You are working with a newly discovered mutagen, and you wish to determine the base change that it introduces into DNA. Thus far, you have determined that the mutagen chemically alters a single base in such a way that its base-pairing properties are altered permanently. To determine the specificity of the alteration, you examine the amino acid changes that take place after mutagenesis. A sample of what you find is shown here:Original: Gln–His–Ile–Glu–LysMutant: Gln–His–Met–Glu–LysOriginal: Ala–Val–Asn–ArgMutant: Ala–Val–Ser–ArgOriginal: Arg–Ser–LeuMutant: Arg–Ser–Leu–Trp–Lys–Thr–Phe
Genetic Recombination
Recombination is crucial to this process because it allows genes to be reassorted into diverse combinations. Genetic recombination is the process of combining genetic components from two different origins into a single unit. In prokaryotes, genetic recombination takes place by the unilateral transfer of deoxyribonucleic acid. It includes transduction, transformation, and conjugation. The genetic exchange occurring between homologous deoxyribonucleic acid sequences (DNA) from two different sources is termed general recombination. For this to happen, an identical sequence of the two recombining molecules is required. The process of genetic exchange which occurs in eukaryotes during sexual reproduction such as meiosis is an example of this type of genetic recombination.
Microbial Genetics
Genes are the functional units of heredity. They transfer characteristic information from parents to the offspring.
You are working with a newly discovered mutagen, and
you wish to determine the base change that it introduces into DNA. Thus far, you have determined that the
mutagen chemically alters a single base in such a way
that its base-pairing properties are altered permanently.
To determine the specificity of the alteration, you examine the amino acid changes that take place after mutagenesis. A sample of what you find is shown here:
Original: Gln–His–Ile–Glu–Lys
Mutant: Gln–His–Met–Glu–Lys
Original: Ala–Val–Asn–Arg
Mutant: Ala–Val–Ser–Arg
Original: Arg–Ser–Leu
Mutant: Arg–Ser–Leu–Trp–Lys–Thr–Phe
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