It is sometimes possible to design a degenerate oligonucleotide probe for screening a DNA library if the amino acid sequence of the protein is available. These probes are
A) composed of a mixture of different oligonucleotide sequences.
B) composed only of the most frequently used codon for each amino acid.
C) completely random oligonucleotide sequences.
D) small restriction enzyme fragments.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Degenerate oligonucleotide probes typically contain a mixture of different nucleotide sequences, allowing for the detection of various possible nucleotide combinations that could generate the target amino acid sequence. This approach provides flexibility in the probe design and improves the chances of capturing the desired target sequence. B is incorrect because using only the most frequently used codon for each amino acid does not account for all possible codons that could encode that amino acid. C is incorrect because completely random oligonucleotide sequences would not necessarily correspond to the target amino acid sequence. D is incorrect because restriction enzyme fragments are typically too large and do not provide the necessary specificity for detecting a specific target sequence.

It Is Sometimes Possible to Design a Degenerate Oligonucleotide Probe