Study Guide Exam II

Chapter 12
The Cell Cycle
Pages 219-234
1. How is bacterial cell division different from eukaryotic cell division in terms of:
(1) number of chromosomes involved; (2) use of mitotic spindle fibers; (3) coiling and
uncoiling of chromosomes during division; (4) amount of DNA that can be handled by cell
division process?
2. What is chromatin? What is its composition? How does it behave at different stages of the
cell cycle?
3. What are nucleosomes? What is their relation to histone proteins?
4. What event(s) characterizes each of the following cell stages: Go, (G1, S, G2), M. (Go
phase or Interphase is divided into three subphases, G1, S and G2).
5. What event(s) characterizes each of the following: prophase, metaphase, anaphase,
telophase, cytokinesis?
6. What are spindle fibers made of? At what point does the spindle assemble? What is the
centrosome? What are kinetochores? Be able to describe the stages by which a spindle
assembles and chromosomes attach to it.
7. How does cytokinesis differ between animal and plant cells?
8. What is meant by: centromere, sister chromatid, kinetochore, centrosome, centriole,
spindle, homologue?
9. How is entry into the mitotic cycle regulated? What role do each of the following play:
cyclins, cyclin-dependent kinases, growth factors, anchorage dependence?
10. What changes must occur in a cell in order for it to become cancerous?
11. What is the difference between a transformed cell, a benign tumor, and a malignant
tumor? What is metastasis? Are all cancers metastatic?
Chapter 13
Meiosis
Pages 237-253
1. Distinguish diploid and haploid numbers. Which cells carry haploid sets? Where are
haploid cells created?
2. What is a karyotype? What kinds of defects can be identified from karyotypes?

3. Contrast mitosis and meiosis. In which process do homologous chromosomes pair? What
is meant by: synapsis, chiasmata, tetrad, crossing over, nondisjunction?
4. How does prophase of mitosis differ from prophase of meiosis I? of meiosis II?
5. How many different chromosome combinations could result (excluding crossing-over) as a
result of meiosis in an organism for which N=1? N=2? N=3? N=23?
6. What is nondisjunction? When does it occur? How frequent an event is it in humans? What
problems (if any) does it cause?
Chapter 15
DNA and the Gene: Synthesis and Repair
Pages 284-301
1. Explain what each of the following scientists contributed to the "story of DNA":
(a) Hershey & Chase, (b) Watson and Crick (c) Meselon-Stahl
2. What is a genome? What role does complementary base-pairing have on the genome?
3. Identify the role of each of the following proteins in DNA replication: Origin of
Replication, DNA polymerase, helicase, DNA primase, DNA ligase, Okazaki fragments. (see
Figs. 14.7-10).
4. What is meant by "antiparallel strands" in DNA? What restriction does this place on
replication?
5. Note that, because the energy for adding new nucleotides to DNA comes from hydrolysis
of phosphate bonds, it is only possible to add new nucleotides to a DNA (or RNA) strand at
its 3terminus. Thus all growth of nucleic acids occurs at the 3-end; another way of saying
this is that new DNA (and RNA) chains are synthesized in the 5 to 3 direction. Using this
fact, explain what is meant by a "lagging strand" in DNA replication. What is meant by
"leading strand".
6. DNA polymerase also carries out proofreading and repair functions, including the excision
of incorrectly paired bases and reinsertion of new DNA. When does this occur?
7. What are telomeres and why are they present on linear chromosomes and not circular
chromosomes?
8. How are mistakes corrected during and after nucleic acid replication?

Chapter 16
How Genes Work
Pages 304-315
1. What is gene expression? Explain the one-gene, one enzyme hypothesis
2. How does RNA act as an intermediary?
3. How is RNA made?
4. Conceptually, what is so significant about understanding Central Dogma in Biology?
5. Understand why genotypes are linked to phenotypes, give examples.
6. What is the genetic code?
7. "Codons" represent a series of 3 bases in DNA or RNA that specify a single amino acid.
"Anticodons" are found on transfer RNA molecules. Theoretically, if there are 64 different
codons, how many anticodons must there be?
8. Note that the "start" codon AUG is also the first amino acid of a protein, methionine
(abbreviated met). Does this mean that every protein should start with met?
9. Note that the "stop" codons do not specify any amino acid but instead cause termination of
protein growth. What are the 3 stop codons?
10. What are the important properties of the genetic code?
11. Distinguish between Point Mutations and Chromosomal Mutations.
Chapter 17
Transcription, RNA Processing, and Translation
Pages 317-332
1. Describe the various types of RNA Polymerases
2. What are the steps of Transcription? What role does the promoter play in this process?
3. Explain the role of transcription factors during transcription
4. Be able to explain how RNA processing works. What does the end product look like? For
example, what is a poly(A) tail?
5. Be able to describe the process of RNA translation
6. Why do tRNAs have the conformation/structure that they do?
7. What is the significance of discovering that the ribosome is actually a ribozyme?

Chapter 11
Cell-Cell Interactions
Pages 200-216
An Overview of Cell Signaling
1. Compare and contrast the extracellular layers of plant and animal cells.
2. What role/s do the following substances, (cellulose, collagen), play in the extracellular
layers?
3. What role does a transmembrane protein play?
4. What is the significance of multicellularity to the study of the structure and
communication of living things?
5. Compare and contrast the roles of tight junctions and desmosomes with hormones during
cell-to cell communication?
Signal Reception and the Initiation of Transduction
6. What is the function of a signal receptor?
7. State where signal receptors may be located in target cells.
Signal-Transduction Pathways
8. List two advantages of using a multistep pathway in the transduction stage of cell
signaling.
9. Explain how an original signal molecule can produce a cellular response when it may not
even enter the target cell.
10. Describe how phosphorylation propagates signal information.
11. Explain why a single cell may require hundreds of different protein kinases.
12. Define the term second messenger. Briefly describe the role of these molecules in
signaling pathways.
13. Explain how protein phosphatases turn off signal-transduction pathways.
14. What would be two examples of a signal response by a cell?
15. What role does cross-talk play in signal deactivation?
16. Why would understanding Quorum Sensing in Bacteria be important within the Medical
Community?