lab practical 3 Flashcards
(86 cards)
what is an operon
it is a group of genes regulated by a single gene, the expression of these genes is regulated together
what are the components of an operon?
more than one gene, a single promoter, regulatory binding sites
what is the function of the genes in the Lac operon?
they are involved in the breakdown of lactose as a energy source in the absence of glucose
what enzyme is encoded by the LacZ gene?
Beta-galactosidase: it breaks down lactose to yield glucose and galactose which can be broken down to further yield glucose
what is the function of beta galactosidase
it cleaves the beta bond in lactose to yield glucose and galactose
what does the LacZ gene do
it codes for beta galactosidase which break down lactose
what does the CAP activator do
it binds to the activator site when in the absence of glucose
what does the repressor do
it binds to the operator to suppression transcription when lactose is not present
what is the operator
it is the regulatory element where the repressor binds in the absence of lactose
what is the promoter
it is the site where RNA polymerase binds to begin transcription
under what conditions is the Lac operon active?
it is active in the absence of glucose snd presence of lactose
does E.coli prefer to use glucose or lactose as an energy source? why
glucose, it is the preferred source of energy as it can directly enter glycoylsis
why does the lac operon only want to activate in the presence of lactose and absence of glucose
it is a waste of energy to synthesize the genes/proteins needed for lactose metabolism
under what conditions does the CAP activator bind to the CAP?
it binds when there is no glucose (high levels of cAMP)
under what conditions does the CAP activator come off the CAP
when there is glucose present and there are low levels of cyclic AMP
under what conditions does the repressor come off the operator
when in the presence of lactose (allolactose inducer)
under what conditions does the repressor bind to the operator
in the absence of lactose
under what conditions will the lac operon be active and transcribe downstream genes
in the absence of glucose (CAP on) and presence of lactose (repressor off)
if you have no glucose or lactose, what is bound
CAP and repressor
if you have glucose and no lactose, what is bound
repressor on
if you have glucose and lactose, what is bound
no CAP, no repressor
can the strain of E.coli utilize sucrose as an energy source
no, it does not contain the enzyme needed to break down sucrose
why did we add toluene to the cultured cells?
it pokes holes in the membrane without denaturing the proteins and allows beta-galactosidase to leak out
How was the ONPG substrate used to measure beta-galactosidase activity?
ONPG has a similar bond to lactose and will be cleaved into ONP which produces a yellow color that can be used to measure enzyme activity