DNA TECH: More Research Tools

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DNA TECH More Research Tools

• Review for Lecture P172

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most important concept

•      DNA -gtmore DNA --gt RNA -gt protein
• the natural processes of replication can be used
  in the laboratory to synthesize bits of DNA for
  analyzing more DNA--
• disorders,
• forensics,
• archaeology and paleontology,
• pure research on how cells work....

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Same tools applied to Agriculture
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Except

• Special plasmids(like Ti)work betterinplants

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http//www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/287/545
1/241

• Although half of the world's population eat rice
  daily and depend on it as their staple food, rice
  is a poor source of many essential micronutrients
  and vitamins. In Southeast Asia, 70 of children
  under the age of five suffer from vitamin A
  deficiency leading to vision impairment and
  increased susceptibility to disease.

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From UNICEF http//www.unicef.org/vitamina/

• In the past, vitamin A deficiency has been seen
  solely as a cause of blindness, and in many
  countries, vitamin A activities are still limited
  to blindness prevention.

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From UNICEF http//www.unicef.org/vitamina/

• In recent years, new scientific studies have
  shown that ensuring children have enough vitamin
  A can increase their chances of survival by about
  23 per cent. That's because vitamin A is
  essential for the the immune system to function
  properly. It improves children's resistance to
  disease, and is key to improving their survival,
  growth and development.

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From UNICEF http//www.unicef.org/vitamina/

• The problem of vitamin A deficiency affects more
  than 100 million children and is responsible for
  as many as one out of every four child deaths in
  regions, countries and communities where the
  problem exists. Now, there is also more and more
  evidence that vitamin A deficiency increases the
  risk of maternal death.

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OTHER GM CROPS

• Corn with Bt natural pesticide which kills
  caterpillars
• Corn with a better balance of essential amino
  acids (not yet?)
• Crops resistant to herbicides so that round-up
  can be sprayed on the crop to kill only weeds
• Crops with better adaptations for freezing
  temperatures and droughts

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? Reporter genes

• Why make glow-in-the-dark tobacco?
• Are GM foods safe?
• How many people have malnutrition?

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Biotech TOOLS

• restriction endonuclease enzymes
• nucleic acid fragments (RFLPs, etc.)
• electrophoresis
• probes
• PCR
• sequencing
• ligase enzyme
• synthetic nucleotides
• cDNA and reverse transcriptase
• libraries
• gene chips
• SNPs
• fluorescent markers and reporter genes
• pedigrees
• vectors plasmids, BACs, adenoviruses.

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Biotech TOOLS

•   For each, know
• what it does
• why anybody would use it
• how or why it works especially if it involves
  something relevant to the natural structure and
  function of DNA.

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most important concept

•      
• DNA -gtmore DNA --gt RNA -gt protein

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most important concept

•      
• DNA -gtmore DNA --gt RNA -gt protein
• This "central dogma" of today's molecular biology
  has applications
• in medicine and biotechnology.