Deck 12: Biotechnology and Genomics

Question 1

Which of the following is not an application of transgenic organisms?

A) bacteria that undergo mutations frequently
B) bacteria that degrade oil
C) corn plants that are resistant to herbicides
D) cattle that secrete therapeutic proteins into their milk
E) carrots that produce influenza virus proteins that can be used as vaccines

Answer 1

A
Explanation: All of the choices are possible uses for transgenic organisms except bacteria that undergo mutations frequently. Bacteria that undergo frequent mutations are sometimes the result of the overuse of antibiotics, however, and pose a major problem in many hospitals.

Question 2

An) ________ is to reproductive cloning as an) ________ is to therapeutic cloning.

A) specialized cell; clone
B) clone; enucleated egg
C) clone; specialized cell
D) embryonic stem cell; adult stem cell
E) enucleated egg; specialized cell

Answer 2

C
Explanation: In reproductive cloning, a donor nucleus from an individual organism is used to generate the new organism, so it is genetically identical to the original organism, or a clone. The end result of therapeutic cloning is various cell types that can be used to treat disease.

Question 3

Therapeutic cloning can

A) produce clones of adult individuals.
B) be used to produce superior farm animals.
C) produce specialized cells to treat human disease.
D) be used to create new species of plants.
E) produce embryonic stem cells.

Answer 3

C
Explanation: Therapeutic cloning holds the potential to regenerate not only individual specialized cells, but also tissues and organs for transplant.

Question 4

Why is it necessary to "starve" the donor cells prior to reproductive cloning?

A) to force the cells into G₀ stage so that the nuclei removed from them will respond to cytoplasmic growth signals
B) to force the enucleated egg cell into G₀ stage so that it would accept the donor nucleus
C) to lengthen the telomeres in the donor nucleus
D) to make the nucleus "start over" in the S stage so that the nucleus will be diploid
E) to make the nucleus "start over" in the S stage so that the nucleus will be haploid

Question 5

How can comparative genomics assist in the treatment of HIV?

A) The genome of HIV can now be compared to the human genome to find similarities between the two.
B) Knowing the genome of HIV allows for the manufacture of designer drugs to treat specific strains.
C) Understanding the genetic code of HIV allows scientists to replicate it in the laboratory.
D) Understanding the evolution of HIV in an individual will help scientists understand how the virus responds to different drug regimes and will lead to better treatments.
E) Knowing the proteins produced by HIV will allow the development of drugs to mimic those proteins.

Question 6

The steps involved in a single PCR cycle, in the correct order, are

A) cool to allow DNA strands to anneal, heat to allow primer to anneal, cool to allow DNA polymerase to copy DNA.
B) heat to denature DNA strands, cool to allow primer to anneal and to allow DNA polymerase to copy DNA.
C) heat to denature DNA strands and for primer to anneal, cool to allow DNA polymerase to copy DNA.
D) cool to denature DNA strands, heat to allow primer to anneal, cool to allow DNA polymerase to copy DNA.
E) cool to allow primer to anneal, heat to denature DNA strands, cool to allow DNA polymerase to copy DNA.
A typical PCR cycle has two steps: denaturation, and annealing/extension. The reaction is heated to near boiling to separate the two DNA strands, and then the reaction is cooled to allow the primers to anneal to the DNA and to allow the DNA polymerase to copy the DNA.

Question 7

Which of the following reasons explains a possible advantage of using adult stem cells in therapeutic cloning rather than embryonic stem cells?

A) Adult stem cells have a longer lifespan in culture than embryonic stem cells, and would persist for a longer time in the patient's body.
B) Embryonic stem cells would not be able to enter the correct tissue of the patient's body, unlike an adult stem cell.
C) Adult stem cells must be obtained from another individual before being injected into the patient, and would be less likely to be rejected by the patient's body.
D) Embryonic stem cells may stop dividing within the patient's body once injected, unlike adult stem cells.
E) Adult stem cells may be obtained from the patient and would be less likely to be rejected by the patient's body.

Question 8

Cells from the root of a carrot may be used to generate an entire carrot plant. This illustrates that

A) only cells of the root contain the plant's genes.
B) every cell of the root contains all of the plant's genes.
C) plants are easier to clone than animals.
D) carrots may be used for therapeutic cloning.
E) a carrot's roots contain all of the tissues of an adult plant.

Question 9

After 12 PCR cycles, how many DNA strands would be available?

A) 4,096
B) 2,048
C) 1,024
D) 512
E) 256

Question 10

In order to clone adult animals, scientists typically begin with an)

A) isolated sperm cell.
B) enucleated egg.
C) enucleated liver cell.
D) red blood cell.
E) enucleated sperm cell.

Question 11

During recombinant DNA technology, what structure acts as a carrier for the foreign DNA?

A) vector
B) restriction enzyme
C) DNA ligase
D) polymerase chain reaction
E) DNA helicase

Question 12

Which of the following sequences of events in the production of recombinant DNA are in the correct order?

A) cut DNA with restriction enzymes, mix DNA with plasmid DNA, add DNA ligase
B) mix DNA with plasmid DNA, cut with restriction enzymes, add DNA ligase
C) add DNA ligase, cut DNA with restriction enzymes, mix DNA with plasmid DNA
D) mix DNA with plasmid DNA, add DNA ligase, cut with restriction enzymes
E) cut with restriction enzymes, add DNA ligase, mix DNA with plasmid DNA

Question 13

Bacteria, plants, and animals have all been used to create transgenic forms that are useful in

A) producing high-yield tomato plants.
B) creating pest-resistant versions of corn.
C) cleaning up oil spills.
D) generating pharmaceuticals.
E) producing new types of high-yield beef.

Question 14

Why do adult stem cells currently have fewer uses in therapeutic cloning than embryonic stem cells?

A) Embryonic stem cells have longer telomeres and persist for much longer than adult stem cells.
B) Embryonic stem cells are capable of reverting to a G₀ stage when starved.
C) Adult stem cells may become any type of cell, whereas embryonic stem cells may only become adult stem cells first.
D) Embryonic stem cells may become any type of cell, whereas adult stem cells may only become a limited number of cell types.
E) Adult stem cells have more restrictions that prevent them from re-entering the cell cycle at the G₀ stage.

Question 15

________ is the study of the structure and function of cellular proteins and their interactions; ________ may be employed to use computer algorithms to aid this process.

A) Proteomics; bioinformatics
B) Comparative genomics; bioinformatics
C) Genomics; proteomics
D) Proteomics; comparative genomics
E) Comparative genomics; proteomics

Question 16

Specialized cells differ from one another because they

A) only express certain genes.
B) express all genes.
C) turn off gene expression once specialized.
D) may re-enter the cell cycle at any time.
E) do not express housekeeping genes.

Question 17

During recombinant DNA technology, which structure is used to cut the DNA at a specific site?

A) restriction enzymes
B) DNA ligase
C) DNA helicase
D) vector
E) plasmid

Question 18

The study of comparative genomics has given researchers the ability to look at multiple genomes from different species, which has lead to new ideas about the evolutionary history of organisms. The conclusion is that

A) modern vertebrate species all evolved from very different ancestral species, so there is little similarity between their genomes.
B) modern vertebrate species all evolved from the same ancestral species, but they have changes so that their genomes are very different in modern times.
C) ancestral species contained very similar genomes, but modern vertebrate species have significant
Differences in their genomes.
D) modern vertebrate species evolved from the same ancestors, and a large portion of their genome is conserved.
E) neither the ancestral species nor the modern one resemble each other genetically.

Question 19

Which of the following is not an application of polymerase chain reaction?

A) production of many copies of an unknown piece of DNA
B) making copies of a foreign gene for use in making recombinant DNA
C) DNA fingerprinting of a crime scene suspect
D) amplifying mitochondrial DNA sequences
E) linking two DNA molecules together

Question 20

When DNA fingerprinting is performed, why might an individual possess two different numbers of repeats for the same chromosomal region?

A) Intergenic DNA may vary from one cell to another in the same individual.
B) The individual has different numbers of the same repeated sequence on each homologous chromosome.
C) The sample is contaminated with the DNA of another individual.
D) Each sister chromatid of a chromosome may contain different numbers of repeats.
E) It is not possible for this to occur.

Question 21

Which organisms have been modified to produce insulin, blood clotting factor VIII, and human growth hormone?

A) bacteria
B) goats
C) cows
D) corn
E) soy beans

Question 22

Because of the area of study that it addresses, proteomics will play an important role in which of the following fields?

A) The development of new drugs for the treatment of disease.
B) The development of new surgical techniques.
C) The development of new transgenic food crops.
D) The development of new transgenic domesticated animals.
E) Genetic alterations to unborn children that will eliminate potential health problems.

Question 23

There are several methods of gene editing, including ________, the most widely used method.

A) CRISPR
B) CLUSTER
C) Cas9
D) PCR
E) sequencing

Question 24

What does the field of proteomics study?

A) The structure and function of cellular proteins and how they interact to contribute to traits.
B) The structure and function of cellular lipids and how they interact to contribute to traits.
C) The structure of carbohydrates and how they are converted into a useable form of energy for the body.
D) The structure of prions and how they can lead to various diseases within the body.
E) The interaction between cellular proteins and how they make up the bulk of the cell membrane.

Question 25

Organisms that have had foreign genes inserted into them are called transgenic organisms.

Question 26

Based on genomic studies, when did a change in gene sequences occur that lead to a change in the way that the brain processes speech?

A) between 1 and 6 million years ago
B) between 4 and 9 million years ago
C) between 10,000 and 100,000 years ago
D) approximately 25,000 years ago
E) approximately 12,000 years ago

Question 27

The CRISPR system involves the Cas9 enzyme, which identifies specific nucleotides to be cut using an) ________ molecule as a guide to identify the proper DNA sequence to edit.

A) RNA
B) DNA
C) protein
D) virus
E) helicase

Question 28

Which gene on chromosome 22 is believed to have made a difference in the evolution of humans compared to that of chimpanzees?

A) The gene for proper speech development.
B) The gene for smell.
C) The gene for hearing.
D) The gene for blood type.
E) The gene for social behaviors.

Question 29

What is the genetic similarity between humans and mice?

A) 85%
B) 90%
C) 98%
D) 45%
E) There is no genetic similarity between humans and mice.