Dr. Amin F.

Majdalawieh NAME:

Genetics & Molecular Biology (BIO 260)

ASSIGNMENT 3 (DUE: 20 November 2024)

Max. (45 Points)

True (A) OR False (B) Questions (15 Points)

1. ( ) The genetic code is nonoverlapping.

2. ( ) mRNA serves as an intermediate in transferring genetic information from DNA to proteins.

3. ( ) The genetic code shows order in that chemically similar amino acids often share one or two
middle bases in the triplets encoding them.

4. ( ) mRNA represents the majority of total RNA molecules in human neurons.

5. ( ) Eukaryotic mRNAs require processing to produce mature mRNAs.

6. ( ) TATA binding proteins (TBPs) are NOT required for DNA transcription but they facilitate that
process in eukaryotes.
7. ( ) The ratio of mature mRNA size to DNA size is constant among all genes within the same species.

8. ( ) Every ribosome in prokaryotes is made of two subunits that are equal size.

9. ( ) The terminal (last) amino acid in all proteins in eukaryotes is always the same.

10. ( ) The release of the polypeptide chain from the translation complex is an energy-dependent process.

11. ( ) All biological catalysts are proteins.

12. ( ) Enzymes speed up the rate of chemical reactions by providing energy to substrates (reactants).

13. ( ) Newly synthesized DNA molecules remain unmethylated for a very short period of time before
they are subjected to active methylation by DNA mythelase.

14. ( ) Silent mutations are alterations of the DNA sequence that get corrected by DNA repair
mechanisms before transcription.

15. ( ) Functionally speaking, neutral mutations and silent mutations have the same outcome.

1
Dr. Amin F. Majdalawieh NAME:
Multiple-Choice Questions (30 Points)

1. The triplet nature of the code was revealed by

A. Point mutations
B. Frameshift mutations
C. Silent mutations
D. None of the above
E. All of the above

2. Nonsense codons
A. Code for methionine
B. Code for more than one amino acid
C. Code for an amino acid that not recognized by the tRNA
D. Don’t code for any amino acid
E. Two of the above

3. Which of the following enzymes were used to decipher the genetic code?
A. DNA polymerase I
B. DNA polymerase II
C. DNA polymerase III
D. RNA polymerase
E. Polynucleotide phosphorylase

4. In bacteria, AUG always codes for

A. Methionine
B. N-formyl-methionine
C. Lysine
D. Alanine
E. None of the above

5. DNA transcription is carried by

A. DNA polymerase
B. RNA polymerase
C. DNA polymerase and RNA polymerase
D. Ribosomes
E. DNA ligase

6. Which subunit mediates the recognition of the promoter by RNA polymerase?

A.  subunit
B.  subunit
C. ' subunit
D.  subunit
E. All of the above

2
Dr. Amin F. Majdalawieh NAME:
7. During RNA synthesis, which of the following is used as a template?
A. ssDNA
B. dsDNA
C. ssRNA
D. dsRNA
E. None of the above

8. DNA transcription of the human genome occurs in the

A. Nucleolus
B. Nucleus
C. Mitochondria
D. Lysosome
E. ER

9. To initiate RNA synthesis using a DNA template, RNA polymerase requires

A. 1 primer
B. 2 primers
C. No primer
D. The number of primers depends on the species
E. The number of primers depends on the gene being transcribed

10. The rate-limiting step in DNA transcription is

A. Promoter recognition
B. DNA binding
C. Formation of the closed-promoter complex
D. Formation of the open-promoter complex
E. All of the above

11. Which of the following RNA polymerases catalyzes the synthesis of tRNA in eukaryotes?
A. RNA polymerase I
B. RNA polymerase II
C. RNA polymerase III
D. Two of the above
E. All of the above

12. Progressively longer RNA strands are found further ------- from the point of initiation of transcription.
A. Upstream
B. Downstream
C. Usually upstream, sometimes downstream
D. Usually downstream, sometimes upstream
E. It depends on the gene being transcribed

13. The process of protein synthesis requires

A. mRNA
B. tRNA
C. rRNA
D. Two of the above
E. All of the above

3
Dr. Amin F. Majdalawieh NAME:
14. In its 3D structure, which of the following RNA molecules is double-stranded?
A. mRNA
B. tRNA
C. rRNA
D. None of the above
E. All of the above

15. Which region of tRNA molecules interacts with the corresponding amino acid?
A. D arm
B. Anticodon arm
C. Variable loop
D. 5’ end
E. 3’ end

16. Which of the following is NOT required to initiate translation?

A. GTP
B. Mg++ ions
C. Charged initiator tRNA
D. Elongation factors
E. The small subunit of the ribosome

17. In eukaryotes, the AUG start codon is preceded by

A. Shine-Dalgarno sequence
B. Kozak sequence
C. Promoter
D. Enhancer
E. Two of the above

18. The charged tRNA molecules enter the -------- within the ribosome during elongation.
A. A site
B. P site
C. E site
D. None of the above
E. All of the above

19. Arginine is a(an) -------- amino acid.

A. Acidic
B. Basic
C. Polar
D. Two of the above
E. None of the above

20. Amino acids are joined by -------- bonds via -------- reactions.
A. Hydrogen; hydrolysis
B. Peptide; hydrolysis
C. Hydrogen; condensation
D. Peptide; condensation
E. None of the above

4
Dr. Amin F. Majdalawieh NAME:
21. Which of the following proteins mainly plays a structural role?
A. Actin
B. Keratin
C. Myoglobin
D. Peptidyl transferase
E. Histone HA2

22. Different exons either within or between genes are occasionally mixed to form unique genes.
This process is called
A. Exon splicing
B. Exon excision
C. Exon shuffling
D. Domain swabbing
E. None of the above

23. Frameshift mutations are caused by

A. Insertion
B. Deletion
C. Base-pair substitution
D. Two of the above
E. All of the above

24. The differential rate of spontaneous mutations among different species is a reflection of
A. Differential organismal complexity
B. Differential replication rates
C. Differential growth conditions
D. Differential efficiencies of DNA repair mechanisms
E. Two of the above

25. Deamination of cytosine makes it base pair with

A. Adenine
B. Thymine
C. Guanine
D. Uracil
E. None of the above

26. Usually, UV radiation damages DNA because it leads to

A. Point mutations
B. Deamination
C. Depurination
D. Thymine dimers
E. Transposition

27. The enzyme involved in photoreactivation to repair thymine dimers is called

A. DNA kinase
B. DNA phosphatase
C. DNA phosphorylase
D. DNA photolyase
E. None of the above
5
Dr. Amin F. Majdalawieh NAME:
28. Photoreactivation repair is a mechanism that repairs
A. Missense mutations
B. Deletions
C. Insertions
D. Pyrimidine dimers
E. All of the above

29. In nucleotide excision repair, how many bases are excised in prokaryotes?
A. 1
B. 3
C. 13
D. 28
E. It depends on the gene under repair

30. Which of the following statements is FALSE regarding IS elements and Tn elements?
A. IS elements are larger than Tn elements
B. Transposition of IS elements, but NOT Tn elements, requires transposase
C. Neither IS elements nor Tn elements cause mutations in the host organism
D. None of the above
E. All of the above