Molecular
Biology
Thought
Questions for Exam 2
1. What is the
role of DNA ligase during DNA repair? What would happen to DNA replication if a
cell is incapable of synthesizing this enzyme?
2. Name and describe all the different types of DNA
mutations discussed in class. What
caused the formation of these mutations?
What would happen to cellular functions
if these mutations were left unrepaired?
3. Name and
describe the function(s) of all types of repair system discussed in class. Name and describe the function(s) of
proteins/enzymes/molecules that are involved in each repair system. What would happen to the particular DNA
repair system if one of these proteins/enzymes/molecules were absent?
4. Why are
there so many different types of repair system within a cell? What would happen to cellular functions if
one or more DNA repair systems were nonfunctional? Why do repair systems sometimes induce
additional DNA mutations? Is this
intentional or inadvertent?
5. What are
response elements? What are consensus
sequences? Where are they located? What are their functions? What are transcription factors? What are their functions?
6. What is/are
the function of the MRE11/RAD50/XRS2 complex?
9. What is the
function of a promoter? Where is a
promoter located? What is the function
of a core promoter? Where is a core
promoter located?
10. What are enhancers and silencers? Where are they located? What are their functions?
11. Describe
the initiation of transcription. Name and
describe the function(s) of all enzymes, molecules, and structures that are involved
in each process.
12. What are RNA polymerases? Where do they bind? What are their functions?
13. Why do
eukaryotic cells need to undergo co-transcriptional modifications? Name and describe the function(s) of all the
different co-transcriptional modifications.
Name and describe the function(s) of all enzymes, molecules, and
structures that are involved in each process.
14. What is the
difference between a Primary (or Pre-mRNA) transcript and a mature mRNA? Where is each found? What is the relationship between the two?
15. What are
heterogeneous nuclear RNA’s? Where are
they found?
16. What is a spliceosome? What is
a small nuclear RNA? What is a small
nuclear ribonucleoprotein (or snRNP)? Name examples of snRNP's
and describe their functions. What is a ribozyme?
17. How is
transcription terminated in a eukaryotic cell?
Describe the process of Polyadenylation.
18. What is
meant by upstream and downstream in Molecular Biology?
19. What is the
direction of mRNA synthesis? What is the
direction of the template used?
20. What is RNA
interference? Describe the mechanism of
this process. Why is this process needed
in the eukaryotic cell?