University of Texas at Austin Invitational — Designer Genes

Designer Genes · Division C · University of Texas at Austin Invitational · 2020

52 questions · 209 points · 50 min· 3 questions from the original omitted

• Do not open the test until told to start! • Do not write on test! Please write all answers on the answer document. Scratch paper will be provided. • Each team will be given 50 minutes to complete the test. • Each team is allowed one 8.5” by 11” page of notes front and back. • Each team is allowed two four-function calculators. • If needed, you can take apart the test to aid in test taking. Just make sure to be careful not to overly damage the test and staple the test in its original order. • Write your team number on the top right hand corner of every page on the test and answer document. • The tie breaker is whoever finishes first

Question 12

2 pts

What is the primary reason why sizes of eukaryotic genomes vary?

A. Different levels of complexityB. Accumulation of repetitive sequencesC. MutationsD. Translocations

Question 13

2 pts

How may a doctor treat the genetic disease known as phenylketonuria(PKU)?

A. He can use a CAS9 protein to cut out the defective geneB. He could use restriction enzymes and an LR reaction to replace the affected gene.C. He can make sure the affected patient follows a phenylalanine free diet from an early ageD. He consistently gives the affected patient phenylalanine injections until the condition is cured.

Question 14

2 pts

What is the Norm of Reaction?

A. The standard effect of a genotype on an organism’s phenotypeB. How a genotype creates different phenotypes in different environmentsC. The standard time it takes for a mutation to kill an organismD. How genotypes affect an organism’s response to varying stimuli

Question 15

2 pts

The fact that men bald much more often then women is an example of what?

A. Sex-linked geneB. Pseudoautosomal inheritanceC. Sex-influenced geneD. Sexual dimorphism

Question 16

2 pts

Which type of blotting uses DNA?

A. NorthernB. SouthernC. EasternD. Western

Question 17

2 pts

Which model of DNA replication is generally accepted as correct?

A. Conservative ModelB. Semiconservative ModelC. Scattered ModelD. Dispersive Model

Question 18

2 pts

Which eukaryotic polymerase transcribes rRNA?

A. IB. IIC. IIID. IV

Question 19

2 pts

The probability of crossing over is related to which of the following?

A. DensityB. DistanceC. Chromosome shapeD. Nucleic acid composition

Question 20

2 pts

Which of the following genetic disorders involve a mutation of chromosome 17?

A. Angelman SyndromeB. Charcot-Marie-Tooth diseaseC. Cri du chat syndromeD. Familial hypercholesterolemia

Question 21

2 pts

Which combination of nitrogenous bases is the Start Codon?

A. UAAB. UAGC. AUGD. AGA

Question 22

2 pts

Is the Genetic Code synonymous throughout an animal cell?

A. Yes, the genetic code is synonymous throughout the animal cellB. No, the genetic code differs in the rough endoplasmic reticulumC. No, the genetic code differs in the ribosomesD. No, the genetic code differs in the mitochondria

Question 23

2 pts

What gene determines maleness?

A. The HMG geneB. The Y chromsomeC. The SRY geneD. The WTI gene

Question 24

2 pts

G banding is used to map which of the following?

A. DNAB. mRNAC. RibosomesD. Chromosomes

Question 25

2 pts

The CRISPR-CAS9 system is a. . .

A. DNA ligation systemB. Prokaryotic antiviral defense systemC. DNA repair systemD. Bacterial gene regulation oversight system.

Question 26

2 pts

Which histone variant is the standard linker histone?

A. H1B. H2C. H2AD. H3.3

Question 27

2 pts

How frequently do structural genes appear in the genome?

A. A few timesB. Dozens of timesC. Hundreds of timesD. Thousands of times

Question 28

2 pts

Which of the following mutations has the greatest effect?

A. Silent MutationB. Missense MutationC. Frame Shift MutationD. Point Mutation

Question 29

2 pts

Blood types are an example of which of the following?

A. Incomplete DominanceB. EpistasisC. Multiple AllelesD. X-linked recessive inheritance

Question 30

2 pts

Which gene encodes the Lac repressor?

A. lacIB. lacZC. lacYD. lacR

Question 31

2 pts

If a bacterial colony is grown in a gel abundant in glucose and lactose, which sugar will it use for energy first?

A. GlucoseB. LactoseC. FructoseD. None of the above

Question 32

2 pts

Attenuation is a process in which transcription of the trp operon is terminated. Attenuation depends on formation of stem loops between four crucial RNA segments on the mRNA. However, not all stem loops result in attenuation. Which of the following stem loop combinations result in attenuation?

A. A stem loop between RNA segments 1 and 2 plus a stem loop between RNA segments 3 and 4B. A stem loop between RNA segments 1 and 3 plus a stem loop between RNA segments 2 and 4C. A stem loop between RNA segments 1 and 4D. A stem loop between RNA segments 2 and 4

Question 33

2 pts

Which genetic disease is the result of unbalanced transclocations?

A. Tays-SachsB. Sickle cellC. Familiar Down SyndromeD. Spinal muscular atrophy

Question 34

4 pts

How can restriction enzymes be used to identify individuals?

Question 35

4 pts

What is the most prominent example of Extranuclear Inheritance in humans?

Question 36

4 pts

During Translation, what action provides the energy needed for a tRNA to bind to the mRNA?

Question 38

4 pts

Explain the concept of a gene being hemizygous

Question 39

4 pts

What is the Hardy-Weinberg Law?

Question 40

5 pts

What are the 5 conditions of the Hardy-Weinberg Law?

Question 41

4 pts

What is a hybridization probe and what is its use?

Question 42

4 pts

Bob conducts a monohybrid cross between a homozygous dominant and homozygous recessive plants(qq). What is the genotype of the F2 generation?

Question 43

4 pts

Describe the inheritance pattern of a Y-linked gene.

Question 44

4 pts

Which CRISPR system is most often used for gene editing and why?

Question 45

6 pts

Use genetics to explain why the sickle cell mutation offers protection against malaria

Question 46

4 pts

While studying a cell's genome, a scientist discovered most of the cell's chromosomes were euchromatin. Which phase of the cell cycle is the cell in and how could you tell?

Question 47

6 pts

Describe the molecular explanation of why males bald more often than females.

Question 48

6 pts

Two chromosomes pieces break apart and join with pieces from another chromosomes. This results in some genes in the chromosome breakpoint changing function. How does this happen and what is this effect called?

Question 49

4 pts

How can mRNA of a cell can be used to determine which genes are active?

Question 50

6 pts

Describe why mitochondria DNA are useful when estimating dates of evolutionary events.

Question 51

6 pts

Describe the two models of transcription termination in Eukaryotes.

Question 52

4 pts

Is the Lac repressor a trans or cis-acting factor and why?

Question 53

3 pts

Make the connection between density of nucleosomes on a gene and how active the gene is.

Question 54

8 pts

Haplodiploidy is a phenomenon in which some species (including bees, wasps, and ants) have a diploid female and haploid male. Describe why this characteristic in beneficial when it comes to genetic diseases.

Question 55

9 pts

Coordinating DNA replication and cell division is extremely important to bacteria, as it ensures efficient use of energy and resources. List three methods bacteria control DNA replication excluding checkpoint control.

Question 56

6 pts

Trinucleotide repeat expansion (TNRE) is a phenomenon in which a repeated sequences of 3 nucleotides increases in number in each successive generation. Explain how a trinucleotide repeat could increase in number after each generation.

PassageFor questions 57a, 57b

Nucleosome-free regions are surrounded by nucleosomes that contribute to its function.

For many active genes, their core promoters are in nucleosome-free regions (NFR). Nucleosome-free regions are extremely important; they may be required for transcription and an NFR alone is enough for gene activation.

Question 57a

4 pts

What are the two most important nucleosomes around an NFR called and what histone variants are they?

Question 57b

8 pts

Describe the process of transcription activation in nucleosome-free regions.

PassageFor question 58b

Dilbert is trying to find the distance between the gene responsible for eye color in dogs and gene responsible for fur color in dogs. In this situation green fur(f) is recessive to black fur(F) and blue eyes(e) are recessive to brown eyes(E). Dilbert eventually decides to map out the two genes through recombination. He crossbreeds two population of dogs; one population is completely comprised of dogs with the genotype FfEe, and one population is completely comprised of dogs with the genotype ffee. After years of back-breaking work, he finally collects the following data about the offspring:

Question 58b

10 pts

It was later discovered that despite Dilbert's hard work, the result of his study was inaccurate. The distance between the two genes ended up being larger than the distance described by the data. Why did this occur?

PassageFor question 59b

David is trying to clone a piece of DNA using bacteria. He names his unmodified plasmid pDHW001. David decides to first construct a restriction map of pDHW001. He applies the restriction enzymes Hind III RI, Eco RY, and Eco RI in seven different combinations. He analyzes each restriction digestion using gel electrophoresis. The results of his analysis are below.

Question 59b

6 pts

David later magically regains his motivation and is able to complete the rest of the DNA cloning process. Part of DNA cloning involves transforming plasmids into bacteria. Explain the process of natural transformation.

PassageFor questions 60a, 60b, 60c

A common method of suppressing gene expression has been the use of single stranded RNA. The process typically involves using an antisense RNA. Since the antisense RNA is complementary to the mRNA, it will bind to the mRNA and thus preventing translation. However, it was later discovered that double stranded RNA could also inhibit gene expression.

Question 60a

8 pts

How does double stranded RNA inhibit gene expression?

Question 60b

4 pts

What does the effectiveness of inhibiting gene expression using dsRNA depend on?

Question 60c

4 pts

How are the processes of inhibiting gene expression by dsRNA and ssRNA similar?

Question 61

12 pts

Danny is working with the CRISPR CAS-9 system in trials, testing its ability inactivate mutated alleles. Throughout the trials Danny is confronted with a reoccurring issue: the Cas9 protein is not as accurate as he had hoped. This is obviously a large issue as this could lead to the Cas9 protein inactivating healthy alleles, potentially endangering the organism. Why does this happen, and list two ways Danny could alleviate this issue.