What is molecular biology?
-The branch of biology that deals with the structure and function of molecules essential to life (DNA, RNA, and proteins)
These molecules carry genetic instructions, which allow cells to communicate and perform the--------
chemical reactions needed to keep organisms alive
The use of biology to create useful technologies and products
biotechnology
What do we use DNA for?
- produce insulin
-develop vaccines
-edit genes using tools like CRISPR
- analyze DNA evidence in forensic investigations
The use of techniques from molecular biology to analyze biological evidence- blood, saliva, skin cells- and extract DNA profiles
Forensic biotechnology
In 1830s,
-Matthias Schleiden & Theodor Schwann
- All organisms are made of cells
-cells are the basic unit of life
The birth of cell theory
-Charles Darwin wrote "on the origin of species"
- Proposed the theory of evolution by natural selection
- recognized that variation and inheritance were key to evolution, but did not know the mechanism of heredity
Transmission of genetics in 1859
-Gregor Mendel deciphered genetic laws
- by conducting experiments on pea plants, discovered the basic
-Dominant and recessive traits
transmission of genetics in 1865
-Friedrich Miescher isolates nuclein from white blood cells.
- Walter Sutton and Theodor Boveri proposed that hereditary factors are located on chromosomes, which segregate during cell division
- 1869
-1902
-In 1910:
- In 1911:
- Thomas Hunt Morgan discovered sex-linked genes, establishing the chromosomal theory of inheritance
- A student of Morgan, discovered that the relative locations of genes can be mapped on chromosomes
P.Levene and W. Jacobs, and others demonstrate that RNA is composed of a sugar (ribose) plus four nitrogen-containing bases, and that DNA contains a different sugar (deoxyribose) plus four bases.
In 1930s