Chapter 20 Guiding Questions
mcourtney 08 Feb 2008 02:24
DNA Cloning
- Explain how advances in recombinant DNA technology have helped scientists study the eukaryotic genome.
- Describe the natural function of restriction enzymes and explain how they are used in recombinant DNA technology.
- Explain how the creation of sticky ends by restriction enzymes is useful in producing a recombinant DNA molecule.
- Outline the procedures for cloning a eukaryotic gene in a bacterial plasmid.
- Describe techniques that allow identification of recombinant cells that have taken up a gene of interest.
- Define and distinguish between genomic libraries using plasmids, phages, and cDNA.
- Describe the role of an expression vector.
- Describe two advantages of using yeast cells instead of bacteria as hosts for coning or expressing eukaryotic genes.
- Describe two techniques to introduce recombinant DNA into eukaryotic cells.
- Describe the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and explain the advantages and limitations of this procedure.
- Explain how gel electrophoresis is used to analyze nucleic acids and to distinguish between two alleles of a gene.
- Describe the process of nucleic acid hybridization.
- Describe the Southern blotting procedure and explain how it can be used to detect and analyze instances of restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP).
- Explain how RFLP analysis facilitated the process of genomic mapping.
DNA Analysis and Genomics
- Explain the goals of the Human Genome Project.
- Explain how linkage mapping, physical mapping, and DNA sequencing each contributed to the genome mapping project.
- Describe the alternate approach to whole-genome sequencing pursued by J. Craig Venter and the Celera Genomics company.
- Explain how researchers recognize protein-coding genes within DNA sequences.
- Describe the surprising results of the Human Genome Project.
- Explain how the vertebrate genome, including that of humans, generates greater diversity than the genomes of invertebrate organisms.
- Explain how in vitro mutagenesis and RNA interference help researchers to discover the functions of some genes.
- Explain the purposes of gene expression studies. Describe the use of DNA microarray assays and explain how they facilitate such studies.
- Define and compare the fields of proteomics and genomics.
- Explain the significance of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the study of the human evolution.
Practical Applications of DNA Technology
- Describe how DNA technology can have medical applications in such areas as the diagnosis of genetic disease, the development of gene therapy, vaccine production, and the development of pharmaceutical products.
- Explain how DNA technology is used in the forensic sciences.
- Describe how gene manipulation has practical applications for environmental and agricultural work.
- Describe how plant genes can be manipulated using the Ti plasmid carried by Agrobacterium as a vector.
- Explain how DNA technology can be used to improve the nutritional value of crops and to develop plants that can produce pharmaceutical products.
- Discuss the safety and ethical questions related to recombinant DNA studies and the biotechnology industry.