Lesson 4 - Molecular Biology of Inheritance

Introduction
 
"During the first half of the 20th Century, investigators established that DNA is the genetic material, and also discovered the structure of DNA. The structure of DNA explains how it can store genetic information, replicate, and undergo mutations as required by the genetic material."
 
Getting Started "One of the most exciting periods of scientific activity occurred during the 30 short years between the 1930s and the 1960s. Due to several elegantly executed experiments, by the mid-1950s researchers realized that DNA, not protein, is the genetic material."


Focus on Learning
 
Use the course competencies listed below to focus your learning and use the lesson objectives to sharpen that focus.
 
Competencies By the end of the lesson , you should be able to:

  1. Describe and analyze the processes involved in the biochemistry of DNA and other biochemicals of genetics (including protein synthesis).
  2. Analyze the events and processes involved in inheritance.
  3. Describe and analyze the processes that result in mutations.
 
Objectives

To master the competencies, you should seek to understand how:

  1. DNA is the genetic material.
  2. DNA can be duplicated.
  3. Genes specify the makeup of proteins.
  4. Mutations are changes in the sequence of DNA bases.


Reading Assignments
 
Reading Assignment Reading is a very important component of an internet course. Read the assigned pages from your textbook before proceeding to the Activities, Study Help, and Assessment Sections.
 
Textbook Read the Assignment in Mader Concepts of Biology Textbook:
Molecular Biology of Inheritance: Chapter 10


Activities
 
Complete the Animation Activities. Feel free to open your book and notes as you work on them. The information in these activities is very helpful when completing the Animation Quiz that follows.
 
Animations
Complete the Animation Activities by Clicking the Links Below:
Animation Activity 1 - DNA Structure
Animation Activity 2 - Gene Expression
Animation Activity 3 - Mutations
Animation Activity 4 - Transposons
 
Complete the Virtual Lab Activity. Feel free to open your books and notes as you work on it. Complete the activity by reading the instructions, performing the lab exercise, downloading the post lab quiz and report and filling it out. Be sure to complete and print out the data table embedded in each lab exercise. The information in this lab activity is very helpful when completing the Virtual Lab Quiz and Worksheet that follow.
 
Virtual Lab
Complete the Virtual Lab Activity by Clicking the Link Below:
Virtual Lab Activity: Knocking out Genes


Study Help

 
It's time to review and practice what you have learned from your reading and instruction activities. Slide presentations, Chapter Outlines, Flashcards, and Student Learning Outcomes are provided to help you study. Feel free to open your book and notes as you use them.
 
Slide Presentation
Log-in to BlackBoard, navigate to the Textbook Reading Folder, click into the Reading Review Slide Presentation Folder, and click the Slide Presentation Link:
Slide Presentation - Chapter 10 Mader Web Presentation
 
Practice Quiz
Log-in to BlackBoard, navigate to the Textbook Reading Folder, and click the Reading Practice Quiz Link:
Reading Practice Quiz - Chapter 10


Assessing Your Learning

 
It's time to assess what you have learned from your reading and instruction activities. The following reading, animation, virtual lab, and essay quizzes are graded assignments. Feel free to open your book and notes as you work on them. Be sure to submit your work as you complete it. Good luck!
 
Reading Quiz
Log-in to BlackBoard, navigate to the Textbook Reading Folder, and click the Reading Quiz Link:
Reading Quiz - Chapter 10
 
Animation Quiz
Log-in to BlackBoard, navigate to the Animations Folder, and click the Animation Quiz Link:
Animation Quiz - 4
 
Virtual Lab Quiz
Log-in to BlackBoard, navigate to the Virtual Lab Folder, and click on Virtual Lab Quiz Links:
Virtual Lab Quiz and Worksheet - 4
 
Essay Quiz
Log-in to BlackBoard, navigate to the Essay Quiz Folder, and click on the Essay Link:
Essay Quiz - 4



Related Web Sites

 
Here is a website that I like. Click the icon to pursue this topic on the internet:

Have You Met The Objectives For This Lesson?