A change in an organism's genomic sequence.
-1
votes
0answers
30 views
How much can DNA change before a creature/species can no longer live?
I have no idea if it makes sense, but I remember hearing that the DNA of a creature or species cannot be changed more than about 40% otherwise the creature either become infertile or it dies; if it ...
0
votes
1answer
37 views
Is transition more common than transversion during the evolution of duplicated genes?
Transitions are base mutations of purine to purine (A <-> G) or pyrimidine to pyrimidine (C <-> T). Transversions are purine to pyrimidine or vice versa (A <-> C, A <-> T, G <-> C, G &...
0
votes
1answer
15 views
About Frameshift Mutation
I am coding a DNA translater, based on the homosapiens genome, & i knowing that the data provided from NCBI is surely not 100% precise (there may be some base changes / removes etc...)
, & i ...
2
votes
0answers
12 views
Is there an existing database of mutation rates for mitochondrial loci?
I'm wondering if there exists a database of mutation rates (transitions and transversions) for both mitochondrial loci (such as cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI)).
Due to the use of COI as a DNA ...
0
votes
1answer
56 views
How having sickle cell trait would provide resistance to malarial parasites?
It's mentioned in my textbook that subjects with sickle cell trait develop resistance to malaria. I've read a few research papers predisposing involvement of macrophages and papers asserting ...
1
vote
1answer
26 views
Why is the relative expression in qPCR so low?
When analyzing different mutations through qPCR I found the $2^{-\Delta\Delta ct}$ value for each mutation. All the mutation have similar values compared to the wild type gene, however one of the ...
1
vote
0answers
31 views
How diverse are the sperm cells of an individual male due to random mutations?
Due to the sheer number of sperm cells in an individual and the rate of mutations, are they likely to be incredibly diverse and encompass most of what we see across our species? For instance would it ...
-1
votes
2answers
38 views
For long term survival of a species in a harsh environment which is more important-mutation or evolution?
The environment is the ultimate cause of population stabilization. Considering the environment to turn harsh for the survival of a species.How to adapt better to this change-by evolution or by ...
2
votes
1answer
57 views
Will humans ever evolve to cope with the rising temperature of our planet? [closed]
I am a complete layman of this field(Biology).I went through an article about global temperature rise and i wanted to ask this question.
Federal science agencies announced Wednesday that 2016 was ...
0
votes
1answer
43 views
How much generation of hamster's family it takes to get first bad mutations [closed]
So if I have two humsters and they start to reproduce themselfs then how much generations of hamster's family it takes to get first bad mutations?
The info here does not help to find answer https://...
-1
votes
1answer
46 views
Neutral genetic mutations in eukaryotic cells [closed]
Why are most mutations in eukaryotic cells neutral? i.e. have no effect on the phenotype.
1
vote
1answer
45 views
Why are not both alleles knocked out at the same time in knock out mouse?
I was reading this little 'article' about homologous recombination and knockout mouse. According to this article you first remove embryonic stem cells from a gray-fur blastocyst, then insert the ...
4
votes
2answers
186 views
What is the difference between silent and synonymous mutations?
Several sources all caution that silent mutations and synonymous substitutions are not the same thing and should not be confused. But they seem to draw different actual distinctions between the terms:
...
1
vote
2answers
45 views
Insertion of an additional base at start codon make the protein still functional?
So the question is if:
a deletion of a codon for the amino acid lysine (AAG) is more or less likely to cause nonfunctionality of the protein than:
Insertion of an additional base (C) within the ...
0
votes
0answers
9 views
Pompe Disease/ GSD II karyotype
Does anyone know of a karyotype of the DNA of someone with Pompe Disease? It would appear because of the rarity of Pompe Disease that there aren't any/very many karyotypes of a person with it although ...
0
votes
0answers
11 views
Mutation on Plants - SSLP Mapping
If you are inspecting a mutation on a plant, how to calculate the number of sample plants you would need to determine what BAC in the plant has the mutation?
7
votes
4answers
91 views
Why does DNA mutate?
I just read that pregnancy in space would be super dangerous because - among other reasons - of a higher risk of mutations due to radiation. This made me wonder: why does the DNA in organisms mutate? ...
1
vote
1answer
192 views
How many possible human genotypes are there that produce distinct phenotypes?
This and this Quora question ask how many unique human genotypes are possible. The answers take the combinatorial approach of raising the 4 possible base pairs to a power which is some appreciable ...
0
votes
2answers
130 views
DNA replication during Mitosis
I am a bit confused.
During Meiosis, DNA is replicated to form a cell with half the DNA and likely to have variations.
But since the replication process of meiosis and mitosis are the same, why do DNA ...
0
votes
1answer
54 views
Are mutations the cause of alleles?
For example, some leopards have a mutation which causes black fur. So Black fur and normal fur colour (orange-white) are both alternate forms of the same gene, right? So does that mean that mutations ...
0
votes
2answers
40 views
Mutations in organisms
I was researching mutations and came across an interesting question:
Do mutations occur in the DNA or mRNA of an organism? Is this more opinion that science?
Thanks in advance!
0
votes
0answers
66 views
Is the elephant trunk the result of only one gene?
Recently in Argentina a mutation gave birth to an animal that is a pig but somehow resembles an elephant for its trunk. They called it "chanchofante" (something like pigphant) . Some other recent ...
1
vote
1answer
27 views
How is single nucleotide polymorphism denoted?
Currently I'm studying an article on TERT promoter mutations in human melanoma and find myself unfamiliar with included denotations,I would appreciate it if someone could explain to me what C228T in ...
0
votes
0answers
141 views
What mutations in the DNA replication machinery would decrease the length of Okazaki fragments?
I just started learning about DNA replication and came across an interesting thought. I know that Okazaki fragments are about 100-200 nucleotides long for eukaryotes, yet if a cell was mutated, is ...
3
votes
2answers
528 views
Why are tumor suppressor genes recessive?
In my Intro. to Biochemistry course, we have been studying cancer. The professor has pointed out that tumor suppressor genes are "recessive" while proto-oncogenes are "dominant". Since only one ...
2
votes
1answer
251 views
What is the opposite of a mutation (the regular state)?
What is the term, if there is one, to describe the natural state of a gene? The one single word to describe it, just like mutation is the one single word do describe a deviation from that state.
4
votes
2answers
105 views
Can mutation rate be selected for?
Can the mutability of DNA be selected for in a population? I don’t mean selection for the phenotype that is the result of a mutation. Rather, can the rate of mutations in a population be increased by ...
1
vote
3answers
46 views
How come our thyroid glands don't suffer awful mutations (or do they)?
I was listening to a lecture by my Biology professor and he said that the thyroid gland contains radioactive Iodine which can break down and create reactive Oxygen species (because ionizing radiation ...
0
votes
0answers
22 views
Drosophila experiment - Fru gene
I am trying to understand how alternative splicing affects the sex of Drosophila, and I am questioning this figure.
Does anyone know what the last gene is telling us in the figure? I understand that ...
5
votes
3answers
565 views
Are the changes required to produce genetically manipulated organisms (GMOS) considered to be mutations
By definition, are mutations required to be natural, or are synthetic lab-induced genetic changes considered mutations too? Furthermore, are genetically manipulated organisms (GMOs) considered forced ...
2
votes
1answer
66 views
What is functional dissection?
Reading [1] I found the sentence:
Consistently, functional dissection of mouse and human wild-type and mutant RAS isogenic leukemia cells demonstrated induction of methotrexate resistance but also ...
0
votes
1answer
35 views
Importance of germline and somatic genomic mutations to the purpose of treatment in cancer
Is there a hierarchy in the sets of genomic mutations (somatic and germline) to the purpose of treatment in cancer?
Can they be considered at the same level in the context of targeted therapy or are ...
5
votes
2answers
610 views
Are mutations random?
The following claim
Mutations are random
or just the use of the expression
Random mutations
are very common among lay people.
The claim is very common among lay people. The claim is often ...
2
votes
2answers
219 views
How can just random mutations explain mimicry? [closed]
I have been reading this article on drug resistance which explained that how random mutations in a bacterial colony can lead to development of drug resistance among some organisms in that colony.
A ...
2
votes
1answer
633 views
Why does chromosome inversion happen?
I read that chromosome inversion is a type of genetic mutation.
Why does inversion happen? What is the purpose?
I also read that if genes do not match up during cross over between inverted ...
3
votes
1answer
225 views
How does hibernation reduce risk of radiation-induced mutation?
A recent documentary (skip to 58:20) discusses the possibility that hibernation, if it could be induced in extrasolar astronauts, would reduce damage from cosmic radiation. The obvious reason this ...
0
votes
1answer
40 views
What hold and inject pressure to be used in microinjection?
I am planning to set up micro-injection apparatus in our lab. Normally what hold and inject pressures are used to inject DNA in fly embryo? I couldn't find in any literature as far as I've come across....
7
votes
1answer
153 views
Do organisms have a mechanism to control how fast mutations occur?
Sometimes the environment and other species can change rapidly (climate changes, changes in terrains from erosion, new river paths, etc), and it seems like a regular slow mutation rate would be bad, ...
4
votes
1answer
133 views
How much variation in mutation rate in there in the human genome?
In humans, the average mutation rate is estimated to be around $2.5 \cdot 10^{-8}$ (Nachman and Crowell, 2000). Of course this mutation varies from sequence to sequence.
Can you please give some ...
0
votes
1answer
20 views
Estimation of cases with dominant inheritance
I am reading [1] and I didn't understand this passage:
All bilateral cases should be counted as hereditary because the proportion of affected offspring closely approximates the 50% expected with ...
4
votes
1answer
401 views
Effect of mutation on phenotype
Is there a type of mutation that changes the phenotype of an organism, but not the protein sequence?
4
votes
2answers
41 views
Mutated cell proliferation
Reading Jennifer Doudna's fascinating book on CRISPR. So she describes rare cases where a mutation in a single cell removes the gene responsible for a genetic disease. The cell proliferates and the ...
1
vote
0answers
20 views
How to interpret figure on somatic mutation frequencies
In paper Mutational heterogeneity in cancer and the search for new cancer-associated genes, Figure 1 defines:
Somatic mutation frequencies observed in exomes from 3,083 tumour–normal pairs. Each ...
2
votes
0answers
22 views
Do exon deletions in C.elegans mutants necessarily result in nonsense mediated decay of the transcript?
I am trying to write out my research proposal about a project in C.elegans. There are multiple mutants of the factor that I want to study, each with different mutations. I know that a mutation that ...
1
vote
1answer
35 views
HAR1 speedy mutation
From wiki:
Human accelerated region 1 (HAR1) is a segment of the human genome found on the long arm of chromosome 20. It is a Human accelerated region. [..] These 49 regions represent parts of the ...
0
votes
1answer
39 views
Can we measure the rate of mutation in (say) E. coli without gel electrophoresis or genome sequencing? [closed]
If so, how? And, what are the pros and cons?
18
votes
1answer
1k views
How do we explain the white feathers of an albino peacock?
Peacock feathers are supposed to produce colours by surface structures modulating the light (in addition to the usual absorption/reflection mechanism)... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
4
votes
2answers
285 views
Are mutations accumulating far faster than selected out?
I just want to see the mutation accumulation rate in human populations. Versus the rate at which mutations are selected out. Just wanted to check if the genome is deteriorating
1
vote
1answer
87 views
How long ago did the mutation arise that gives rise to sickle-cell disease?
Is it known how long ago the mutation arose in Africa that gives rise to sickle-cell disease and protects from Malaria in heterozygote carriers?
1
vote
0answers
18 views
College Genetics: Xist vs. transposon
I'm taking introduction to genetics and I'm trying to understand the following question: Lets say there is a male cat with blue ears, a single gene mutation called BLU.
We try to obtain pure bred ...
