DNA, genes and chromosomes
Cards (26)
- ChromosomeA thread-like structure made of a long DNA molecule
- GenomeThe complete set of genes in a cell
- GeneA short section of DNA that codes for polypeptides and a functional RNA
- AlleleAn alternative form of a gene
- Loci/locusThe location of a particular gene on a chromosome
- ChromatidOne branch of a double stranded chromosome
- DiploidWhen a cell contains two copies of each chromosome
- HaploidWhen a cell contains one copy of each chromosome
- Nucleic acidA polymer made of nucleotides like RNA and DNA
- DNAThe molecule in cells that stores genetic information
- Double helixThe structure of a DNA molecule, two separate stands wound in a spiral
- Genetic codeThe sequence of base triplets in mRNA which codes for specific amino acids
- Homologous pairsA chromosome that has identical genes to another chromosome but may have different alleles
- HistonesA protein that DNA is wound around to fit inside the nucleus
- NucleosomesDNA combined with histone proteins
- The endosymbiotic theory is a hypothesis that primitive bacteria cells became part of eukaryotic cells millions of years ago. The evidence for this is that mitochondria and chloroplasts contain DNA similar to a prokaryote
- The genetic code is universal, meaning that the same sequence of bases codes for the same amino acids in all organisms
- There are 20 amino acids in the human proteome
- The triplet code is degenerate, which means that each amino acid is coded for by more than one triplet
- The genetic code is non-overlapping because an enzyme reads the bases in a triplet code is read only once
- ProteomeThe full range of proteins a cell can produce
- An organism's proteome is produced by expressed genes and this is gene expression
- Gene expressionWhen a gene is turned on and it produces a protein
- ExonsSequences within a gene that code for amino acid sequences
- IntronsNon-coding sequences within a gene that separate exons
- Prokaryotes don't have introns