Semester 2 Study Guide

Topics:

o Food Test
o Photosynthesis
o Respiration
o DNA & RNA Structure
o DNA Replication
o Protein Synthesis - Transcription & Translation
o Mutation
o Mendelian Inheritance
o Monohybrid & Dihybrid Cross
o Non Mendelian Inheritance
o Genetic Disorders -Autosomal Dominant/Recessive
o Sex linked Inheritance

Food Test, Photosynthesis and Respiration

Food test

The Benedict's test for glucose

• Add Benedict's solution into sample solution in test tube

• Heat at 60 - 70 °C in water bath for 5 minutes
• Take test tube out of water bath and observe the color
• A positive test will show a color change from blue to green/yellow/orange or brick red

Test for starch using iodine

We can use iodine to test for the presence or absence of starch in a food sample.
• Add drops of iodine solution to the food sample
• A positive test will show a color change from orange-brown to blue-black

Test for protein

• Add drops of Biuret solution to the food sample

• A positive test will show a color change from blue to violet / purple
•
Test for lipids

• Food sample is mixed with ethanol and shaken

• The ethanol is added to an equal volume of cold water
• A positive test will show a cloudy emulsion forming

Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis is a chemical reaction that takes place in the chloroplasts of green plant cells, where light
energy is used to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen.

Photosynthetic organisms use the light energy from the sun to create glucose which stores chemical energy.
 Chlorophyll is a green pigment found in chloroplast that is responsible for light absorption.

Step 1:
§ Light is absorbed by chlorophyll.
§ Light is also absorbed by water, which is split to
produce oxygen and hydrogen
§ The hydrogen and energy are used in the next
reactions, the oxygen is released from stomata as
a waste product

Step 2:
§ The hydrogen is combined with carbon dioxide to form glucose
§ The energy absorbed provides the required energy to power the production of glucose.
Adaptations of the Leaf Structure:

§ A transparent upper epidermis – this allows light to pass through.

§ Waxy cuticle – decreases water loss from the leaf through evaporation.
§ Broad leaves – increase the surface area of the leaf so there is more exposure to sunlight.
§ Chloroplasts located near the top in the palisade mesophyll layer – this is so they can get the most
light as this is where most of the plant’s photosynthesis takes place.
§ Stomata – allow the movement of carbon dioxide and oxygen into and out of the leaf as well as water
vapor.
§ Air spaces –area for gas exchange and allow gases to move more easily.
§ Vascular bundles (xylem and phloem) – help transport water and sugars.

Chemical Energy and ATP

§ One of the principal chemical compounds that cells use to store and release energy is ATP - Adenosine
triphosphate
§ When a cell has energy available, it can store small amounts of it by adding a phosphate group to ADP.
§ Adding a phosphate to ADP forms a molecule of ATP. The addition of the third phosphate stores
energy.
§ When a cell needs energy, the third phosphate will be removed. This releases energy.

§ ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) releases energy when the bond between the second and third
phosphate groups is broken, forming a molecule called adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and a phosphate
group.
Anaerobic Respiration

• defined as the chemical reaction in cells that breaks down nutrient molecules to release energy &
create ATP without using oxygen.
• It involves the incomplete breakdown of glucose and so releases a relatively small amount
of energy/ATP for use in cell processes
• Different breakdown products are formed depending on the type of organism that the anaerobic
respiration is taking place in cytoplasm.

The anaerobic pathway that follows glycolysis if oxygen is not present:

§ Lactic acid fermentation

Human & Animals

Glucose à Lactic Acid + 2 ATP

§ Alcohol fermentation

Yeast & Plants

Glucose à Carbon dioxide + ethanol + 2ATP

Anaerobic respiration in mammals

• Anaerobic respiration mainly takes place in muscle cells during vigorous exercise
• When we exercise at high intensities, our muscles have a higher demand for energy
• Our bodies can only deliver oxygen to our muscle cells for aerobic respiration
• When oxygen runs out, glucose is broken down without oxygen, producing lactic acid
• Glucose has not been fully broken-down meaning there is still energy stored within the bonds of lactic
acid molecules
• Anaerobic respiration releases less energy/ATP than aerobic respiration

Lactic acid

• Lactic acid builds up in muscle cells and lowers the pH of the muscle tissue (making the conditions
more acidic)
• Acidic conditions can cause muscle cramps and can denature the enzymes in cells
• Lactic acid will eventually be broken down using oxygen

Anaerobic respiration in fungi

• Plants and yeast can respire without oxygen as well, breaking down glucose in the absence of oxygen
to produce ethanol and carbon dioxide
• Anaerobic respiration in yeast cells is called fermentation
• Fermentation is economically important in the manufacture of bread (where the carbon dioxide
produced helps the dough to rise) and in brewing (where the ethanol produced makes beer)
Aerobic Respiration

• It is defined as the chemical reaction in cells that uses oxygen to break down nutrient molecules to
release energy to create ATP
• Aerobic respiration requires oxygen.
• Aerobic respiration is the complete breakdown of glucose to release a relatively large amount
of energy/ ATP for use in cell processes and reactions
• Carbon dioxide and water are produced as waste products

Glycolysis

§ Glucose is broken down in the cytoplasm through the process of glycolysis.

§ Glycolysis has a net result of two ATP and two pyruvates.

Link reaction, Krebs Cycle and electron transport chain

§ Happens after the glycolysis in the presence of oxygen. It is a series of reactions in which pyruvate is
broken down into carbon dioxide and produces most of the ATP. It takes place in the mitochondria.
COMPARISON Aerobic Respiration Anaerobic respiration

Yeast & Plants

WORD All organism
EQUATION Glucose à Carbon dioxide +
Glucose + Oxygen à Carbon dioxide + ethanol
water
2ATP
>30 ATP
Human & Animals

Glucose à Lactic Acid

2 ATP

SIMILARITIES § Both uses glucose as the reactant

§ Both produces ATP.
§ Both start with glycolysis in the cytoplasm and produces 2ATP’s in that
process.

§ Process after glycolysis continues in § Does not use oxygen.

DIFFERENCES the mitochondria § Produces a total of 2 ATP per
§ Produces more ATP per glucose glucose molecule
molecule (>30 ATP in total)
Nucleic Acids

§ Nucleic acids are complex macromolecules that store and transmit genetic information.

2 types of nucleic acid:

§ DNA – deoxyribonucleic acid

§ RNA – ribonucleic acid

Nucleic acids are composed of recurring monomers units called nucleotides.

§ Nucleotides – the monomer that builds nucleic acids.

Nucleotide
Each nucleotide is comprised of three principal components:

§ pentose sugar (pentagon)

§ Phosphate group (circle)
§ Nitrogenous base (rectangle)

Both DNA and RNA are polymers of nucleotides, however key differences exist in the composition of DNA and
RNA nucleotides

Comparison of DNA and RNA Nucleotides

Comparing DNA & RNA

DNA Structure:

• When drawing the base pairing, the opposite strand should be antiparallel to the first.
• The presence of hydrogen bonding is shown.
• The two strands of DNA are described as being antiparallel. (running in opposite direction) 5 to 3’ and 3 to
5’.

o Label which strand is the 5 to 3’ and which is 3 to 5’.

Strands of DNA are held together by hydrogen bonds between complementary nitrogenous bases:

§ Adenine (A) pairs with Thymine (T) = 2 hydrogen bonds

§ Guanine (G) pairs with Cytosine (C) = 3 hydrogen bonds

DNA Replication

§ A process to make identical copies of DNA using existing

DNA strands.
§ It happens during S Phase of interphase
§ The process of DNA replication uses two enzymes – helicase
and DNA polymerase

Helicase

• Helicase unwinds the double helix and separates the two

strands of DNA
• It does this by breaking the hydrogen bonds that exist
between complementary base pairs
• The two separated strands will act as templates for the
synthesis of new complementary strands.
DNA Polymerase

• DNA polymerase adds new strands to the original strands by complementary base paring. (A-T & C-
G).
• This results in two new DNA molecules identical to the original.
• Each new strand consists of one newly-synthesized strand and one strand inherited directly from the
parent. This is known as being semi-conservative.

Green = old / parent strand

Red = new strand / daughter strand
Semiconservative = DNA is not completely new, it’s always half old and half new.

Summary of DNA Replication Process:

• The hydrogen bonds between the two strands are broken by an enzyme helicase, which exposes the
nitrogenous bases.
• After the strands are separated, DNA polymerase links together nucleotides complementary (A-T & C-
G) to the original strands.
• This results in two new DNA molecules identical to the original.
Protein Synthesis

Main Event:

1. Transcription – using DNA to make mRNA

2. Translation – using mRNA to make polypeptide

1. Transcription is the process of creating

mRNA copies from DNA sequences. This is
done by an enzyme called RNA polymerase.
After transcription is complete, the resulting
RNA is called messenger RNA (mRNA).

After transcription, mRNA leaves the nucleus.

It travels to ribosomes, which are the cell
structures responsible for synthesizing
polypeptide chains.

Label the following diagram:

Ribosomes are the site of translation.

2. Translation - ribosomes interpret the mRNA sequence and

synthesize polypeptide chains. The resulting proteins are
typically released into the cytoplasm or rough ER.

Codon - every three bases of mRNA. Each codon

corresponds to an amino acid.

• During translation, the ribosome ‘reads’ each

mRNA codon and matches it with a tRNA molecule.

§ tRNA- transfer RNA – carries an amino acid and to transfer it to form the specific sequence of the
polypeptides. It contains anticodons which bind with the codon on mRNA. Each tRNA molecule carries a
specific amino acid

Summary of Translation process.

§ mRNA binds to ribosomes in the cytoplasm

§ Ribosome moves down the mRNA in 5-3’ direction.
§ Anticodons on tRNA binds to codons of mrna by complementary base pairing (AUG = UAC)
§ Dehydration synthesis happens between 2 amino acids carried by the tRNA within the ribosome.
§ Covalent/peptide bonds will form between adjacent amino acids carried by tRNA
§ The ribosome moves along the mRNA molecule synthesizing a polypeptide chain until it reaches a stop
codon.
Mutation - a permanent change that occurs in a cell’s DNA.

What are the possible effects of mutation?

§ Can affect only one amino acid in the sequence

§ Can affect more than one amino acid
§ No effect on amino acid sequence

Point mutation – change caused by the substitution of a single nucleotide for another nucleotide in DNA

Types of point mutation

o Missense mutations – occurs when DNA change alters a single amino acid in the polypeptide.

o Nonsense mutation – occur when the DNA change creates a STOP codon that causes the translation
to terminate early.

o Silent mutation - occurs when the DNA change does not alter the amino acid sequence of the
polypeptide

Frameshift mutation - occur when there is an addition or removal of a base. This change will affect every
codon beyond the point of mutation and thus may dramatically change amino acid sequence

o Insertion – addition of base to the DNA sequence. It changes the codon from the point of insertion.

o Deletion – removal of base to the DNA sequence. It changes the codon from the point of deletion.
 Genetics

Genetics – study of heredity

What is heredity? Passing of physical characteristics from parents to offspring.

Trait - a specific characteristic. Example: seed color, skin color, height

Parental or P Generation - cross between two parents

F1 – resulting offspring from parental cross.

Gene – segments of DNA on chromosome that controls a trait or characteristic.

Alleles - different forms of a gene

Example: The gene that controls the stem height in peas has one allele for tall stem and one allele for short
stem.

• Each individual inherits 2 alleles – one from each parent. It can be the same (homozygous or different
(heterozygous).

Genotype and Phenotype

The appearance of an organism does not always indicate which pair of alleles is present.

Genotype- the organism's allele pairs; AA, Aa, aa.

Phenotype- the observable appearance of an allele pair; yellow or green.

Dominant Allele – trait always show up in an organism when the allele is present. Symbolized by capital letter.
T stands for tall stems.

Recessive allele – hidden whenever dominant allele is present. The trait that is masked.
Will only be expressed in the absence of dominant trait. Represent by a lowercase letter.

Homozygous - two of the same alleles for a trait; AA or aa.

Heterozygous – two different alleles for a trait; Aa. In heterozygous organisms the dominant trait is expressed.
Non Mendelian Inheritance:

1. Incomplete Dominance – occurs when one allele is partially

dominant. Neither allele is totally dominant

In snapdragons, flower color is controlled by incomplete

dominance. The two alleles are red (R) and white (W). The
heterozygous genotype is expressed as pink.
RR - Red WW- White RW is pink

2. Codominance - occurs when both alleles are for a

gene are expressed equally with NO blending!
BOTH traits appear together in the phenotype of
heterozygous organisms.

3. Multiple Allele – three or more possible alleles determine

the trait. There will be more combination of alleles so
there will be more genotype and phenotype because
each individual can only inherit 2 alleles for each gene.

Alleles for Blood type:

IA

IB

I
 4. Polygenic Inheritance – occurs when more than one gene affects a trait. Alleles of different genes
work together to produce the traits.

Example: Skin color is controlled by 3 genes. Example genotype: DdDDdd = 3 dark allele

Chromosomes and Inheritance:

In humans, body cells contain 23 pairs of chromosomes.

(46 chromosomes)
There are thousands of genes. Each pair has the same
set of genes.
But some are not identical. It can be Heterozygous or
homozygous.
Sex chromosomes – 23rd pair of chromosomes in each body cell.
It carries a gene that determines a person’s sex as male or female. It also carries genes that determine other
traits.

Females have XX chromosome.

Males have XY chromosome, a pair of chromosomes that do not have the same length.

Complete Set of Male -Human Chromosome

Total chromosome - 46 chromosomes in body cells.

1 Pair or 2 chromosomes are the sex chromosome.

Girl or boy?

• Females contain only X chromosome. All egg carries X

chromosome.
• Males have two different chromosome. X or Y. Sperm cell carries
either X or Y.

• When a sperm that carries Y chromosome fertilizes the egg, the

egg has one X chromosome, the fertilized egg develops into a boy.
Sex Linked genes - genes located on the X or Y-chromosomes.

Example of sex-linked traits:

• Red green Color blindness –

• The person cannot see the difference between red and green.
• These disorders are more common in males because they have 1
X chromosome.

Alleles
XB – normal
Xb- Color blind
Y – Y chromosome does not carry alleles

XBXB – normal female

XBXb – normal female – carrier
XbXb – color blind female

XBY – normal male

XbY – color blind male
Cross between colorblind female with normal male.