Deck 6: DNA: The Molecule of Life

Question 1

Which enzyme is responsible for adding complementary DNA bases to an exposed DNA strand?

A)DNA helicase
B)DNA polymerase
C)DNA ligase
D)DNA peptidase

Answer 1

B

Question 2

What is the monomer of the DNA polymer?

A)Polynucleotide
B)Monosaccharide
C)Nucleotide
D)Peptide

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which is not a posttranscriptional modification to the mRNA?

A)Intron removal
B)Promoter binding
C)End capping
D)Exon splicing

Answer 3

B

Question 4

What is not a structural difference between DNA and RNA?

A)They each contain a slightly different sugar molecule.
B)DNA is double stranded,RNA is a single strand.
C)Where DNA has a phosphate group,RNA has a methyl group.
D)One of the bases is different.

Question 5

What do the letters D-N-A stand for?

A)Dioxyribonucleic acid
B)Dioxyribonuclear acid
C)Deoxyribonucleic acid
D)Deoxyrobonuclear acid

Question 6

What does "transfer RNA" actually transfer?

A)Ribosome
B)Codons
C)Amino acids
D)Transcripts

Question 7

How many nucleotides in sequence are required to code for 10 amino acids?

A)3
B)10
C)20
D)30

Question 8

How is translation initiated?

A)DNA helicase binds to the origins of replication.
B)Two ribosomal subunits bind to the mRNA transcript.
C)RNA polymerase binds to the promoter sequence.
D)DNA ligase binds to the AUG start sequence.

Question 9

If the base sequence of template strand reads GCCATTAC,what is the base sequence of the mRNA?

A)CGGUAAUG
B)CGGTAATG
C)CGGTUUTG
D)GCCAUUAC

Question 10

What is a gene?

A)A discrete sequence of DNA nucleotides
B)A section of DNA that codes for one or more proteins
C)A section of DNA that codes for a portion of a protein
D)All of these and more are part of the expanding definition of a gene.

Question 11

Which nucleic acid acts like an enzyme,stabilizing and orienting different molecules to facilitate the formation of bonds between them?

A)DNA
B)rRNA
C)tRNA
D)mRNA

Question 12

Ribosomes are made out of which macromolecule?

A)Lipid and protein
B)Nucleic acid only
C)Nucleic acid and protein
D)Protein only

Question 13

Where does the bond form that binds one polynucleotide to the other polynucleotide?

A)Between the sugar and the base
B)Between the phosphate group and the sugar
C)Between the bases
D)Between the phosphate groups

Question 14

What is different from one DNA nucleotide to the next?

A)The sugar molecule
B)The phosphate group
C)The base
D)The protein

Question 15

Why does transcription occur in the nucleus and not in the cytoplasm?

A)RNA cannot exist in the cytoplasm.
B)DNA cannot leave the nucleus.
C)Ribosomes cannot leave the nucleus.
D)Codons are only found in the nucleus.

Question 16

If DNA directs the production of RNA,what does RNA make?

A)RNA makes proteins.
B)RNA makes more DNA.
C)RNA makes membranes.
D)RNA makes hereditary molecules.

Question 17

According to the base pairing rules of DNA,if the sequence of bases on one strand was AGGCTTA,what would be the sequence of bases on the complementary strand?

A)AGGCTTA
B)ATTCGGA
C)CGGATTC
D)TCCGAAT

Question 18

DNA helicase breaks which type of bond in the DNA molecule?

A)Covalent bonds
B)Hydrogen bonds
C)Ionic bonds
D)Peptide bonds

Question 19

Most genes are in the "off" state and are not expressed.How then are genes turned on?

A)DNA helicase must first bind to the promoter site of the DNA.
B)RNA polymerase must first bind to the exons.
C)MicroRNA binds to the DNA to initiate transcription.
D)Transcription factors must first bind to the DNA.

Question 20

If the codon is AAA,what is the complementary anticodon?

A)UUU
B)TTT
C)AAA
D)CCC

Question 21

While it is a standard rule of thumb to say information passes from DNA to RNA to protein,there are exceptions.What is the name of the enzyme that builds DNA out of RNA?

A)DNA polymerase
B)RNA polymerase
C)Reverse transcriptase
D)DNA synthase

Question 22

The type of mutation that alters the nucleotide sequence of a gene but does not alter the amino acid sequence of the protein produced from that gene is called ________ mutation.

A)missense
B)silent
C)nonsense
D)frameshift

Question 23

Which of the following is a true statement?

A)All mutagens are carcinogens.
B)All mutagens cause cancer.
C)All mutations are caused by mutagens.
D)None of these is a true statement.

Question 24

Genetically modified organisms that acquire genes from a different species are called ________ organisms.

A)mutant
B)synthetic
C)cloned
D)transgenic

Question 25

Which genes are responsible for your overall structure,such as how many legs you have and where they develop?

A)Oncogenes
B)Proto-oncogenes
C)Growth factor genes
D)Homeotic genes

Question 26

Occasionally the DNA may become damaged.Fortunately,several proofreading genes code for proteins that find and repair the damaged DNA.What might happen if one of these genes were damaged?

A)The cell would initiate a form of self-destruction.
B)Oncogenes would develop into proto-oncogenes.
C)The chance of developing cancer would increase substantially.
D)Tumor-suppressing genes would be turned on.

Question 27

Which enzyme used in the natural replication of DNA in a cell is also used when cloning a gene in the laboratory?

A)DNA ligase
B)DNA helicase
C)DNA polymerase
D)DNA transcriptase

Question 28

How does a cell typically know when to divide?

A)They have an internal clock and only divide when they reach a certain age.
B)Tumor suppressor genes code for growth factor proteins that initiate cell division.
C)Proto-oncogenes code for growth factor proteins that initiate cell division.
D)Oncogenes code for growth factor proteins that initiate cell division.

Question 29

What is the minimum amount of regular physical activity that has been shown to reduce the risk of cancer?

A)1 hour per day,every other day
B)30 minutes at a time,3 times per week
C)15 minutes of intense exercise,every day
D)None,physical activity has not been shown to reduce the risk of developing any form of cancer.

Question 30

What is the purpose of adding the cap and tail to the mRNA prior to leaving the nucleus?

A)To prevent and/or delay the degradation of the mRNA by enzymes in the cytoplasm
B)To attract and attach the translation machinery to the mRNA
C)To prevent the ends from attaching to other mRNA and extending the transcript
D)To prevent complementary RNA from binding to the mRNA and forming double stranded RNA

Question 31

When might a frameshift or nonsense mutation not result in a completely defective protein?

A)When the mutation occurs in one of the very last codons
B)When the mutation occurs in one of the first codons
C)When a frameshift is balanced out by a nonsense mutation
D)When the mutation occurs in an exon region

Question 32

What is a "benign" tumor?

A)A mass of cancerous cells
B)A single mutated cell that could potentially develop into cancer
C)A mass of cells that grows out of control and spreads to other tissues
D)A mass of cells that grows out of control but remains at the site of origin

Question 33

A collection of cloned DNA fragments representing the organism's entire genome is called a ________.

A)transgenic assembly
B)genomic library
C)clonal anthology
D)complementary DNA collection

Question 34

Why can a person who is unable to produce insulin,be successfully treated with insulin derived from genetically modified bacteria?

A)Typical bacterial insulin is exactly the same as human insulin.
B)The gene that produces insulin in humans was inserted into the bacteria where it continues to produce human insulin.
C)The insulin-producing gene of bacteria was altered to have the same base sequence as the human counterpart and now produces the human version of insulin.
D)Human insulin was inserted into bacteria and when the bacteria reproduce,so too does the insulin.

Question 35

Barr bodies are associated with ________.

A)signal transduction
B)X chromosome inactivation
C)frameshift mutations
D)proto-oncogenes

Question 36

The signal transduction pathway allows ________.

A)one cell to regulate the gene expression of another cell
B)a cell to repair damage to its DNA
C)genes from one organism to be inserted into the nucleus of another organism's cells
D)whole genomes to be sequenced

Question 37

The spread of cancer cells from their site of origin to sites distant in the body is called ________.

A)metastasis
B)epistasis
C)peristalsis
D)transformation

Question 38

How would the cDNA created in the lab compare to the original DNA?

A)It would be shorter because it only represents the genes that were transcribed in the cell at the time.
B)It would be longer because it would also include sequences needed to stabilize the molecule.
C)It would be single stranded because it is made by copying only the coding strand of DNA.
D)It would be circular instead of linear because bacteria are used in the process and they can only work with circular DNA molecules.

Question 39

The small circular molecules of DNA commonly found in bacteria are called ________.

A)chromatids
B)plastids
C)chromophores
D)plasmids

Question 40

What does "burn" refer to in the typical cancer treatment regime?

A)Chemotherapy
B)Aromatherapy
C)Radiation therapy
D)Surgery

Question 41

Of whom is the baby a clone?

A)Egg donor
B)DNA donor
C)Surrogate mother
D)It depends on whether it is male or female.

Question 42

Does the clone have a belly button?

A)Yes
B)No
C)It depends on whether it is male or female.

Question 43

Can the PCR technique be used to copy an entire chromosome all at once?

A)No,only the genes would be copied.
B)No,the PCR machine can only copy fragments of DNA.
C)No,while the DNA would be copied,the scaffolding proteins would not.
D)Yes,that is its primary function.

Question 44

Entire genes may be deleted,inverted,replicated,or even translocated to another chromosome.Explain how each one could potentially result in cancer?

Question 45

Three of the following statements are correct.Identify the statement that is not correct regarding genetically modified organisms.

A)There are no risks associated with GM crops.
B)GM crops have been produced with increased nutrition.
C)GM crops have been produced that are disease resistant.
D)GM animals are not in our food supply.

Question 46

How does a scientist get the corrected version of a gene into the cells of a gene therapy patient?

A)It is delivered with a modified virus.
B)It is directly injected with a microscopic hypodermic needle.
C)By attaching it to a food molecule,like glucose,it is then ingested by the individual.
D)By attaching it to the surface of microscopic beads,it is then shot into the individual (i.e.,shotgun method).

Question 47

What is the success rate of gene therapy?

A)Excellent,as many diseases are now successfully cured with gene therapy.
B)Fair,as more than half the trials have been successful.
C)Mediocre,as only about half the trials have been successful.
D)Poor,as there have been few successes but many disappointments.

Question 48

The mighty chestnut tree once dominated many of our Appalachian forests,but was decimated by an exotic fungus in the first part of the 20th century.A few small groves of trees still remain in isolated pockets and living roots of some of the fallen ancient trees still try to send up new shoots.These shoots always die as soon as they are exposed to the fungus.How could chestnut trees be genetically modified to be resistant to the fungus and grow again?

Question 49

Is the number of nucleotides in a species' DNA an accurate predictor of the number of genes in their DNA?

A)No,there is no relationship to the number of nucleotides and the number of genes.
B)No,while in general more nucleotides would imply more genes,this is not always the case.
C)Yes,it is a one-to-one relationship as 20,000 nucleotides would equate to 20,000 genes.
D)Yes,there is one gene for approximately every 1,000 nucleotides.

Question 50

How does chemotherapy kill cancer cells and why might it also result in hair loss and nausea?

Question 51

Will the clone be sterile or fertile?

A)Sterile
B)Fertile
C)It depends on whether it is male or female.

Question 52

Gel electrophoresis separates DNA fragments according to their ________.

A)length
B)charge
C)polarity
D)base sequences

Question 53

Restriction enzymes were originally isolated from bacteria who used them to protect themselves from viruses.How might a restriction enzyme defeat a virus?

Question 54

What specific field of science is interested in examining the complete set of proteins encoded by a genome?

A)Genomics
B)Genetic engineering
C)Forensics
D)Proteomics

Question 55

What separates the strands of DNA in the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)technique?

A)Restriction enzymes
B)Helicase
C)Centrifuge
D)Heat

Question 56

DNA profiling relies on an individual's ________,no two of which are the same between different people,except identical twins.

A)unique set of genes
B)unique DNA based sequences
C)unique set of STRs
D)unique fingerprints

Question 57

If you started the PCR technique with two fragments of double stranded DNA,calculate how many double stranded DNA fragments you would you have after four cycles.

A)8
B)16
C)32
D)64