“modifications” to DNA that affect gene expression but do not involve base changes These changes are regular and naturally occurring nevertheless can be heavily influenced by several factors such as; • Age • Environment & life style • Or disease state. “According to Dr. Lipton, the true secret to life does not lie within your DNA, but rather within the mechanisms of your cell membrane.” There are 4 main mechanisms of modification and regulation of gene expression; DNA methylation, Chromatin Remodeling
homeotic gene expression in butterflies. The hypothesis they tested was do homeotic genes have driven morphological change or do the homeotic genes provide a pre-existing plan where insects segment diversity evolved. The genes Antp, Scr, Abd-A, and Ubx were isolated from a cDNA library and were used to explore differences in limb and wing numbers between flies and butterflies. Where Ubx and Abd-A are expressed, the limb and wing numbers arose. They started to wonder if the expression of BX-C genes were
Micro RNAs (miRNA’s) are created from microgenes and are a molecule that is aproximetly 22 base pairs in length, they are thought to coordinate the expression of genes that are protein coding in eukaryotes. Over 1000 have been discovered and they seem to compromise a secondary level of control that is likely to coordinate the genome function in humans and other complex organisms (Elliot and Elliot) It is also known that these miRNA help initiate the degradation of mRNA and prevent the translation
Senescence is the age-dependent deterioration process at the cellular, tissue, organ, or organismal level, leading to death or the end of the life span (Nooden, 1988). Leaf senescence is an organ level senescence but is often intimately associated with cellular or organismal death (Lim et al., 2007). According to Betania et al. (2000), it is the last stage of leaf development. The senescence process is started by the breakdown of chloroplast (Gepstein, 2004). Next, it is followed by macromolecules
Project Proposal: AIMS - Bioinformatic approach to aid gene identification and characterisation in Arabidopsis thaliana - Evaluate and integrate the accuracy of Arabidopsis database INTRODUCTION: Arabidopsis thaliana is a model plant for research and has been used wisely to study many aspects of plant biology. There is significant amount of information about this plant in the database, such as fully sequenced and annotated genomic sequence, extensive expressional data and functional characterisation
surfactant protein gene regulation. I was promoted to Associate and Full Professor ranks in 1995 and 2004, respectively. Briefly, I obtained my Ph. D. in Biochemistry from the University of Stockholm, Sweden, working under the mentorship of Dr. Bengt Mannervik, a world leader in the field of enzymes that metabolize glutathione. After obtaining my Ph. D., I conducted postdoctoral research, first on cytochrome P-450 gene regulation and then on surfactant protein gene regulation in the
Epigenetics and Cancer Introduction: Cancer is beyond mutations. By definition, epigenetics is the change in gene translation that is caused by alterations not directly due to genetic mutations in the DNA sequence. The 2 main mechanisms are DNA methylation and covalent modification of histones. By methylation, certain molecular tags (methyl groups) bind to a specific sequence of a gene, that results in its disability hence incapable of being translated into its appropriate protein product. These
Title: Altered HOX gene expression in Breast Cancer Introduction It is a very fascinating thought that a single cell zygote contains all information required for the development of an organism. HOX genes called Homeobox are family of 39 transcription factors divided into 4 clusters A, B, C and D and are located on different chromosomes 7p15, 17q21.2, 12q13 and 2q31 (De Souza et al., 2010). HOX genes control the body plan of embryo along anterior-posterior axis and are expressed during embryonic
end result of the DNA sequence but also of the cell’s internal system of expression orchestrated by different proteins and RNAs present at a given time. DNA encodes for many possible characteristics, but different types of RNA aided by specialized proteins sometimes with external signals express the needed genes. Control of gene expression is of vital importance for an eukaryote’s survival such as the ability of switching genes on/off in accordance with the changes in the environment (Campbell and
Turned My Genes Off!? Genes, those tiny building blocks of life, are inherently fascinating. How do a bunch of cells turn into a human being? How do the cells know what they are destined to be? A red blood cell, a skin cell, or a brain cell? The field of epigenetics may be able to answer those questions. According to the textbook, Pinel (2014) defines epigenetics as “the study of all mechanisms of inheritance other than the genetic code and its expression” (p.41). In other words, gene expression is influenced
Histones are alkaline proteins which play an important role in the packaging of DNA and the regulation of genes in eukaryotic organisms. Without histones, the unwound DNA in chromosomes would be very long, about 2 meters in length per cell. As a result, chromatin in the DNA is very tightly associated with these histone proteins, which package and order the DNA into structural units called nucleosomes. This supercoiled, condensed structure allows for the long DNA molecule to fit inside the nucleus
Gene expression is the ability of a gene to produce a biologically active protein. This process is regulated by the cells of an organism, it is very important to the survival of organisms at all levels. This is much more complex in eukaryotes than in prokaryotes. A major difference is the presence in eukaryotes of a nuclear membrane, which prevents the simultaneous transcription and translation that occurs in prokaryotes. Initiation of protein transcription is started by RNA polymerase. The activity
Lung cancer occurs when gene expression goes awry leading to mutational epithelial cell in response to exposure to different stresses. In the past, cancer studies and investigation into mechanism of tumorigenesis mostly focused on protein-coding genes, considering them as the principal regulators of diseases and cancers. But, MatticK in 2004 enlighten that, evidence from numerous high throughput
language and the environments that develop this capacity has endowed humanity with unprecedented cognitive ability. The FOXP2 gene, a hallmark of our language genotype, and its environmental mechanisms are illuminating this integral phenotype. While a phenotype as multifaceted as human language is certainly polygenic, FOXP2 is distinct in being linked to grammar. Because genes enabling cognitive faculties are often implicated in pathology, when the famous “KE” family displayed mutated alleles of FOXP2
Pitx1 is a gene with in a larger family of similar genes, referred to as homeobox genes that direct the formation of many body structures during early embryonic development. Pitx1 in particular, encodes for a protein of some 283 amino acids (varying slightly in different species) that acts as a transcription factor and is in charge of regulating the expression of other genes involved in the differentiation and function of certain developmental regions. The scientists in this study have been interested
proteins that help turn specific genes "on" or "off" by binding to nearby DNA. • Transcription factors that are activators boost a gene's transcription. Repressors decrease transcription. • Groups of transcription factor binding sites called enhancers and silencers can turn a gene on/off in specific parts of the body. • Transcription factors allow cells to perform logic operations and combine different sources of information to "decide" whether to express a gene. Introduction Do you have any transcription
find, as is seen in figure 1.A of the report, that one gene in particular, the Pitx1 gene was highly correlated to the pelvic spine, pelvic girdle, ascending branch and asymmetry in the Stickleback species. Thus, in other words showing that there was a tight linkage between Pitx1 and the pelvic reduction phenotype. The next step for the scientists was then to determine whether or not there were any changes in the coding region of the Pitx1 gene between the marine and benthic stickleback species. In
of Aux/IAA to promote the expression of auxin induced genes. It has an important role in the regulation of auxin response genes and thus its function is conserved throughout plants. In our experiments we looked at the function of TIR1 by characterising an EMS tir1-1 mutant and also identified the members in the TIR1 gene family in arabidopsis and determined if the TIR1 function was conserved in other plant groups. Aux/IAA genes are one of the early auxin response genes that encode short-lived nuclear
24hr solar system. This system can be affected by environmental factors such as the food, temperature and parasites. The circadian rhythms play a role in gene expression to produce protein. Gene expression is displayed through the central dogma of (DNA RNA protein). How the clock work with the 24hr solar day is that it allows gene expression every 24hr to tell when a physiological process is most active. And any damage made to the DNA is more effective
SRY gene The SRY-box containing gene 17 (Sox17) was discovered less than a decade ago as a member of the high mobility group (HMG) transcription factor super family. (Zhang et al., 2008) Sox genes are known by a DNA sequence encoding an almost 80 amino acid domain that is responsible for sequence specific DNA binding. Within the Sox family, there are at least 30 members that are expressed in different tissues, cell types, and stages within development. There are seven groups of Sox genes that