Eukaryotic Gene Regulation in Action: Examples from Development
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Questions
What is the phenotypic outcome of a mutation in the ultrabithorax (Ubx) gene in Drosophila, as described in the text?
View answer and explanationAccording to the text, why did geneticists Eric Wieschaus and Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard primarily study embryonic phenotypes in their search for developmental mutants?
View answer and explanationWhat is the collective term for the various protein factors that bind cooperatively to an enhancer element to regulate transcription?
View answer and explanationHow many separate enhancers have been identified to control the complex, seven-striped expression pattern of the eve gene in Drosophila?
View answer and explanationWhat is the primary function of DNA elements called insulators in the context of eukaryotic gene regulation?
View answer and explanationWhich mechanism allows microRNAs (miRNAs) to regulate the expression of target genes?
View answer and explanationWhat is the key difference between a forward genetic screen and a reverse genetic screen?
View answer and explanationThe eve gene in Drosophila is regulated by activators and repressors that determine the position of its expression stripes. Which of the following is an activator for the eve stripe 2 enhancer?
View answer and explanationWhat is the correct hierarchical order of gene classes that pattern the anterior-posterior axis of the Drosophila embryo, from earliest acting to latest?
View answer and explanationWhat is a syncytium, as described in the context of early Drosophila embryonic development?
View answer and explanationWhat is the function of the homeobox, a common amino acid sequence found in homeotic (Hox) gene proteins?
View answer and explanationWhat is the evolutionary significance of the fact that mammals have four clusters of Hox genes (Hox-A, -B, -C, -D) while Drosophila has two?
View answer and explanationWhat is collinearity in the context of Hox gene clusters?
View answer and explanationMutations in the coding sequence of the human Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) gene are associated with anomalies in which body parts?
View answer and explanationWhat is the approximate size of the ZRS (Zone of Polarizing Activity Regulatory Sequence) enhancer itself?
View answer and explanationWhat is the proposed evolutionary consequence of the 17-base pair deletion found in the ZRS enhancer of all snakes?
View answer and explanationIn a reporter gene experiment, what would be the expected result if the eve stripe 2 enhancer was fused to a LacZ reporter gene and introduced into a Drosophila embryo?
View answer and explanationWhat is the key characteristic of maternal effect genes like bicoid?
View answer and explanationThe protein Hunchback acts as both an activator and a repressor for the eve gene. On which stripes does it act as a repressor?
View answer and explanationWhich class of developmental genes, which includes hunchback, kruppel, and giant, is responsible for establishing broad domains of expression in the early embryo?
View answer and explanationWhat does a mutation in a pair-rule gene like eve cause in a Drosophila embryo?
View answer and explanationWhich statement accurately describes the relationship between the three vertebrate orthologs of the hedgehog gene?
View answer and explanationWhat is the result of a mutation that prevents transcription from being turned off, according to the chapter on mutations?
View answer and explanationChromatin remodeling proteins can alter the accessibility of DNA to the transcription machinery. Which of the following is an action performed by these remodelers?
View answer and explanationWhat is the key difference between euchromatin and heterochromatin?
View answer and explanationWho was awarded the Nobel Prize in 2006 for the discovery of RNA interference?
View answer and explanationAccording to the chapter, why have some of the whimsical or insensitive names for Drosophila genes, like 'Kruppel', been changed for their human orthologs?
View answer and explanationWhat type of molecule is a morphogen, such as the Bicoid protein?
View answer and explanationHow do transcription factors like Bicoid, present as a gradient in the syncytial embryo, regulate the expression of zygotic genes like eve?
View answer and explanationWhat is the phenotypic result of a loss-of-function mutation in a segment polarity gene like hedgehog?
View answer and explanationWhat is the primary role of the genes in the Ant-C and BX-C clusters in Drosophila?
View answer and explanationHow does a reverse genetic experiment help researchers understand enhancer function?
View answer and explanationWhat is a key difference in early embryonic development between Drosophila and mammals mentioned in the text?
View answer and explanationWhy are Hox genes considered to be highly conserved among all species studied?
View answer and explanationIn the hierarchy of developmental genes, what is the role of segment identity genes like ultrabithorax?
View answer and explanationChromatin remodeling and modification are key aspects of eukaryotic gene regulation. Which of the following enzyme types is responsible for adding acetyl groups to histones?
View answer and explanationWhat are Topologically Associated Domains (TADs)?
View answer and explanationWhich of the following describes a gain-of-function mutation in the Antennapedia (Antp) gene?
View answer and explanationIn the context of the eve stripe 3+7 enhancer, which two proteins act as repressors?
View answer and explanationWhat type of molecule is the product of a homeotic gene like Antennapedia or Ultrabithorax?
View answer and explanationWhat is the term for a gene in another species that is similar to a gene in a reference species due to a shared evolutionary ancestor?
View answer and explanationHow do eukaryotes typically achieve co-regulation of functionally related genes, since they do not use operons?
View answer and explanationWhat is the role of the mediator complex in eukaryotic transcription?
View answer and explanationIn the regulatory cascade of Drosophila development, which gene class is immediately downstream of gap genes and regulated by them?
View answer and explanationMutations in the ZRS enhancer are associated with which human phenotype?
View answer and explanationWhen the eve stripe 2 enhancer is mutated to eliminate the binding sites for the repressor Giant (Gt), what is the predicted effect on LacZ reporter gene expression in a reverse genetics experiment?
View answer and explanationWhat type of regulation is exemplified by the action of microRNAs (miRNAs)?
View answer and explanationIn the early Drosophila embryo, the protein product of the maternal effect gene Nanos has what effect on hunchback RNA?
View answer and explanationThe gene eve belongs to which class of developmental genes?
View answer and explanationWhat is the general outcome of histone acetylation on chromatin structure and gene expression?
View answer and explanation