BIO lab exam #2

DNA Gel Electrophoresis

1. technique used for the detection and separation of DNA molecules. An electric field is applied to a gel matrix comprised of agarose, and within the gel, charge particles will migrate and separate based on size. 2. shorter fragments travel faster and run towards the positive electrode because its (-) charged. Larger is closer to negative where it started. 3. Stain (substance) causes the DNA to florence under ultralight

Be able to explain how restriction enzymes cut DNA at certain sequences, and that those sequences repeat a variable # of times for each person

1. they're sequences among everyone but the amount of times they're repeated makes them different. (VNTR) 2. Cuts DNA at certain sequences because the enzymes from any bacteria are recognized by a certain sequence of bases and cut DNA at that certain sequence

Be able to define calorie and kilocalorie and be able to apply to food labels

Calorie is the amount of energy needed to raise temperature of 1 gram (1mL) of H20 by 1 degree celcius. Kilocalorie is 1,000 calories. The calorie on a food label is not a calorie it is a kilocalorie. Energy is the amount of capacity to perform work

Be able to explain why DNA runs toward the red electrode

DNA is negatively charged due to all the phosphate groups in the backbone of DNA. Thus, DNA will move towards the positive electrode. As the pieces of DNA move through the gel, they will meet with resistance.

Be able to interpret exponential and logistic growth

Exponential growth is a J shaped curve and logistic growth is an S shaped curve

Be able to explain why a patient should take all of the antibiotics that are prescribed

If you stop taking them part way through, you're eliminating the part they already have killed. take the antibiotic so that although you start to feel better after a couple of days, the bacteria is still in you, so take the full course so you get rid of it all.

Be able to calculate relatedness based on molecular homology

In a biological sense, relatedness refers to how recently species split from a common ancestor. We can determine relatedness between organisms by: Comparing proteins Comparing nuclear DNA Comparing mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) Comparing the entire genome

Scientific method

The action of predicting future events; an instance of this, a prophecy, a forecast. Hypothesis in science: A tentative, testable, and falsifiable explanation for an observed phenomenon in nature.

Independent variable

a variable (often denoted by x ) whose variation does not depend on that of another.

Dependent variable

a variable (often denoted by y ) whose value depends on that of another.

Be able to interpret spectrophotometer data

instrument that measures the amount of photons (the intensity of light) absorbed after it passes through sample solution. With the spectrophotometer, the amount of a known chemical substance (concentrations) can also be determined by measuring the intensity of light detected.

Be able to discuss homology

the state of having the same or similar relation, relative position, or structure. All the same parts just different parts and sizes. The functions differ, same skeletal elements but serve different purposes. (structurally similar because common ancestry)

Population ecology

the study of how the population sizes of species change over time and space.