Wk 1 Molecular Detection Flashcards
(142 cards)
How do I detect nucleic acids and proteins?
Like detects like:
detect nucleic acids w/ nucleic acids and proteins w/ proteins
List 4 characteristics of nucleic acids that are important for detection
- RNA and DNA hate being single stranded
- Will form proper base-paired structures if possible
- If not possible, will still achieve duplex form, hairpin if necessary
- Single nucleic acid is expert at finding antiparallel complement
Epitopes
Little bits of proteins
What are antibodies?
Proteins that are selected for detection b/c they recognize epitopes
How are antibodies utilized for detection?
A tag is attached to the Ab so we can see whether the epitopes of other proteins are present in a sample
What does antiparallel refer to?
DNA double strands - one strand runs 5’ to 3’ while the paired strand runs 3’ to 5’
- DNA will almost always be antiparallel, even if base pairs don’t match
What does complimentary refer to with DNA?
Base pairing:
G-C
A-T
How does RNA resolve its nucleic acid’s needs to be paired?
It forms pairs internally in hairpin structures
What does the stability of duplex pairs of nucleic acids depend on?
How well the base pairs match when they line w/ each other in antiparallel manner
AKA stability is determined by their antiparallel complementarity
How are nucleic acids detected for tests?
Add a specific nucleic acid sequence to the sample and test whether its compliment is also there
Steps of finding nucleic acid in a sample
- denature all nucleic acids
- put in probe (known nucleic acid sequence) to reannealing = putting 2 separated strands of nucleic acids
- record if probe was able to find its antiparallel complimentary strand
*example w/ Hb and HbS (sickle cell mutattion) - 2 probes:
1. is antiparallel and complimentary to norm Hb gene
2. is antiparallel and complimentary to HbS allele
-stick DNA sample to paper, compare probe colors to determine annealing in sample
What happens when nucleic acids are denatured?
They dislike being single, so will do anything to form duplex molecule, even as hairpin
What happens when nucleic acids are denatured?
- Pairs break apart to unhappy singles
- Singles collide and most lead to unstable pairings that quickly fall apart
- Rapid “zippering” to create paired strands after a slow initial correct contact
What are 3 things we can look for with regard to proteins in a sample?
- Whether or not a particular protein is present
- Whether a protein is modified
- Amount of protein in the sample
How are antibodies used to answer questions about proteins in a sample? 2 steps
- Find antibodies against protein of interest in an animal, maybe rabbit or mouse. It will only bind to protein of interest.
- Conjugate (chemically link) the Ab to something we can detect - fluorescent dye or enzyme that catalyzes pigment formation
Nucleic acids are made of what?
Nucleotides:
DNA: A, C, G, T
RNA: A, C, G, U
What do nucleotides contain?
A phosphate, sugar, and a base, joined to form long chains
What is hybridization?
AKA annealing
-hybridization is the formation of hybrids (duplexes)
-a probe strand is added to a patient sample base, then pairs with a nucleic acid strand in the sample, forms a stable duplex
What do polymerases do?
Enzymes that read the base sequence in the template strand and add material to partial duplexes at the 3’ end to complete them, until there is no more template
What is the core principle of “extension of primer-template junctions by polymerases?”
We can watch nucleotide choices made by polymerases to determine the sequence of bases in a nucleic acid in a patient sample. This allows for RNA and DNA sequencing.
What are the 2 core principles used to detect and analyze DNA and RNA molecules?
- hybridization/annealing
- extension of primer-template junctions by polymerases
What dictates the function of a protein?
How it’s folded
What are proteins?
Long chains of repeating subunits, amino acids.
Fold to form a hydrophobic core w/ hydrophilic or charged residues on the outside
What are antibodies?
Protein complexes formed by the immune system that can recognize specific amino acid combinations in target proteins
Can be used as probes to detect proteins of interest in patient samples