Chapter 16 Outline

Gene Activity

The process of protein synthesis as well as gene mutations are examined in this chapter.

Chapter Outline

In this chapter outline, the learning objectives and the selected key terms are given for each major head in the chapter.

What Genes Do (p. 246)

1. List and discuss the early studies that led to the recognition of gene activity.

How Genes Are Expressed (p. 248)

2. List the biochemical differences between RNA and DNA.

3. Draw and explain a diagram that outlines the central dogma of biology.

Selected Key Terms: messenger RNA (mRNA), ribosomal RNA (rRNA), transfer

RNA (tRNA), transcription, translation

How Genes Code for Amino Acids (p. 249)

4. Show that the DNA code is triplet, degenerate, but unambiguous, and almost

universal.

codon

How Transcription Occurs (p. 250)

5. Describe the process by which RNA becomes complementary to DNA.

6. List and discuss two ways that mRNA is processed before it leaves the eukaryotic

nucleus.

RNA polymerase, promoter, exon, intron, ribozyme

How Translation Occurs (p. 252)

7. Describe the roles of ribosomes, mRNA, tRNA, and amino acids during protein

synthesis.

8. Determine the mRNA codons, possible tRNA anticodons, and the sequence of

amino acids in the resulting protein when given a DNA coding strand and a table of

codons.

polysome, anticodon

Mutations Are Base Changes (p. 256)

9. Discuss the different types of gene mutations, the rate of mutation, and the manner

in which DNA is protected from mutation.

mutagen

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