Genetics

Cloning

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  • DNA fragments can be inserted into other DNA molecules using DNA ligase and then replicated in vectors

    • Bacterial plasmids: circular dsDNA molecules that replicate extra-chromosomally in bacteria or yeasts

    • Bacteriophages: bacterial virus that replicates during growth in E.coli
    • Cosmids: plasmids that use bacteriophage particles to process and introduce large DNA fragments

  • Probes are cloned DNA or RNA molecules/fragments used to detect homologous sequences in nucleic acids

    • Can be labelled with a radioactive trace to aid detection
    • Nucleic acid hybridisation can be used to find specific fragments by combining nucleic acids with a specific probe which will only hybridise its complementary strand

  • Steps
    • Restriction endonucleases cleave human DNA sections
    • DNA ligase incorporates the human DNA into a vector
    • The vector facilitates the transfer of human DNA into bacteria
    • The bacteria replicate the DNA segment

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Genomic Imprinting