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Gene Expression
The activation or "turing on" of a gene that results in transcription and the production or mRNA
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Genome
The complete genetic material contained in an individual
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Structural Genes
Genes that code for polypeptide
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Promoter
DNA segment that is recognized by the enzymer RNA polymerase
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Operator
A DNA segment that serves as a kind of "switch" by controlling the acess of RNA polymerase the promoter
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Operon
A series of genes that code for specific products and the regulatory elements that control these genes
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Lac Operon
Clustered arrangement of genes that form an operon
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Repressor Protein
A protein that inhibits genes from being expressed
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Regulator Genes
Code repressor proteins and are locatedsome distance from the operators they affect
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Inducer
A molecule that initiates gene expression
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Euchromatin
The site of active transcription of DNA into RNA
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Introns
Sections of a structural gene that are transcribed but not translated
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Exons
The sections of a structural gene, that when expressed, are transcribed and translated
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Pre-mRNA
A form of messenger RNA that cintains both introns and exons
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Tramscription Factors
Regulator proteins in eukaryotes
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Enhancers
Sequences of DNA that may bind to transcription factors
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Cell Differentiation
Development of cells that have specialized functions
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Homeotic Genes
Regulatory genes that determine where certain anatomical structures will develop in an organism during morphogenesis
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Homeobox
Specific DNA sequence within a homeotic gene
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Proto-oncogenes
Division of cells is regulated by many genes
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Oncogene
A gene that can cause uncontrolled cell proliferation
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Tumor
An abnormal proliferation of cells that results from uncontrolled, abnormal cell division
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Cancer
Uncontrolled frowth of cells that can invade other parts of the body
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Tumor-suppressor Genes
Code for proteins that prevent cell division from occuring too often
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Metastasis
The spread of cancer cells beyond their original site
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Carcinogen
Any substance that can induce or promote cancer
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Carcinomas
Grow in the skin and the tissues that line the organs of the body
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Sarcomas
Grow in bone and muscle tissue
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Lymphomas
Solid tumors that grow in the tissues of the lymphatic system
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Leukemia
Uncontrolled production of white blood cells
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Length Polymorphisms
Variations in the length of the SNE molecule between known genes
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Variable Number Tandem Repeats (VNTR)
Sequences that can repeat a few or many times in tandem
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Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)
A technique that quickly produces many copies of a DNA fragment
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Primers
Artificially made pieces of single-stranded DNA that are 20-30 nucleotides long that must be present for SNA polymerase to initiate replication
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Restriction Enzymes
Recognize specific short DNA sequences, and cut the DNA in or near the sequences
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Gel Electophoresis
A technique that can be used to study DNA fragments
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DNA Fingerprint
Resulting pattern of bands
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Genetic Engineering
The process of altering the genetic material of cells or organisms to allow them to make new substances
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Recombinant DNA
Results when DNA from two different organisms is joined
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Clone
An exact copy of a DNA segment, a whole cell, or a complete organism
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Vectors
Item that researchers can clone DNA fragments in
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Plasmids
Small Ring of DNA found naturally in some bacterial cells in addition to the main bacterial chromosome
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Probe
A strand of RNA or sinlge-stranded DNA that is labeled with a radioactive element or fluorescent dye and that can base-pair to specific DNA
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Human Genome Project
A research effort undertaken to sequence all of our DNA and locate within it all of the functionally important sequences, such as genes
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Proteome
An organism's complete set of proteins
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Aingle Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNP)
Unique spots where individuals differ by a single nuclotide
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Bioinformatics
Combines biological science, computer science, and information technology to enable the discovery of new biological insights and unifying principles
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Proteomics
The study of all organism's proteins, including their iidentities, structures, interactions, and abundances
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Two-dimensional Gel Electrophoresis
A method that seperates the proteins in a sample into individual spots
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Gene Therapy
A method where genetic disorder is treated by introducing a gene into a patient's cells
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Cloning by Nuclear Transfer
Procedure that introduces a nucleus from a body cell into an egg cell to generate an organism identical to the nucleus donor
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Telomeres
Repeated DNA sequences at the ends of chromosomes that shorten with each round of cell division
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DNA Vaccine
A vaccine made from the DNA of a pathogen but does not have disease-causing capability
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Bioethics
The study of ethical issues related to DNA technology
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