BIO FINAL REVIEW

Genetics
1) Codominance - both alleles of a gene contribute to the phenotype. Erminette chickens have
speckled black and white feathers. The alleles are given subscripts or superscripts.
Incomplete Dominance - the phenotype is a combination of the two alelles, ie a blending of what two
homozygous organisms would look like.
2) Dihybrid crosses predict the alleles for two traits in offspring. Each of the different possible
gametes (up to four) creates a new row or column. Ex:
• AaBb allows for AB, Ab, aB, and ab gametes.
• AABB can only produce AB gametes.
If both parents' are heterozygous, offspring are found in the ratio
1:2:1:2:4:1:2:1:2 genoytpically and 9:3:3:1 phenotypically.

3) Pedigrees are 'family trees' and show heritage of traits. Generations are listed as roman
numerals (I, II, III, IV) and individuals are named from left to right as numbers (1, 2, 3, 4).
Females are circles and males are squares. Afflicted individuals are shaded in black. Sometimes
carriers will be half shaded (ex. hemophilia) but DON'T have the disease, since it is recessive.
How to Determine:
• Recessive Traits
-If neither parent has the trait but at least one offspring does.
-Most likely, there will be more people that do not have the trait.
• Dominant Traits
-If a parent is homozygous for the trait and passes it to all his offspring.
Remember, people linked via marriage (a horizontal line) in later generations are not part of the
same family as people above them in the tree. Ew incest.
4) A trait can be controlled by multiple alleles if there are more than 2 possible forms of a gene.
The organism still only has two alleles. Codominance and incomplete dominance can still
occur. Ex:
Human blood type is controlled by the codominant alleles A and B , and recessive allele O.
Polygenic traits are controlled my more than one gene and show a wide range of phenotypes.
 The color of pigment in a fly's eye is controlled by three different genes.
5) X-linked traits are controlled by genes on the X chromosome. These traits, like hemophillia
and colorblindness, are sex linked and hereditary. These traits are more common in males, since
they only have one X chromosome. Recessive X-linked traits are less common in females
because they require both parents to have to carry the allele. Females are carriers if they are
heterozygous but do not have the trait.
Remember, females pass an X chromosome on regardless of gender.
6) Genes on the same chromosome are said to be linked. These genes create ratios that differ from
standard Mendelian ratios. Crossing over occurs during prohase I.
Linked genes cannot cross over, limiting the variety of gametes.
The above only results in two gametes (abcde and
ABCDE) instead of 32 if all 5 genes were on different
chromosomes. Since a parent passes down one out of each pair
of chromosomes, genes on the same chromosome stay together.
Crossing over results in a small percent of mixed
phenotypes (here, the last two genes of
each chromosome have crossed over).
The complete percentage of mixed
phenotypes is the cross over
frequency. This is related to the distance between genes on
chromosomes, measured in map units.
Without crossing over, crossing two hybrid organisms results in
a 3:1 ratio of completely dominant to completely recessive
phenotypes. Suppose green peas and smooth pods were dominant to
yellow and wrinkled peas. Theoretically, breeding the two parents on
the right should produce 750 green, smooth peas and 250 yellow, wrinkled peas. With crossing over:
• Still 3:1 ratio of totally dominant : totally recessive proves
gene linkage
• 121 partially dominant/recessive shows crossing over has
occurred.
• Map units = the percent of partially dominant recessive
peas added together (and rounded). Here, it's ~12%, so the genes are 12 map units apart.
 7) Hereditary Disorders can be passed down from generation to generation. It does not
necessarily have to be sex linked and can be autosomal, ex. Huntington's disease. That's it.

Gene Regulation and Genetic Engineering

*Remember genes are sequences of DNA that
control what proteins are created during translation.
8) Operons: a group of genes that function together (eg, turned on and off by a single operator).
For example, the lactose digesting lac operon in E. coli consists of three genes that are turned
on and off together.
Repressor: blocks transcription of certain gene sequence(s) on the DNA strand. In order to turn the lac
gene on, lactose must be present in the bacterium to bind to the repressor. It then falls off, allowing the
lactose-digesting proteins to be synthesized. If no lactose is present to remove the repressor, the gene is
not transcribed.
Operator: (The book calls this the O-region a lot) area where repressors bind to regulate transcription
of an operon. It is generally found between the promoter (where RNA Polymerase binds to) and the
operon itself.
9) The TATA box (which, I will never look at the same way again, thanks, PALS.) Is a short region of ~30 base pairs that are
found right before the sequence to be transcribed (but after the promoter sequence). Meant to
help position the RNA polymerase.

10) Hox genes control differentiation of cells and tissues in the embryo. They are similar among a
wide variety of species, from mice to flies to humans. May be proof that organisms once shared
a common ancestor.
11) Genetic engineering aims to make changes in the DNA of a living organism. Transgenic
Organisms are organisms that contain genes from other species. Recombiant DNA is DNA that
comes from multiple sources.
12) Medicine:
• Transgenic bacteria grow fast and are used to produce insulin for diabetics, HGH for
short people(I could use some), and clotting factors for hemophillia.
• Substances are mass produced cheaply. In the future, may be able to produce chemicals
for curing cancer and materials for synthetic plastic.
• Animals with human genes are used to study diseases on the human immune system.
Agriculture:
• GM animals increase food supply. Hormones allow animals to grow fast and produce
better meat.
• GM plants can produce a natural pesticide for weed killing. Also a possibility to create
antibodies, plastics, and rot-resistant.
13) a. DNA is extracted from a cell using chemicals.
b. DNA is cut using restriction enzymes that only cleaves a specific nucleotide sequence.
The resulting fragments are called restriction fragment length polymorphisms. (RFLP)
This also creates sticky ends on the two sides of the fragment.
c. Gel electrophoresis separates the DNA fragments. The negatively charged molecules
move towards the positive end of the gel. The smaller fragments will move farther down.
The fragments are ordered by length and can be compared.
d. Polymerase Chain Reaction- DNA fragment to be copied gets complementary DNA
attached to each end. These are called primers. DNA is heated to seperate the two
strands and polymerase makes copies of the region between the primers. Each new copy
also serves as a template to make more DNA.
e. Dye tagging allows a sequence to be read. 1 strand of DNA is placed in a test tube with
lots of nucleotides and DNA polymerase. The polymerase starts copying the DNA, while
some nucleotides have dyes attached to them. When a dye-tagged base is copied,
synthesis of that strand ends. The new fragments are run through gel electrophoresis and
the complements of the original strand can be read. (txtbook pg 324 for picture).
f. To put this DNA in another organism, a plasmid is extracted from a bacterium. The same
restriction enzyme is used on it, and the new DNA's stick ends allow it to attach to the
cut plasmid. It is then put back into the bacterium. For plants, the tumor inducing gene in
a bacteria is replaced with the desired DNA fragment, and the bacterium is then allowed
 to infect plant cells.
14) People with similar DNA will have it cut in similar places by restriction enzymes. These
create pieces of similar lengths that are apparent when run through gel electrophoresis

Note how all individuals with an H

allele (Huntington's disease) have DNA
segments cut differently than pure
recessive individuals. RFLP analysis
can help determine a culprit or find
genetic causes of diseases.

15) DNA Fingerprint- the difference in base pairs between every individual allows them to be
identified by their DNA. Is useful in court and criminal justice fields.
16)
• Plasmid- circular ring of DNA found in some bacteria. Good for transferring DNA to
new cells.
• Vector- agent used to transfer DNA to another cell.
• Recombinant- DNA for multiple sources.
• Electrophoresis – Using gel and electric voltage to order DNA fragments by length.
17) A transgenic organism has DNA that comes from multiple sources.
18) A clone is a genetically identical cell or organism produced from a single cell. First, the
nucleus of an egg cell is removed, since an egg cell is already programmed to develop into a
fetus. The cell is fused with a donor nucleus from another adult cell using electric shock. Once
the cell starts to divide, it is placed in the uterus of a foster mother. The new organism is the
clone from which the donor nucleus came. This process fails a lot.

Evolution, Speciation, and Population Analysis

19) 1785/Hutton – the earth slowly changes by the work of geological forces. First to estimate the
earth to be millions of years old.
1798/Malthus – A playwright who wrote the screenplay for Soylent Green. He hates New
York city and likes genre-unsavy detectives. IT'S PEOPLE! Soylent green is people! The human population
would outgrow the resources and supplies available to sustain it. Darwin observed this in
 plants and animals, since they produce much more offspring, and only a small fracture survive
to adulthood.
1833/Lyell – explained that the same geological forces that shaped Earth in the past are also at
work in the present.
20/21) Lamarck's Evolution Hypothesis/Theory of Need
▪ organisms change because of a need to change and be perfect.
▪ Traits are gained and lost through use and disuse
▪ Acquired characteristics are inheritable.
Darwin's Theory of Evolution
• “Descent with modification.” Evolution occurs via natural selection.
• Variation of traits in populations lead for certain members to be better suited for
survival. (cough, Huixin.)
• Overpopulation leads to competition for resources
• Only the fittest can reproduce and pass on their heritable adaptations while the
unlucky people with unsuitable traits die out. (cough, Diane.)
• This heritable adaptation eventually leads to speciation.
22) Evidence of Evolution
1. Common Ancestry
• Fossil record shows preserved remains of organisms that are now extinct or similar to
some living organisms,
• Geographic distribution has created similar, genetically unrelated species that inhabit
similar environments. While they come from the different ancestors, natural selection
caused them to have common features.
2. Genetic Similarity
• Anatomy- homologous structures develop from the same embryonic tissues but look
different when mature. Vestigial structures no longer have a use, but since they don't
hinder an organism, they haven't been eliminated. Except Appendix. Poor, poor Appendix. Cecum must get sick of
him a lot.

• Biochemistry- amino acids and proteins or something “DNA hybridisation attempts

to combine single strand DNA from two sources. Each place that the combination fails
is a difference.“ -Linh Thoai
• Embryology – look similar during early development. Cells develop in the same order
 and produce the tissues growing in similar ways. “Ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny”
embryos often reflect on evolutionary history.
23) Homologous structures develop from the same embryonic tissues but look different when
mature. Vestigial structures no longer have a use, but since they don't hinder an organism, they
haven't been eliminated.
24) Demography- study of populations
25) Geographic Distribution: area inhabited by a population, maybe random, even, or clumped.
Density: individuals per unit area.
Growth Rate: fluctuates, affected by 3 factors, the number of births and deaths, and migration.
Migration is based on environmental factors like (lack of) food or mating.
26) Hardy Weinburg Laws – Allele frequencies will be constant if some conditions are met.
27) No migrations, no mutations, no natural selection, no genetic drift, and random mating.
28) I stole this from Linh Thoai.(I got a 40 on the quiz so you should listen to me)
Frequency of Alleles – p2 + q2 = 1
Frequency of Genotypes in the population - p2 +2pq+ q2 = 1
• p— frequency of the dominant allele in the total gene pool
• q— frequency of the recessive allele in the total gene pool
• p2— proportion of the population that is homozygous dominant
• q2— proportion of the population that is recessive
• 2pq— proportion of the population that is heterozygous
Solve in the order of: q2, q, p, p2, 2pq. For the second generation, turn the population
equation into whole numbers, then solve for p and q, then p2, q2, and 2pq.
29)
 30) Reproductive Isolation combined with natural selection leads to speciation.
• Geographic (...)
• Behavioral (birds have different mating calls)
• Temporal (flowers bloom at different times of the year)
• Ecological (species don't meet because they live in different habitats in the same region,
like octopi and clown fish in the ocean.)
• Mechanical (that's what she sa-)

History and Classification of Life

31) Lucy is the fossilized skeleton of a homonid, with both ape and people traits.
32) Lucy's knee joint locked (like ours) meaning she could walk upright. Laetoli's footprints lacked
the tree big toe of most chimps and has the same arch as a human foot.
33) This meant Lucy walked upright.
34)