AP Bio - Mutations/Protein Synthesis

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What is a mutation?

Back

A mutation is a change in the nucleotide sequence of an organism's DNA, which can lead to changes in the organism's traits.

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What are the types of mutations?

Back

The main types of mutations are substitution, insertion, and deletion.

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What is a frameshift mutation?

Back

A frameshift mutation occurs when nucleotides are inserted or deleted from the DNA sequence, altering the reading frame and changing the entire amino acid sequence from that point.

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What is a substitution mutation?

Back

A substitution mutation is a type of mutation where one nucleotide is replaced by another, potentially altering one amino acid in a protein.

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What is a silent mutation?

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A silent mutation is a change in the DNA sequence that does not alter the amino acid sequence of the protein.

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What is the role of mRNA in protein synthesis?

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mRNA (messenger RNA) carries the genetic information from DNA to the ribosome, where proteins are synthesized.

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What is the function of the ribosome?

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The ribosome is the cellular machinery that assembles amino acids into proteins based on the sequence of mRNA.

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What is the significance of the poly-A tail in mRNA?

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The poly-A tail helps protect mRNA from degradation and assists in the export of mRNA from the nucleus to the cytoplasm.

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What is transcription?

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Transcription is the process of copying a segment of DNA into RNA, specifically mRNA.

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What is translation?

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Translation is the process by which ribosomes synthesize proteins using the information carried by mRNA.