EBK CONCEPTS OF GENETICS
EBK CONCEPTS OF GENETICS
12th Edition
ISBN: 9780134818979
Author: Killian
Publisher: YUZU
bartleby

Videos

Textbook Question
Book Icon
Chapter 11, Problem 24PDQ

In 1994, telomerase activity was discovered in human cancer cell lines. Although telomerase is not active in human somatic tissue, human somatic cells do contain the genes for telomerase proteins and telomerase RNA. Since inappropriate activation of telomerase may contribute to cancer, why do you think the genes coding for this enzyme have been maintained in the human genome throughout evolution? Are there any types of human body cells where telomerase activation would be advantageous or even necessary? Explain.

Blurred answer
Students have asked these similar questions
n yeast cells, telomerase remains active and maintains telomeres of about 300 base pairs. Propose what would happen to the telomeres over time in a yeast lineage in which the following mutations were created.  The gene encoding the catalytic subunit of the telomerase is deleted.
In cancerous cells, telomeres are substantially longer then telomeres found in non-cancerous cells.  As a result a number of scientists who study cancer treatment have become interested in telomerase.  Why might telomerase be a good target for anticancer therapies?  How might anticancer therapies targeting telomerase work (no need to design an experiment, just brainstorm how the therapy might impact telomeres of cancer cells)?
With age, somatic cells are thought to accumulate genomic "scars"as a result of the inaccurate repair of double-strand breaks by non homologous end-joining (NHEJ). Estimates based on the frequency of breaks in primary human fibroblasts suggest that by age 70 each human somatic cell may carry some 2000 NHEJ-induced mutations due to inaccurate repair. If these mutations were distributed randomly around the genome, how many genes would you expect to be affected? Would you expect cell function to be compromised? Why or why not? (Assume that 2% of the genome - 1.5% coding and 0.5% regulatory - is crucial information.)

Chapter 11 Solutions

EBK CONCEPTS OF GENETICS

Knowledge Booster
Background pattern image
Biology
Learn more about
Need a deep-dive on the concept behind this application? Look no further. Learn more about this topic, biology and related others by exploring similar questions and additional content below.
Similar questions
SEE MORE QUESTIONS
Recommended textbooks for you
Text book image
Human Heredity: Principles and Issues (MindTap Co...
Biology
ISBN:9781305251052
Author:Michael Cummings
Publisher:Cengage Learning
What are Mutations and what are the different types of Mutations?; Author: Science ABC;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I16YlE8qTBU;License: Standard youtube license