeric G-protein dissociates and activates an enzyme called
Adenylyl Cyclase (AC), which then turns ATP into cAMP so that cAMP can send a message to the kinases
Adsorption - (answer) The Adsorption Isotherm: early stages of modern receptor theory development
- when studying absorption of molecules to free surfaces on film, it was concluded that molecules
moved towards the surface and "condensed" onto them. Once bound to the free surface, they tended to
evaporate off of the surface.
IMPORTANCE: This means that equilibrium is achieved by the balance of the amount moving towards the
free surface compared to the amount leaving the surface.
Affinity - (answer) The 'stickability' of a signalling molecule; how effective it is in binding to a receptor
neurotransmitters -> low affinity, endocrine system -> high affinity
Agonist - (answer) a ligand that binds to a receptor and elicits a response
Allosteric - (answer) an allosteric molecule binds to a different site on a given protein and changes the
active site: this can be POSITIVE or NEGATIVE
Alpha - (answer) Alpha Helix: one of the 2 most common shape of the secondary structure of amino
acid chain- ALSO: Alpha subunit of the trimeric g-protein receptors,
,CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY MIDTERM EXAM NEWEST 2024 ACTUAL EXAM 100 QUESTIONS
AND CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
Amine - (answer) Group present in amino acids (composed of N and 2H), a molecule involved in
cellular signalling
Aminoacyl - (answer) aminoacyl tRNA - tRNA with its cognate amino acid nonded; deleivers amino acid
to ribosome complex in translation to help construct peptide chain. TETRACYCLINE prevents tRNA from
binding to the mRNA ribosome complex
Amplification - (answer) Step of Signal Transduction: involves target proteins and intracellular signal
molecules that multiply the signal; can happen via secondary messengers, where one signal triggers
Antagonist - (answer) a signalling molecule that binds to a receptor and does NOT elicit a response - it
prevents the agonist from functioning
Apposition - (answer) Bone Apposition...bone growth studies where fluroscent tetracycline is used to
measure the growth of bone
Archaen - (answer) one of the three domains of life; single-celled organisms; usually in highly unusual
places; pyrrolysine is coded for in methanogenic archaens + is part of the methane-producing metabollic
system
Aureomycin - (answer) a tetracycline; dug up from soil near cemeteries + extracted from streptomyces
aureofaciens; prevent amino-acyl tRNA from binding to mRNA-ribosome complex and prevents
translation of proteins; fluroses under UV light, useful for bone apposition.
Autocrine - (answer) Cell communicates to itself (signal produce, go out of the cell, bind to receptor of
itself)
Beta - (answer) Beta sheets - secondary structure of protein - dependent on H bonds - but also a
descriptor for a subunit in g proteins
Biopolymer - (answer) polymers that are natural; produced by cells of living organisms; e.g. proteins,
DNA. PROTEINS ARE: Biopolymers of amino acids joined by peptide bonds
, CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY MIDTERM EXAM NEWEST 2024 ACTUAL EXAM 100 QUESTIONS
AND CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
BLAST - (answer) computational analysis of protein structure - you paste an amino acid sequence into
the database; can help identify primary structures
cAMP - (answer) cyclic AMP, activated Adenylyl cyclase will convert ATP to cAMP, cAMP activates
multiple enzymes, particularly kinases, regulated by phospodiesterase; cAMP helps amplify a signal.
Capping - (answer) The process that RNAP is phosphorylated (specifically in the CTD region) and then
recruits capping enzyme to add 5' cap to the building mRNA (co-transcriptional)
Carboxyl - (answer) Group present in amino acids (composed of COOH)
Carboxylic - (answer) Carboxylic acid group: can be found in the sturcture of amino acid
Chromatin - (answer) Condensed form of DNA bounded to histones. Still linear; prior to formation of
chromosome; condensed DNA material
Coding - (answer) the genetic sequence can also be reffered to as a 'code.' each sequence of
nucleotides codes for a different protein/ molecule
Codon - (answer) Three sets of consecutive of nitrogenous bases in mRNA that codes for a specific
amino acid, e.g. (UAG fot met)
Communication - (answer) cellular communication happens via signalling - can be intracellular or
extracellular...? this is a pretty straightforward term...
Competitive - (answer) an antagonist can be described as such (ONLY IN THE PHARMACOLOGICAL
SENSE); one that competes with agonist, but binds to the same active site on the receptor - as such,
increasing concentration of agonist can be a way to minimize the effects of this antagonist.
AND CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
Acetylcholine - (answer) neurotransmitter, a signalling molecule that falls under "amines", an excitatory
mediator (i.e. causes a nerve cell to "fire off a message"
acetylcholine causes a muscle to contract
Activator - (answer) In Transcriptional Regulation: Activators (transcription Factors) bind to
enhancers...these stabalize the initation complex and increase the rate of transcription
Adenylyl - (answer) Alpha subunit of trimeric G-protein dissociates and activates an enzyme called
Adenylyl Cyclase (AC), which then turns ATP into cAMP so that cAMP can send a message to the kinases
Adsorption - (answer) The Adsorption Isotherm: early stages of modern receptor theory development
- when studying absorption of molecules to free surfaces on film, it was concluded that molecules
moved towards the surface and "condensed" onto them. Once bound to the free surface, they tended to
evaporate off of the surface.
IMPORTANCE: This means that equilibrium is achieved by the balance of the amount moving towards the
free surface compared to the amount leaving the surface.
Affinity - (answer) The 'stickability' of a signalling molecule; how effective it is in binding to a receptor
neurotransmitters -> low affinity, endocrine system -> high affinity
Agonist - (answer) a ligand that binds to a receptor and elicits a response
Allosteric - (answer) an allosteric molecule binds to a different site on a given protein and changes the
active site: this can be POSITIVE or NEGATIVE
Alpha - (answer) Alpha Helix: one of the 2 most common shape of the secondary structure of amino
acid chain- ALSO: Alpha subunit of the trimeric g-protein receptors,
,CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY MIDTERM EXAM NEWEST 2024 ACTUAL EXAM 100 QUESTIONS
AND CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
Amine - (answer) Group present in amino acids (composed of N and 2H), a molecule involved in
cellular signalling
Aminoacyl - (answer) aminoacyl tRNA - tRNA with its cognate amino acid nonded; deleivers amino acid
to ribosome complex in translation to help construct peptide chain. TETRACYCLINE prevents tRNA from
binding to the mRNA ribosome complex
Amplification - (answer) Step of Signal Transduction: involves target proteins and intracellular signal
molecules that multiply the signal; can happen via secondary messengers, where one signal triggers
Antagonist - (answer) a signalling molecule that binds to a receptor and does NOT elicit a response - it
prevents the agonist from functioning
Apposition - (answer) Bone Apposition...bone growth studies where fluroscent tetracycline is used to
measure the growth of bone
Archaen - (answer) one of the three domains of life; single-celled organisms; usually in highly unusual
places; pyrrolysine is coded for in methanogenic archaens + is part of the methane-producing metabollic
system
Aureomycin - (answer) a tetracycline; dug up from soil near cemeteries + extracted from streptomyces
aureofaciens; prevent amino-acyl tRNA from binding to mRNA-ribosome complex and prevents
translation of proteins; fluroses under UV light, useful for bone apposition.
Autocrine - (answer) Cell communicates to itself (signal produce, go out of the cell, bind to receptor of
itself)
Beta - (answer) Beta sheets - secondary structure of protein - dependent on H bonds - but also a
descriptor for a subunit in g proteins
Biopolymer - (answer) polymers that are natural; produced by cells of living organisms; e.g. proteins,
DNA. PROTEINS ARE: Biopolymers of amino acids joined by peptide bonds
, CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY MIDTERM EXAM NEWEST 2024 ACTUAL EXAM 100 QUESTIONS
AND CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
BLAST - (answer) computational analysis of protein structure - you paste an amino acid sequence into
the database; can help identify primary structures
cAMP - (answer) cyclic AMP, activated Adenylyl cyclase will convert ATP to cAMP, cAMP activates
multiple enzymes, particularly kinases, regulated by phospodiesterase; cAMP helps amplify a signal.
Capping - (answer) The process that RNAP is phosphorylated (specifically in the CTD region) and then
recruits capping enzyme to add 5' cap to the building mRNA (co-transcriptional)
Carboxyl - (answer) Group present in amino acids (composed of COOH)
Carboxylic - (answer) Carboxylic acid group: can be found in the sturcture of amino acid
Chromatin - (answer) Condensed form of DNA bounded to histones. Still linear; prior to formation of
chromosome; condensed DNA material
Coding - (answer) the genetic sequence can also be reffered to as a 'code.' each sequence of
nucleotides codes for a different protein/ molecule
Codon - (answer) Three sets of consecutive of nitrogenous bases in mRNA that codes for a specific
amino acid, e.g. (UAG fot met)
Communication - (answer) cellular communication happens via signalling - can be intracellular or
extracellular...? this is a pretty straightforward term...
Competitive - (answer) an antagonist can be described as such (ONLY IN THE PHARMACOLOGICAL
SENSE); one that competes with agonist, but binds to the same active site on the receptor - as such,
increasing concentration of agonist can be a way to minimize the effects of this antagonist.
