6.3 Flashcards
(165 cards)
what happened in DNA research in 1969 and then in 1972
a gene was isolated from a bacterial chromsome, in 1972 a scientist sequenced a gene that codes for the protein coat of a virus. Both scientits worked from mRNA transcribed from the gene and not the raw DNA. RNA is unstable and this whole process was extrwemly slow and only worked for short genes
what happened in DNA research in 1975
the biochemist Sanger develpoed a method that ultimately allowed scientists to sequence whole genomes
what was Sanger’s approach
to use a single strand of DNA as a template for 4 experiments in separate dishes, each dish contained a solution with the 4 bases (A,T,G,C), plus an enzyme (DNA polymerase)
what was added to each dish in Sanger’s DNA sequencing approach
a modified version of one of the DNA bases was added (ddNTP), the base was modified in a way that, once incorporated into the synthesised complementary strand of DNA, no more bases could be added, each modified was was also labelled with a radioactive isotope.
whaqt happens in sanger’s DNA sequencing approach as the reaction progressed
thousands of DNA fragments of varying lengths were generated, the DNA fragments were passed trhough a gel by electrophoresis. Smaller fragments travalled further, so the fragments became shorted by length
how were the nucleotide base at the end of each fragment read in Sangers DNA sequencing
by its radioactive label. If the first one-base fragment has tymine at the end, then the first base in the sequence is T. If the two-base fragments have cytosine at the end, then the sequece is TC. If the three-base fragment ends with guanine, then the base sequence is TCG.
why did Sanger’s DNA sequencing work and what was it first used for
his method is efficient and safe. He first used it to sequence the genome of a phage virus (virus that infects bacteria cells) called Phi-X174, the first DNA based organsim to have its genome sequenced. He has to count off the bases one by one, from the bands in the gel (time consuming and costly process)
what did SAnger do in 1981, 1984 and what happened in 1995
sanger published his sequence of the human mitochondrial genome, consisting of 37 genes and 16 569 base pairs. In 1984, scientists sequenced 170 kilobase pair-long genomes of the Epstein-Barr virus. In 1995, the genome of the bacterium Haemophilus influenzae was sequenced using this approach.
In Sangers DNA sequencing how was the gene isolated (cloning DNA) and then what happened with the isolated gene
using restricted enzymes from a bacterium, the DNA was then inserted into a bacterial plasmid (the vector) and then into an Eschuerichia Coli bacterium host that, when cultured, divided many times, enabling the plasmid with the DNA insert to be copied many times.
what did each new bacterium contain when cloning DNA using Sanger’s DNA sequencing and how were these lengths of DNA isolated
a copy of the candidate gene, these lengths of DNA were isolated using plasmid preparation techniques and then they were sequenced
what happened with DNA sequencing in 1986
the first DNA sequencing machine was developed, based on Sanger’s method. Fluorescent dyes instead of radioactivity were used to label the terminal bases, these dyes glowed when scanned with a laser beam and the light signature was identified by computer. This method needed technitions to read autogradiograms.
what is high throughput sequencing and give an example
an approach to develop fast, cheap methods to sequence genomes. an example is pyrosequencing
what is pyrosequecnig and what does it involve
developed in 1996 and uses sequencing by synthesis, not by chain termination as in the Sanger method. It involves synthesising a single strand of DNA, complementary to the strand being sequenced, one base at a time, whilst detecting, by light admission, which base was added to each step.
what are steps 1-2 of pyrosequencing
- a long length of DNA to be sequenced is mechanically cut into fragments of 300-800 base pairs, using a nebuliser. 2. these lengths are then degraded into single-stranded DNA (ssDNA). These are the template DNAs and they are immoblisied.
what is step 3 of pyrosequencing
- a sequencing primer is added and the DNA is incubated with the enzymes DNA polymerase, ATP sulfurylase, luciferase, apyrase and the substrates adenosine 5’ phosphosulfate (APS) and luciferin, only 1 of the 4 possible activated nucleotides, ATP, TTP, CTP and GTP is added at any one time and any light generated is detected.
what is step 4 of pyrosequencing
1 activated nucleotide (a nucleotide with 2 extra phosphoryl groups), like TTP (thymine triphosphate), is incorporated into a complementary strand of DNA using the strand to be sequenced as aa template. As this happens the 2 extra phosphoryls are released as pyrophosphate (PPi). In presence of APS, the enzyme ATP sulfurylase converts phosphate to ATP. In presence of this ATP, enzyme luciferase converts luciferin to oxyluciferin. This conversion generates visible light that can be detected by a camera. The amount of light generated is proportional to ATP availability and so indicates how many of the same type of activated nucleotide were incorporated adjacently into complementary DNA strands.
what happens to unincorporated activated nucleotides in pyrosequencing
they are degraded by apyrase and the reaction starts again with another nucleotide.
how long does pyrosequencing take
10h run generate 400 million bases of sequencing information which are assembled into longer sequences by software.
what is bioinformatics
a branch of biology that has grown out of DNA sequencing research, to store the huge amounts of data generated. Prior to computers, it was impossible to store all this information but software packages are specially designed for this purpose.
what is the human genome project
scientists predicted human genome would contain 100 000 genes. In 1990, the human genome project launched and the genome was sequenced by 2003. Scientists were surprised to learn human genome only contained 24 000 genes (not too many more than a mouse)
what dies whole genome sequencing determine
the complete DNA sequence of an organsism’s genome, in the case of eukaryote cells, that is the genetic material of the chromosomes, mitochondria and, if plants or algae, chloroplasts.
where are sequenced genomes stored
gene banks
What happened when human genome was compared to other species
it was clear that few human genes are unique to us, most of our genes were present in other organisms, we share 99% of our genes with chimpanzee, this verifies the evolutionary process
what is an examlpe of how comparism of genome has provided useful
pigs and humans have similar genes for insulin, which is why, prior to genetically-modifying bacteria to make insulin, pig insulin was used to treat patients with diabetes