CH. 21 Genetics

stem cell interest

- can help us understand the basic genetic mechanisms that underlie the process of development - they offer the potential to treat human diseases or injuries that cause cell and tissue damage - rare in adults (1 in 10k bone marrow)

Ti plasmid modifications

- genes that cause gall tumors deleted - selectable marker genes are inserted - unique restriction sites are added for convenient insertion of any gene

biological control agents

1. non-pathogen and pathogen competition 2. microorganism toxin production

A. tumefaciens

A bacterium that naturally infects plants causing crown gall tumors - carries ti plasmid - doesn't affect all plant species

gene knockin

a gene addition which a gene of interest has been added to a particular site (usually noncritical) in a genome

recombination

allows for the integration of genes introduced into plant and animal cells

electroporation

an electric current is used to create transient pores in the plasma membrane through which DNA can enter

transgenic

an organism that has received genetic material from a different species is called transgenic

totipotent

cells like fertilized eggs that can give rise to all cell types

pluipotent

cells that can differentiate into almost every cell, but cannot give rise to an entire, intact individual

multipotent

cells that can differentiate into several cell types

unipotent

cells that can only differentiate into one cell type

insulin sources

cows & pigs, human cadavers

embryonic germ cells

derived from aborted fetuses

embryonic stem cells

derived from unused embryos from in vitro fertilization

round-up resistance

example of a transgenic plant trait

transgenic species

fish, sheep, pigs, goats, and cattle

Dolly

fist cloned mammal from mammalian somatic cells by Ian Wilmut in 1997

T-DNA

from A. tumefaciens can be used as a vector to introduce cloned genes into plants

insulin-dependent

have a defect in their beta cells and cannot synthesize enough insulin

gene replacement

homologous recombination, can lead to a gene knockout if a defective copy replaces a good copy

gene knockout

if the cloned gene during gene replacement is rendered inactive by mutation

gene therapy

introduction of cloned genes into living cells in an attempt to cure diseases - involves the introduction of cloned genes into human cells research is aimed at: - alleviating inherited disease - treating diseases (cancer, heart disease, etc) - combating infectious diseases (AIDS)

nonviral approach

liposome technique most common and uses lipid vesicles

reproductive cloning

methods that produce two or more genetically identical individuals - easier in plants

mircoinjection

microscopic-sized needles are used to inject DNA into the cells

viral approach

most common are retroviruses, adenoviruses, and parvoviruses

gene additon

nonhomologous recombination

GMO

organisms that have received genetic material via recombinant DNA technology

molecular pharming

production of medically important proteins in the mammary glands of livestock

insulin

regulates several physiological processes, partially the uptake of glucose into fat and muscle cells - produced by beta cells of the pancreas - a hormone composed of two polypeptide chains (A & B chains)

biolistic gene transfer

second most common way to produce transgenic plants - a gene gun is used to shoot DNA-coated micro-projectiles into the cells

induced pluripotent cells

stem cells from adults, less controversial

stem cells

supply the cells that construct the body from a fertilized egg - in adults > replenish damaged cells 1. can divide 2. can differentiate into one or more specialized cell types

biotechnology

technologies that involve the use of living organisms, or their products, to benefit humans - began about 12,000 years ago when humans began to domesticate animals and plants for food production

oil-eating

the first patented organism for bioremediation - hasn't had much success

gene redundancy

the phenomenon in which an inactive gene is compensated for by another gene with a similar function

biological control

the use of microorganisms or their products to alleviate plant problems

bioremediation

the use of microorganisms to reduce environment pollutants - enzymes produced by a microorganism transform the structure of toxic pollutant - less or nontoxic metabolites - petroleum hydrocarbons, pesticides, herbicides, organic solvents, heavy metals

mid-1990s

when genetically modified plants began being used