Chapter 12: Molecular Biology of the Gene

Student:_______________________________________________

Multiple Choice Questions

1. If a DNA sample contains 13% adenine, what percentage of the sample contains
cytosine?
A) 13%
B) 37%
C) 26%
D) 74%
E) 50%

2. Which is NOT a major function of DNA?

A) store information
B) catalyze chemical reactions
C) replicate itself
D) undergo mutation
E) code for the production of proteins

3. DNA was disregarded as a possible candidate for the genetic material because
A) with only four types of nucleotides, it was a very simple, repetitive molecule
that could not account for 20 different amino acids.
B) it had been shown that proteins were more important in transferring genetic
information than nucleic acids.
C) proteins and carbohydrates were of more interest.
D) it was thought that RNA was more likely to be the genetic material.
E) All of these are correct.

4. Transformation of bacteria was shown to occur when _______ bacteria were

injected into mice and the mice _______.
A) live, smooth; died
B) live, rough; didn't die
C) live, smooth and dead, rough; died
D) live, rough and dead, smooth; died
E) live, smooth and dead, rough; didn't die

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5. DNA was first proven to be the transforming factor in bacterial cells by
A) Meischer.
B) Watson and Crick.
C) Griffith.
D) McClintock.
E) Avery.

6. DNA was proven to be the transforming substance when only the ______
enzymes could inhibit transformation.
A) proteinase
B) RNase
C) DNase
D) lipase
E) amylase

7. One of Chargaff's rules states that

A) A + T = G + C.
B) A + G = T + C.
C) A = G, T = C.
D) A = C, T = G.
E) A=C=T=G.

8. If a species contains 23% A in its DNA, what is the percentage of guanine it

would contain?
A) 23%
B) 46%
C) 25%
D) 44%
E) 27%

9. The amount of adenine is always equal to the amount of _______ in DNA.

A) cytosine
B) uracil
C) guanine
D) thymine
E) ATP

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10. Information from X-ray crystallographic data collected by _______ was used
by Watson and Crick in their development of the model of DNA.
A) Chargaff
B) Griffith
C) McClintock
D) Franklin
E) Hershey and Chase

11. The X-ray diffraction photography of Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins
was critical evidence of DNA,
A) indicating that DNA has a double helix structure.
B) showing equal numbers of purines and pyrimidines.
C) showing the bases of DNA were held together by hydrogen bonds.
D) revealing the structure of the deoxyribose sugar.
E) and of the location of each adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine.

12. In the Watson and Crick model of DNA, the "steps" of the ladder are composed
of
A) sugars.
B) a purine and a pyrimidine.
C) two purines.
D) two pyrimidines.
E) a sugar and a phosphate molecule.

13. Which of the following statements about DNA replication is NOT correct?
A) Unwinding of the DNA molecule occurs as hydrogen bonds break.
B) Replication occurs as each base is paired with another exactly like it.
C) The process is known as semiconservative replication because one old strand
is conserved in the new molecule.
D) The enzyme that catalyzes DNA replication is DNA polymerase.
E) Complementary base pairs are held together with hydrogen bonds.

14. Because one original strand of the double-stranded helix is found in each
daughter cell, the replication process is called
A) proofreading.
B) semiconservative.
C) redundant.
D) freeing of DNA.
E) mutation positive.

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15. Which does NOT describe a function of the DNA polymerase molecule?
A) recognize the free nucleotide that pairs with the base on the template strand
of DNA
B) read the strand of template DNA and recognize the base there
C) proofread to ensure that the proper base has been incorporated
D) make the proper nucleotide to match with the base read on the template
strand
E) cut out an improperly paired nucleotide and replace it with the proper one

16. Which statement is NOT true about DNA replication?

A) It proceeds in a 5'-to-3' direction only.
B) One strand of new DNA is replicated continuously and the other strand
replicates in fragments.
C) DNA can only replicate at one point on a chromosome at one time.
D) It occurs more rapidly in bacteria than in eukaryotes.
E) Replication can only begin at a special origin of replication.

17. Which statement is NOT true about DNA replication in prokaryotes?

A) Replication begins at a single origin of replication.
B) Replication is bidirectional from the origin(s).
C) Replication occurs at about 1 million base pairs per minute.
D) Since bacterial cells replicate so rapidly, a second round of replication may
begin before the first has been completed.
E) There are numerous different bacterial chromosomes, with replication
occurring in each at the same time.

18. Which statement is NOT true about DNA replication in eukaryotes?

A) Replication of the entire genome takes about ten minutes.
B) A replication fork occurs at each growing point of the replicating
chromosome(s).
C) Eukaryotes have numerous different chromosomes, with replication
occurring in each at the same time.
D) Replication occurs at the rate of about 500-5000 base pairs per minute.
E) Multiple sites of replication are present on each chromosome.

19. Before the DNA repair enzymes complex has completed its function,
approximately how many base-pairs are still improperly matched?
A) 1 in 10,000
B) 1 in 100,000
C) 1 in 1,000,000
D) 1 in 10,000,000
E) 1 in a billion

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20. Which of the following statements is/are true regarding the early transformation
experiments?
A) conducted by Avery in the laboratory
B) demonstrated that protease enzymes could not prevent transformation
C) RNase could not prevent transformation.
D) DNase caused digestion of the transforming substance.
E) All of the choices are correct.

21. If a species contains 40% guanine in its DNA, what is the percentage of cytosine
that it would contain?
A) 60
B) 40
C) 27
D) 30
E) 10

22. The model of DNA proposed by Watson and Crick

A) combined many of the findings of other researchers also studying DNA (such
as Rosalind Franklin and Chargaff).
B) showed the double helix nature of the molecule.
C) presented a molecule with sugar-phosphate backbones on the outside and
paired bases on the inside.
D) showed a purine bound to a pyrimidine at each “rung” of the helix.
E) All of the choices are correct.

23. Replication of DNA is

A) semiconservative.
B) requires the unwinding of the double helix.
C) involves new complementary nucleotides forming base pairs and then
joining to form new strands.
D) requires RNA primers
E) All of the choices are correct.

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Use the following diagram to answer questions 24-28:

24. What is the term for the three part unit composing this segment of DNA?
A) nucleic acid
B) pyrimidine
C) purine
D) nucleotide
E) triose sugar

25. We know this is a segment of DNA and not RNA because

A) it has a sugar as part of its side.
B) it has both guanine and cytosine.
C) it is double-stranded.
D) it has phosphate incorporated into it.
E) All of these are true.

26. The “S” in the above diagram is indicating

A) ribose.
B) deoxyribose.
C) sucrose.
D) any 5-carbon sugar.
E) either thymine or adenine.

27. The 5’ is indicating

A) a specific phosphate molecule.
B) the location of the bonding of a nitrogen base.
C) the location of the next hydrogen bond.
D) a specific carbon atom in the sugar.
E) a specific hydrogen atom.

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28. The antiparallel nature of this molecule is indicated by
A) the guanine/cytosine position.
B) the three bonds between guanine and cytosine.
C) the position of the phosphates.
D) the position of the 3’ atom on one side and the 5’ atom on the other.
E) All of these are correct.

29. Which of the following is/are true concerning introns?

A) Introns are sections of nucleotides found on a mRNA transcript.
B) RNA splicing usually removes introns from a mRNA molecule.
C) Introns can function to regulate gene expression.
D) The sequence of nucleotides found in introns is not known to represent
anything usable by the cell.
E) All the choices are true except for saying that introns do not represent
anything usable by the cell.

30. During the elongation of a polypeptide chain, _________ occurs when the
mRNA moves to the next site on the ribosome to read the next codon.
A) translocation
B) transcription
C) translation
D) transference
E) termination

31. The concept of an "inborn error of metabolism" was the first recognition of the
relationship between gene activity and metabolic disease, made by
A) Beadle and Tatum with parasitic molds.
B) Pauling and Itano with sickle-cell anemia.
C) Sir Archibold Garrod from general family inheritance patterns.
D) Watson and Crick, as a natural outcome of their model of DNA.
E) Gregor Mendel, who extrapolated his pea plant data to human diseases.

32. Studies by Beadle and Tatum that produced the "one gene-one enzyme
hypothesis" were conducted using the
A) bread mold Neurospora crassa.
B) bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae.
C) bacterium Escherichia coli.
D) mouse.
E) human.

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33. The idea that a single gene coded for a polypeptide rather than an enzyme was
evident from the
A) use of X rays to make nutritional mutants in bread mold.
B) transformation of bacteria from rough and non-virulent to smooth and
virulent.
C) presence of a mutation in one chain of hemoglobin but not in the other.
D) discovery that mutated genes changed enzymes in a biochemical pathway.
E) finding that some genes in eukaryotes are split by introns.

34. Today, it is most appropriate to state that a gene contains the code for
A) one enzyme.
B) one protein.
C) one polypeptide chain.
D) one amino acid.
E) one starch, amino acid or lipid molecule.

35. If DNA had evolved so that it had 6 nucleotides rather than 4, how many bases
per codon would be needed to code for the 20 different amino acids?
A) 1
B) 2
C) 3
D) 4
E) 6

36. Which of the classes of RNA molecules carries the genetic information as it is
needed for the construction of a protein?
A) ribosomal RNA
B) transfer RNA
C) messenger RNA
D) primary mRNA transcript
E) ribozymes

37. Which of the classes of RNA molecules carries the amino acids that are added to
the growing polypeptide chain?
A) ribosomal RNA
B) transfer RNA
C) messenger RNA
D) primary mRNA transcript
E) ribozymes

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38. Which of the classes of RNA molecules is linked with proteins in forming the
large and small subunits of a cytoplasmic structure?
A) ribosomal RNA
B) transfer RNA
C) messenger RNA
D) primary mRNA transcript
E) ribozymes

39. Prior to protein synthesis, the DNA

A) attracts tRNAs with appropriate amino acids.
B) must first undergo replication.
C) contains anticodons that must become codons.
D) serves as a template for the production of mRNA.
E) adheres to ribosomes for protein synthesis.

40. Which of the classes of RNA molecules is never found in the cytosol?
A) ribosomal RNA
B) transfer RNA
C) messenger RNA
D) primary mRNA transcript
E) All of these can be found in the cytosol.

41. The first codon to be deciphered was ______, which codes for ________.
A) AAA; proline
B) GGG; alanine
C) UUU; phenylalanine
D) TTT; arginine
E) CCC; glycine

42. Transcription of a part of a DNA molecule with a nucleotide sequence of A-A-A-

C-A-A-C-T-T results in a mRNA molecule with the complementary sequence of
A) G-G-G-A-G-A-A-C-C.
B) U-U-U-G-U-U-G-A-A.
C) T-T-T-G-A-A-G-C-C.
D) C-C-C-A-C-C-T-C-C.
E) None of the choices are correct.

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43. If one strand of DNA has the base sequence AAGCAA, the complementary
strand has which of the following sequences?
A) UUCGUU
B) TTCGTT
C) AAGCAA
D) UTCGTU
E) TTCGTG

44. Which is the process that synthesizes mRNA, tRNA, or rRNA?

A) translation
B) transcription
C) transposition
D) transformation
E) translocation

45. A cell, composed of proteins, shelters the DNA which is the blueprint for the cell
proteins; thus is set the "chicken-or-the-egg" dilemma of which came first. This
can be solved by the discovery that
A) RNAs called ribozymes had enzyme functions and could have served as both
genetic matter and enzymes.
B) reverse transcriptase can convert RNA back into DNA.
C) all DNA and protein can be distributed evenly inside and outside the
nucleus.
D) some proteins are simply assemblages of guanine, cytosine, thymine and
adenine.
E) viruses can give rise to all of the cell molecules.

46. Which of the following nucleotide bases is found only in RNA, not in DNA?
A) guanine
B) adenine
C) thymine
D) uracil
E) cytosine

47. Which of the following nucleotide bases is found only in DNA, not in RNA?
A) guanine
B) adenine
C) thymine
D) uracil
E) cytosine

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48. An intervening sequence in a eukaryotic gene that is not an active part of the
gene is called a(n)
A) exon.
B) intron.
C) replicon.
D) mRNA transcript.
E) spliceosome.

49. A ribozyme is
A) a section of the DNA that is expressed in the mRNA.
B) a form of RNA that acts like an enzyme.
C) a complex made up of many ribosomes replicating the same strand of
mRNA.
D) one of the small ribosomal subunits.
E) the enzyme that attaches amino acids to tRNA.

50. Which is the process by which a protein is constructed?

A) translation
B) transcription
C) transposition
D) transformation
E) translocation

51. In order to produce many copies of a protein fast, the cell uses
A) DNA replication.
B) intron self-splicing.
C) single-unit ribosomes for high speed translation.
D) codon-anticodon reciprocal duplication.
E) many RNA polymerase molecules to produce multiple mRNA transcripts at
the same time.

52. Which is most directly responsible for the sequence of amino acids in a protein?
A) the sequence of the anticodons
B) the number of codons in mRNA
C) the enzyme that attaches the amino acid to tRNA
D) the proteins associated with rRNA
E) the sequence of codons in mRNA

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53. Which is NOT true about the genetic code?
A) It is exactly the same in all organisms.
B) It is composed of a triplet code of three bases per codon.
C) It produces 64 different possibilities of base sequences.
D) It was cracked through the use of a cell-free system of enzymes.
E) It contains start and stop codons as instructions.

54. For translation to take place, which of the following would NOT be required to
be present?
A) DNA
B) mRNA
C) tRNA-amino acid complex
D) rRNA
E) ribosome

55. Which of the following processes does NOT take place during translation?
A) growth of a polypeptide chain
B) attachment of a ribosome to mRNA
C) binding of anticodons to codons
D) liberation of polypeptide from the ribosome
E) production of mRNA

56. The correct sequence of events in the production of a polypeptide is

A) initiation, termination, elongation.
B) elongation, termination, initiation.
C) termination, elongation, initiation.
D) elongation, initiation, termination.
E) initiation, elongation, termination.

57. An unknown chemical is analyzed and found to contain the bases thymine and
guanine. This chemical is most likely
A) tRNA.
B) mRNA.
C) DNA.
D) rRNA.
E) Not enough information is known to decide.

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58. Codons are
A) triplets coding for a single amino acid.
B) the alphabet of the genetic language.
C) redundant in their coding for various amino acids.
D) matched with anticodons during translation.
E) All of the choices are correct.

59. When a bacterial spore is introduced to a new environment that is an

appropriate medium for that species to grow, fission allows a rapid expansion of
the population (2-4-8-16-32-64 . . . etc.). But there is usually a slight lag before
the bacteria actually begin building up such a logarithmic growth curve. What is
the best explanation?
A) It takes time for sub-cellular units to evolve the ability to digest new media.
B) A bacterium is not actively producing all the enzymes it can code for, and it
takes time to induce and amplify the production of the currently needed
enzymes.
C) Binary fission becomes more and more efficient.
D) A new media dissolves away repressor proteins.
E) Structural genes act more slowly than metabolic genes.

Use the following to answer questions 60-61:

60. If the above segment of DNA were transcribed, the first codon would read
A) TGA.
B) ACT.
C) ACU.
D) UGA.
E) UCU.

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61. Transcription of the piece of DNA on the previous page would result in all of the
following EXCEPT
A) 5 codons.
B) a primary mRNA transcript.
C) a code for 5 amino acids.
D) a code for a short polypeptide.
E) a small protein.

Use the following diagram to answer questions 62-64:

62. The diagram is illustrating what process?

A) transcription
B) mRNA processing
C) translational initiation
D) translational elongation
E) termination

63. The AUG is part of what molecule?

A) DNA
B) tRNA
C) rRNA
D) mRNA
E) polypeptide

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64. The anticodon is represented in the diagram by
A) the UAC
B) the AUG
C) the “met”
D) the 5’ end
E) the 3’ end

Essay Questions

65. The discovery of the structure and function of the DNA molecule helped
scientists understand the basis of metabolic disorders.
A) Describe step by step how a change in one nitrogen base would ultimately
lead to a disorder such as sickle-cell anemia.
B) Describe how redundancy or degeneracy in the genetic code can have
significance in preventing some mutations.

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66. In the early days of genetic research there was much debate as to the chemical
identity of the hereditary substance. Many were convinced the hereditary
material had to be protein rather than DNA.
A) Discuss the general chemical nature of DNA and protein and why their
respective structures might lead to the conclusion that protein, not DNA,
was the hereditary material.
B) Describe one of the classic experiments (Avery, Hershey/Chase, etc.) that
supported the hypothesis that DNA was indeed the hereditary material.
Include a brief description of the design of the experiment and describe the
results of the experiment.

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67. The structure of DNA as revealed by Watson and Crick and subsequent
discoveries on how it replicates provided elegant evidence that it is an ideal
molecule for control of heredity as well as a molecule which facilitates
adaptation and evolution. Describe how the structure and replication of DNA
suits it well for its role as the provider of hereditary information and the source
of variation for evolution.

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