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Many techniques in molecular biology require the use of probes - VCE - SSCE Biology - Question 7 - 2009 - Paper 1
Question 7
Many techniques in molecular biology require the use of probes. **a. What is a probe?** DNA microarray technology, also known as DNA chip technology, allows screen... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Many techniques in molecular biology require the use of probes - VCE - SSCE Biology - Question 7 - 2009 - Paper 1
Step 1
What is a probe?
Answer
A probe is a single-stranded segment of DNA that is labeled (often radioactively) and is used to detect specific sequences in samples of DNA. Probes hybridize to complementary sequences, allowing researchers to identify the presence of mutations or specific alleles.
Step 2
Step 1: Treat a normal allele of p53 to break it down into nucleotide sequences.
Answer
The normal allele of the p53 gene is treated to yield single-stranded DNA, which is then broken down into smaller nucleotide sequences. For example, if the normal allele is represented as 'GTCGCGTT', it can be segmented for analysis.
Step 3
Step 2: Each segment must be tested, one nucleotide at a time.
Answer
For testing nucleotide five which originally is 'G', alternative forms can be created (e.g., 'A', 'C', 'T'). Each of these mutated assignments is subjected to testing in separate fields of the microarray to analyze their effects on hybridization efficacy.