Genetics: PCB3063 Ch 1 Overview of Genetics Flashcards

An organism's genome consists of ______.

The branch of biology that deals with heredity and variation is

Which of the following are correct descriptions of a gene?

The functional product of most genes is a(n)

The term that describes all of the DNA found in all of an organism's chromosomes is

Genes are often described according to the way they affect the characteristics of an organism, which are called

Genetics is the branch of biology that deals with ______.

Which of the following molecules are nucleic acids?

A gene can be described as a unit of heredity or as a segment of _____

that produces a functional product.

The building blocks of DNA are called

A gene is a segment of DNA that produces a functional product, which is usually a(n) ____ , or as a unit of heredity that affects an organism's ____.

Genes are the source of products for cellular function. The product of most genes is a ______.

Of the macromolecules found in living cells, the largest one is

A trait is a ______.

In a eukaryotic cell, the ____ is surrounded by a double membrane that protects the chromosomes from the rest of the cellular components.

Both DNA and RNA are ______ acids.

DNA is made of ______.

In a eukaryotic cell, what are the advantages of having the chromosomes organized within a cell nucleus?

What is the largest macromolecule found in living cells?

Which of the following are potential functions of proteins?

Where are the chromosomes located in a eukaryotic cell?

An enzyme is a protein that ______.

An enzyme that breaks molecules into smaller components is called a(n) ____ enzyme, and an enzyme that synthesizes macromolecules is called a(n) ____ enzyme.

The abbreviation for deoxyribonucleic acid is

Organizing chromosomes within a cell nucleus protects chromosomes from mechanical damage and provides a single ____ for genetic activities such as transcription.

What is the genetic material of all living organisms composed of?

Which cellular molecules can accelerate chemical reactions, transport substances across the membrane, and provide structure and stability for a cell?

A protein that can accelerate a chemical reaction is called a(n)

What is the main function of a cell's genetic material?

What are some of the functions of enzymes in cells?

A DNA molecule is a linear sequence of subunits called

Adenine, thymine, guanine and cytosine are nitrogen-containing bases found in ______.

True or false: All living organisms have genetic material composed of DNA.

The information in a(n) ____ molecule is stored in the sequence of its nucleotide bases.

The primary function of DNA is to code for the production of

Most genes contain the information to direct the synthesis of a polypeptide. The order of amino acids in the polypeptide is specified according to the ____ code.

What are the subunits of DNA?

In the genetic code, there are 64 codons consisting of ____ nucleotide(s) each that specify the 20 different amino acids. (Your answer will be a number).

What are the four nitrogen-containing bases found in the nucleotides that make up DNA?

In living cells, DNA is found in large structures called ____, which are contained in the nucleus of a eukaryotic cell.

In a DNA molecule, information is contained in the sequence of ______.

Which cellular molecules can accelerate chemical reactions, transport substances across the membrane, and provide structure and stability for a cell?

The genetic code directs the order of ______ within a polypeptide based on the sequence of nucleotides within a DNA molecule.

What is a karyotype?

In the genetic code, how many nucleotides are necessary to specify one amino acid?

The DNA of human chromosomes is ______.

What structures in a cell contain DNA?

True or false: An average human chromosome contains approximately two million genes.

A micrograph of the chromosomes in a cell is called a(n)

What is gene expression?

When a structural gene is expressed, its DNA sequence is ____ into RNA, which is then ___ to produce a polypeptide.

During transcription, the DNA sequence of a gene is copied into a sequence of ______.

Approximately how many genes are found on a typical human chromosome?

The process of using a gene sequence to affect the characteristics of cells and organisms is called gene ______.

Place the molecules produced when a gene is expressed in the correct sequence beginning with the gene.

RNA is an abbreviation for ______.

The process by which a DNA sequence is copied into an RNA sequence is called

A structural gene is a gene that encodes a(n)

What type of RNA contains the information required to synthesize a protein?

What is translation?

What does the central dogma of genetics describe?

During transcription, the DNA sequence of a gene is copied into a sequence of ______.

Match each trait with the correct example.

What is a structural gene?

A trait that affects the appearance, form, and structure of an organism is called a(n) ____ trait. A trait that affects the ability of an organism to function is called a(n) ____ trait. A trait that affects the way an organism responds to its environment is called a(n) ____ trait.

When a protein-encoding gene is transcribed, the RNA molecule that is produced is referred to as ___ RNA (mRNA).

Genes affect traits at several levels of biological organization. Match each level of organization with the correct description of gene function.

The synthesis of a polypeptide based on the nucleotide sequence of a messenger RNA molecule is called

What is a species?

The pathway of gene expression from DNA to RNA to protein is referred to as the ____ ____ genetics.

Alternative versions of the same gene are called

The color of a butterfly is an example of a(n) ______ trait.

Match each type of trait with the correct description.

Different alleles of the same gene have different ___ sequences.

Transcription and translation lead to gene expression at the ______ level. The evolution of beneficial traits that enhance reproductive success is an example of how genetics affects a species at the ______ level.

A group of organisms that maintains a distinctive set of attributes is called a(n)

What are alleles?

Differences in inherited traits among individuals within a population are referred to as genetic

The genetic variation among individuals within a population can be explained by differences in the sequence of

How do alleles differ from one another?

Which of the following are genomic alterations that may induce genetic variation?

Changes in the nucleotide sequence of a single gene that result in two or more alleles for that gene are called gene

Genetic variation describes differences in ______.

True or false: All gene mutations that have an effect on a cell or organism alter the structure and function of the protein encoded by the gene.

What underlies the majority of the genetic variation among individuals within a population?

Down syndrome is the result of ______.

True or false: An organism's environment can affect its morphological and physiological traits.

Genetic variation can be attributed to gene ____ that affect the sequence of a single gene or alterations in the structure or total number of ____.

What is a gene mutation?

Gene mutations can affect the traits of an organism because they can alter the expression or function of the ____ encoded by the gene.

The term diploid means that a cell or organism has ______.

Variation in human eye color is due to ______.

An organism's traits can be affected by its genes and also by its

In this figure, two copies of chromosome 13 are circled. These two copies of chromosome 13 are called of each other.

Which of the following are genomic alterations that may induce genetic variation?

The two chromosomes in a homologous pair contain ______.

A cell or organism that contains two copies of every chromosome is said to be

In a multicellular organism, cells that are not directly involved in sexual reproduction are called ____ cells.

How many chromosomes would be found in a diploid human cell?

In a diploid organism, the two copies of a chromosome are referred to as ______.

A human sperm cell contains ______ chromosome(s).

Which of the following cells are gametes?

True or false: A pair of homologous chromosomes always contains identical alleles of the same genes.

A cell that contains a single set of chromosomes is called

What are somatic cells?

A human somatic cell contains ____ chromosomes.

A human egg cell would contain ____ chromosomes.

The union of gametes at fertilization restores ______.

Sperm and egg cells are also called ______.

What is the primary advantage of sexual reproduction over asexual reproduction?

A cell that is haploid contains ______ set(s) of chromosomes.

Changes in the genetic makeup of a population from one generation to the next represent

In a multicellular organism, cells that are not directly involved in sexual reproduction are called ____ cells.

An allele that improves the ability of individuals to survive and reproduce may become more prevalent in future generations due to

Match each model organism shown in the image to the correct name.

During sexual reproduction, the process in which gametes unite to restore the diploid number of chromosomes is called

The inheritance of genes and the way that genes influence traits is the focus of ____ genetics.

One of the main advantages of sexual reproduction is that it increases ____ variation.

How are genes passed from parents to offspring?

What is evolution?

The breeding of two selected individuals and the analysis of their offspring is referred to as ______.

After a random mutation creates a new allele that may be harmful, neutral or beneficial, which of the following may occur during natural selection?

Which area of genetics focuses on the biochemical understanding of DNA and gene expression?

Match the scientific name of each organism with its common name.

The term genetic approach refers to the study of ______.

Which field of genetics focuses on how genes are passed on from parents to offspring?

A mutation that eliminates the function of a gene is called a(n) -___ of- ___ mutation.

Mendel proposed that factors, which we now call ____ , are passed from parents to offspring via sperm and egg cells.

If fruit flies normally have red eyes and a loss-of-function mutation in a certain gene results in white eyes, then the role of the normal gene is the production of pigment that is ___ in color.

What is a genetic cross?

The field of genetics that focuses on the relationship of genetic variation to an organism's environment is called genetics.

Which of the following topics is the focus of molecular genetics?

Which approach involves implementation of the scientific method to test an explanation for a natural phenomenon?

The study of mutant genes with abnormal function in order to better understand the function of a normal gene is referred to as a(n) ___ approach.

Because genetics is a quantitative science, researchers often rely on methods to analyze the data and make conclusions.

A loss-of-function mutation is a mutation that ______.

One useful strategy for solving problems in genetics is to propose a(n) ____, which is an attempt to explain an observation or data.

If a plant normally produces red flowers and a loss-of-function mutation within a certain gene results in production of white flowers, what is the role of the functional gene?

What is the focus of population genetics?

What is the difference between hypothesis testing and discovery-based science?

You are studying genetic data about the prevalence of a disease from a large family, but it is not organized in any particular way. To better understand the data, which genetics problem solving strategy should you employ?

You are trying to solve a genetics problem that asks you to determine how two proteins differ from one another. Which problem-solving strategy would be most helpful for this question?