GENERAL BIOLOGY 2

❖ MENDEL’S LAWS OF HEREDITY:

1. Law of Dominance - States that when two pure parents with opposite traits are crossed, the resulting offspring show only one trait.
This is the dominant trait. The trait that is hidden is the recessive trait.
2. Law of Segregation – When gametes are formed, the pairs of hereditary factors (genes) become separated, so that each sex cell
(egg/sperm) receives only one kind of gene.
3. Law of Independent Assortment – States that members of one gene pair segregate independently from other gene pairs during
gamete formation. Traits are inherited independently of one another.
❖ DOMINANT – the allele of a gene that masks or suppresses the expression of an alternate allele; the trait also appears in the heterozygous
condition.
RECESSIVE – an allele that is masked by a dominant allele; does not appear in the heterozygous condition, only in homozygous.
❖ PHENOTYPE – the physical appearance of an organism (Genotype + environment).
GENOTYPE – the genetic make-up of an organism.
❖ How to get possible gamete combinations in Dihybrid Cross? Example: Genotype – AaBb

❖ HOMOZYGOUS – having identical genes (one from each parent) for a particular characteristic.
RECESSIVE - having two different genes for a particular characteristic.
❖ SEX-LINKAGE-SEX-LINKED TRAIT
✓ Special pattern of inheritance which applies to genes located on the sex chromosomes (Female: XX, male:XY)
✓ Different kind of sex-linked genes are found on the X-chromosome; since the Y-chromosome is smaller than the X-chromosome,
and it contains only a few genes.
✓ If it is X-linked, females will have two copies of the sex-linked gene while the males will only have one copy of this gene. If the gene
is recessive, then males only need one such recessive gene to have a sex-linked trait rather than the customary two recessive
genes that are not sex-linked. Therefore, males exhibit some traits more frequently than females.
❖ INCOMPLETE DOMINANCE
✓ Happens when one allele is not completely dominant over the other allele.
✓ Blended inheritance because neither of the genes is able to mask the other.
✓ Results in a phenotype that is different from both the dominant and recessive alleles, and appears to be a mixture of both.
❖ CODOMINANCE – Both alleles contribute to the phenotype and can be observed in the offspring.
❖ MULTIPLE ALLELES – involves having more than two phenotypes for a particular trait which happens when an organism has more than two
alleles for the trait. Example: Human ABO Blood Type
❖ DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid) - Genetic material passed on from parents to offspring; Contains the instructions necessary for the survival of
every organism; the sugar is DEOXYRIBOSE; contains nitrogenous bases which are Adenine-Thymine and Guanine-Cytosine. DNA is double
stranded to help enhance stability.
❖ RNA (Ribonucleic Acid)-is a single-stranded molecule that is also composed of nucleotides, with a few modifications; the sugar backbone is
called RIBOSE; Uracil replaces thymine as one of the nitrogenous bases in RNA; (A-U) and (G-C).
❖ DNA and RNA are made up of their building block or backbone called NUCLEOTIDE.

Nitrogenous Bases – can be classified according to the number of rings in their

structure:
A. Purines – Adenine and Guanine, have a double ringed structure.
B. Pyrimidines – Cytosine, Thymine, and Uracil, contain only one ring in their
structure.

❖ DNA replicates in a semiconservative process since each new cell contains one strand of original DNA and one
newly synthesized strand.
❖ DNA contains the genetic information that is used to synthesize proteins, which in turn make up the structural
components of cells.
❖ The carbon atoms in the sugar of nucleotide are numbered 1’ to 5’, proceeding clockwise from the oxygen atom.
The “prime” symbol (‘) indicates that the carbon belongs to the sugar rather than the base. In DNA, the 5’ end
has a phosphate (-PO4) group attached to the 5’ carbon of deoxyribose sugar, while the 3’ end has a hydroxyl (-
OH) group attached to the 3’ carbon of the deoxyribose sugar.

❖ DNA REPLICATION – is the process by which a double-stranded DNA molecule is copied to produce two identical DNA molecules. Enzymes
involved are the following:
✓ Helicase-breaks hydrogen down the hydrogen bond between purines and pyrimidines.
✓ Topoisomerase (Gyrase)-alleviates positive supercoiling (twisting of DNA) ahead of the replication fork.
✓ Single-Stranded Binding Proteins-keeps parental DNA apart.
✓ Primase- synthesizes an RNA Primer.
✓ Primer-starting point for DNA Polymerase III.
✓ DNA Polymerase III-synthesizes a new daughter strand of DNA.
 ✓ DNA Polymerase I-removes primer and fills in with DNA.
✓ Ligase-covalently links DNA fragments together.
❖ TRANCRIPTION – is the process in which a gene’s DNA sequence is copied (transcribed) to make an RNA molecule. RNA polymerase is the
main transcription enzyme. Transcription begins when RNA polymerase binds to a promoter sequence near the beginning of a gene. RNA
polymerase uses one of the DNA strands (the template strand) as a template to make a new, complementary RNA molecule. Transcription
ends in a process called termination. Termination depends on sequences in the RNA, which signal that the transcript is finished. RNA moves
from the nucleus to the cytoplasm.
❖ TRANSLATION – involves “decoding” a messenger RNA (mRNA) and using its information to build a polypeptide, or chain of amino acids.
In an mRNA, the instructions for building a polypeptide come in groups of 3 bases called codons. The codons of an mRNA are read in order
by molecules called transfer RNA (tRNA). Each tRNA has an anticodon, that binds to a matching mRNA codon through base pairing. The
other end of the tRNA carries the amino acid that is specified by the codon. tRNAs bind to mRNAs inside of a protein-and-RNA structure called
the ribosome. As tRNAs enter slots in the ribosome and bind to codons, their amino acids are linked to the growing polypeptide chain in a
chemical reaction. The end result is a polypeptide whose amino acid sequence mirrors the sequence of codons in the mRNA.
❖ GENETIC ENGINEERING - Genetic engineering is artificially copying a piece of DNA from one organism and joining this copy of DNA into
the DNA of another organism. The modification of traits may involve: (a) introduction of new traits into an organism. (b) enhancement of a
present trait by increasing the expression of the desired gene. (c) enhancement of a present trait by disrupting the inhibition of the desired
genes’ expression.
❖ RECOMBINANT DNA TECHNOLOGY - is one technique wherein a gene of interest from a one organism is inserted into the genome of
another. This involves gene cloning using a bacterial plasmid as a vector. It is widely used in improving crop varieties.
General Outline:
1. Isolation of a specific gene from donor - involves breaking open the cells of the donor to release the DNA and isolate the gene of
interest. Plasmid is the circular DNA molecule that is separated from the bacterial chromosomes during the isolation process.
2. Cutting or cleavage of DNA by restriction enzymes (REs) - donor DNA and plasmid DNA are cut using enzymes called restriction
enzymes which acts as a molecular scissor to cut the DNA strand within the recognition sequence.
3. Ligation - re-joining cut fragments of DNA and forming artificial recombinant molecules. Ligase is the enzyme which is commonly used
for carrying out ligation reaction.
4. Transformation - the transfer of the recombinant plasmid into a host cell that would carry out replication to make huge copies of the
recombined plasmid.
5. Expression - Plasmid will produce the polypeptide coded for by the donor DNA
❖ APPLICATIONS OF RECOMBINANT DNA
1. Medical Applications - Genetic engineering has been used to mass-produce insulin, human growth hormones, follistim (for treating
infertility), human albumin, monoclonal antibodies, antihemophilic factors, vaccines, and many other drugs.
2. Industrial Applications - Genetically designed bacteria are put into use for generating industrial chemicals. A variety of organic
chemicals can be synthesized at large scale with the help of genetically engineered microorganisms.
3. Agricultural Applications - An important application of recombinant DNA technology is to alter the genotype of crop plants to make
them more productive, nutritious, rich in proteins, disease resistant, and less fertilizer consuming. Recombinant DNA technology
and tissue culture techniques can produce high yielding cereals and vegetable crops. Some plants have been genetically
programmed to yield high protein grains that could show resistance to heat, moisture and diseases. Scientists have developed
transgenic potato, tobacco, cotton, corn, strawberry seeds that are resistant to insect pests and certain weedicides.
❖ Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of organisms that lived in the past. These remains are dated in 2 ways:
1. Relative dating - determines which of two fossils is older or younger than the other, but not their age in years. This is based on the
positions of fossils in rock layers. Lower layers were laid down earlier, so they are assumed to contain older fossils.
2. Absolute dating - determines about how long ago a fossil organism lived. This gives the fossil an approximate age in years. Absolute
dating is often based on the amount of carbon-14 or other radioactive element that remains in a fossil.
❖ GEOLOGIC TIME SCALE - divides Earth’s history into divisions (such as eons, eras, and periods and epochs) that are based on major
changes in geology, climate, and the evolution of life. It organizes Earth’s history and the evolution of life on the basis of important events
instead of time alone. It also allows more focus to be placed on recent events, about which we know the most.
❖ ARCHAEAN ERA - a division in the Geologic Time Scale were the earliest large colonies of bacteria appeared.
❖ PRECAMBRIAN – a division in the Geologic Time Scale which shows evidence of molten rocks in Earth’s surface due to its high temperature.
❖ MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION
1. Natural Selection - According to Darwin, nature (the environment) selects organisms with traits that allow them to survive in that
particular environment.
2. Mutation - is a source of new alleles in a population. Mutation is a change in the DNA sequence of the gene. A mutation can change
one allele into another, but the net effect is a change in frequency. A mutation may produce an allele that is selected against, selected
for, or selectively neutral.
3. Genetic drift - stems from the chance occurrence that some individuals have more offspring than others and results in changes in
allele frequencies that are random in direction.
4. Gene Flow - can occur when an individual travels from one geographic location to another and joins a different population of the
species.
❖ REPRODUCTIVE ISOLATION - The mechanisms of reproductive isolation are a collection of evolutionary mechanisms, behaviors and
physiological processes critical for speciation. They prevent members of different species from producing offspring or ensure that any offspring
are sterile. These barriers maintain the integrity of a species by reducing gene flow between related species.
❖ Types of Prezygotic Isolation:
1. Habitat Isolation - Two species that occupy different habitats within the same area may encounter each other rarely, if at all, even
though they are not isolated by obvious physical barriers, such as mountain range.
2. Temporal Isolation - Different species tend to have different breeding seasons. The timing of female fertility cycles can result in
temporal isolation. Similar species may be physically compatible yet may still not reproduce due to their mating seasons occurring at
 different times of the year. If the females of one species are fertile during a given month, but the males are not able to reproduce at
that time of the year, that can lead to reproductive isolation between the two species.
3. Behavioral Isolation - Mating rituals, along with other necessary mating behaviors—such as mating calls and dances—are very
necessary for males and females of the same species to indicate it's time to reproduce. If the mating ritual is rejected or not
recognized, then not mating will occur and the species will be reproductively isolated from each other.
4. Mechanical Isolation - Mating is attempted but morphological differences prevent its successful completion. The incompatibility of
sexual organs—is probably the simplest way to stop individuals from reproducing with each other. Whether it's the shape of the
reproductive organs, the location, or differences in size that prohibit individuals from coupling, when the sexual organs don't fit
together, mating is not likely to occur.
5. Gametic Isolation - Sperm of other species may not be able to fertilize the eggs of another species. For instance, sperm may not
be able to survive in the reproductive tract of females of the other species or biochemical mechanisms may prevent the sperm from
penetrating the membrane surrounding the other species’ eggs.
❖ Lamarck was struck by the similarities of many of the animals he studied and was impressed too by the burgeoning fossil record. It led him to
argue that life was not fixed. When environments changed, organisms had to change their behavior to survive. If they began to use an organ
more than they had in the past, it would increase in its lifetime. If a giraffe stretched its neck for leaves, for example, a "nervous fluid" would
flow into its neck and make it longer. Its offspring would inherit the longer neck and continued stretching would make it longer still over several
generations. Meanwhile organs that organisms stopped using would shrink.
❖ EVIDENCES OF EVOLUTION:
1. Evidence from Fossils - Fossils are remains of ancient organisms trapped in rocks, tar pits, frozen in ice or embedded in amber.
The activities and behavior of ancient life forms also left behind fossil traces (such as footprints, dungs, gastric stones, nests
and burrows) which scientists can study.
2. Evidence from Structures - Structures in different organisms can be compared to infer common lineage.
✓ HOMOLOGOUS STRUCTURES are structures with the same set of bones that presumably evolved from a common
ancestor. (Anatomically similar but have different functions).
✓ ANALOGOUS STRUCTURES are structures that perform the same function but have very different embryological
development or set of structures like bones. (Have similar functions but with dissimilar evolutionary origins).
✓ VESTIGIAL STRUCTURES are structures or attributes that have lost most of its ancestral function in more recent
species.
3. Evidence from Embryology - Embryology is the study of the development of an organism from an embryo to its adult form.
Common structures are shared in the embryo stage and disappear by the time the embryo reaches the juvenile or adult form.
4. Evidence from Molecular Biology - Many organisms have similar molecules of life (RNA, DNA, proteins) that suggest descent
from a common ancestor with modifications. The near universality of the genetic code reflects evidence of common ancestry
and relatedness and can be inferred from the similarities in the DNA sequences between and among organisms.
5. Evidence from Biogeography - Biogeography is the study of geographical distribution of fossils and living organisms. Organisms
usually arise in areas where similar forms already exist. Similar organisms may also be found in different locations which could
mean that the two places were previously connected.
❖ Taxonomic Hierarchy

❖ SIX-KINGDOM CLASSIFICATION
1. Kingdom Archaea – ancient bacteria; prokaryotes; unicellular; cells don’t have peptidoglycan; mostly extremophiles; some are
autotrophs; some are heterotrophs
2. Kingdom Eubacteria – true bacteria and blue green algae (cyanobacteria); prokaryotes; unicellular (some form colonies and
filaments); cells have peptidoglycan; survives almost anywhere; autotrophs, heterotrophs, or chemoautotrophs
3. Kingdom Protista – plant-like, animal-like, and fungus-like organisms; eukaryotes; mostly unicellular, few are colonial and
multicellular; mostly aquatic; some are autotrophs, some are heterotrophs
4. Kingdom Fungi- eukaryotes; mostly multicellular, very few unicellular; all are heterotrophs; form spores for reproduction; cell walls
contain chitin; breaks down organic materials; provides drugs and aids in food production; “model organisms” in genetics and
molecular biology; causes animal and plant diseases
5. Kingdom Plantae- eukaryotes, multicellular, autotrophs, cells are enclosed by a rigid cell wall; has chlorophyll; producers; 2 main
groups – Bryophytes and tracheophytes
6. Kingdom Animalia – eukaryotes; multicellular; heterotrophs; consumers; biggest kingdom in the living world; 2 major groups –
Vertebrates and Invertebrates.
❖ CLADOGRAMS are diagrams which depict the relationships between different groups of taxa called “clades”. By depicting relationships,
cladograms reconstruct history (phylogeny) of the taxa. Cladograms can also be called “phylogenies” or “trees”. Cladograms are constructed
by grouping organisms together based on their shared derived characteristics.