Week 3 Reading Assignment

Chapter 2 and 3 of Endless Forms

Reading Guide, answer at least some of the question below.  Please write about 1/2 to 1 page of answers or, if you choose, a 1/2-1 page reflection on the readings.

1. What is a morphogen?  Give examples
2. What is a homeotic change?
3. What is polydactyly?  Is it a homeotic change?
4. How does the lac-z operon help explain cell-type differentiation?
5. What is the central dogma of molecular biology? At which step is the lac-z operon regulated?
6. What are the two features of gene logic in bacteria?
7. What is a homeobox and how does it relate to homeotic transformations?
8. Homeoboxes are incredibly conserved between disparate animal species, what kind of selection is this?
9. What is a conserved function of Pax-6 genes?
10. What does the Distalless gene do in general?
11. What does the tinman gene do in general?

Discussion, we will discuss these in class.  Be prepared to answer at least 4.

1. What experiments showed that the "dorsal lip of the blastopore" acts as an organizer tissue?
2. What are the general properties of an organizer?
3. Freaks discussed the importance of environment and plasticity in Chapters 1 and 2, how does Endless Forms' discussion of hopeful monsters contrast with this?
4. In homeotic fly mutants, the antennae/wing look fairly normal - why is it that we recognize them as normal structures in the wrong place?
5. How do cells get differentiated and why is it important?
6. Explain the lac-z operon using the terms "cis" and "trans"
7. What did Monod mean when he said "What is true for E. coli is also true for the elephant."?
8. What are some similarities between building a fruit fly and building a human?
9. What is similar between Tinman, Pax6, Dll, and Hox genes?
10. What is the "genetic toolkit" and what are it's implications for evolution?