Do you agree with the practice of engineering transgenic animals to be models of human disease? Why or why not?
What will be an ideal response?
Students may propose issues related to animal welfare.
Background:
Genomics has revealed that many human genes have identical counterparts in other organisms, including the mouse and even the fruit fly, Drosophila. More than 90% of the genes known to be involved in human diseases are also present in the mouse. This makes the mouse an excellent model to explore the genetic, biochemical, and cellular aspects of human diseases. Mouse models of inherited human diseases have been created by transferring mutant human disease alleles into mice and using the resulting
transgenic
mice to achieve several goals: (1) to produce an animal with symptoms that mirror those in humans, (2) to use the model to study the early stages of development and progress of diseases, and (3) to test drugs to treat symptoms or, hopefully, cure the diseases.
For example, HD mice are used to study the progressive destruction of brain structures that occurs in the earliest stages of the disease process—something that is impossible to do in humans. In addition, HD mice are used to link specific changes in brain structure with behavioral changes.
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Control of gene expression
_____ allows bacteria to adapt to changing environments. _____ is critical for development in multicellular organisms. _____ allows bacteria to replicate without control. _____ allows multicellular organisms to maintain homeostasis. _____ it stops multicellular organisms functioning as a whole.
Learned behavior is recognizable by the __________
the animal makes in its responses. a. fixed action patterns b. modifications c. stereotyping d. repetitions e. false starts
Following peptide bond formation between the amino acid in the A site on the ribosome and the
growing polypeptide chain, the tRNA in the A site:a. releases the growing polypeptide chain. b. picks up another amino acid to add to the chain. c. moves to the P site of the ribosome. d. forms a peptide bond with A site of the ribosome. e. forms a covalent bond with the P site of the ribosome
Some animals are facing extinction as a direct result of deliberate efforts to exterminate them because of their
perceived harm to economically useful species. Examples of these include:a. cheetahs and rhinos. b. passenger pigeons and cheetahs. c. prairie dogs and rhinos. d. rhinos and macaws. e. mountain lions and wolves.