What is a karyotype?
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A chart of chromosome cutouts arranged from largest to smallest, used to identify abnormalities in chromosome number and structure.
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What is a karyotype?
A chart of chromosome cutouts arranged from largest to smallest, used to identify abnormalities in chromosome number and structure.
What is the size comparison between the wheat genome and the human genome?
The wheat genome is roughly five times the size of the human genome.
How is the short arm of a chromosome denoted?
The short arm is denoted by the letter p.
How is the long arm of a chromosome denoted?
The long arm is denoted by the letter q.
What is the purpose of staining chromosomes during cytological analysis?
To recognize each of the duplicated chromosomes by its size, shape, and banding pattern.
What is the chromocenter in Drosophila polytene chromosomes?
A body where all the centromeres congeal, with chromosome arms emanating out of it.
What is the significance of cytogenetics in medicine?
It is used to determine whether disease conditions are associated with chromosome abnormalities.
What dyes were traditionally used to stain chromosome spreads before the late 1960s and early 1970s?
Feulgen’s reagent and aceto-carmine.
What is Giemsa stain and how is it used in chromosome staining?
Giemsa stain is a mixture of dyes used to stain chromosomes after they are treated with trypsin. It interacts with the remaining proteins on the chromosomes to produce a reproducible pattern of bands.
What is the result of fertilization involving diploid gametes?
Tetraploid zygotes, which survive because each parental set of chromosomes is balanced.
What are the advantages of the triple-hybrid wheat over its ancestors?
Larger grains, easier to harvest, and ability to grow in a wider range of conditions.
What are allopolyploids?
Polyploids created by hybridization between different species, where the contributing genomes are qualitatively different.
What is an ideogram?
An ideogram is the pattern of bands within a chromosome.
What is polyploidy?
Polyploidy is the condition of having extra sets of chromosomes.
What is the significance of chromosome doubling in hybrids for tetraploid formation?
It allows meiosis to proceed in good order, enabling the production of euploid gametes.
Why do trisomic plants almost always inherit their extra chromosome from the female parent?
Because aneuploid pollen does not compete well with euploid pollen during pollen tube growth.
Under what condition might polyploids produced by chromosome doubling in interspecific hybrids be fertile?
If their constituent genomes segregate independently.
What is a univalent in the context of polyploidy?
A univalent is a solitary chromosome that is left without a partner during meiosis in a polyploid organism.
How many varieties of wheat have been developed?
More than 17,000 varieties.
How many chromosomes do diploid human cells contain?
46 chromosomes—44 autosomes and two sex chromosomes (XX in females and XY in males).
What is a trivalent in the context of polyploidy?
A trivalent is a formation where all three homologous chromosomes synapse, each partially paired with the others.
What is the size comparison between the X and Y chromosomes?
The X chromosome is intermediate in size, and the Y chromosome is about the same size as chromosome 22.
In which phase of the cell cycle are the polytene chromosomes of Drosophila trapped?
Interphase.
Why are polyploids arising from hybridizations between different species more likely to be fertile?
Because chromosomes from different species are less likely to interfere with each other’s segregation during meiosis.
Who published detailed drawings of polytene chromosomes in the 1930s?
C. B. Bridges.
How does immersion in a hypotonic solution aid in cytological analysis?
It causes cells to swell, diluting their contents and spreading out the chromosomes for easier analysis.
Why is the bright-dark banding pattern produced by Quinacrine significant?
It is highly reproducible and specific for each chromosome, allowing cytogeneticists to identify particular chromosomes and determine if a chromosome is structurally abnormal.
How many chromosomes are present in the gametes and somatic cells of modern bread wheat?
21 chromosomes in the gametes and 42 in the somatic cells.
What is the chromosomal basis for the improvements in triple-hybrid wheat?
Triple-hybrid wheat contains the chromosomes of each of its progenitors, making it an amalgamation of the genomes of three different species.
What are autopolyploids?
Polyploids created by chromosome duplication within a single species, where a single genome has been multiplied to create extra chromosome sets.
What is apomixis?
A mechanism of asexual reproduction involving a modified meiosis that produces unreduced eggs, which then form seeds.
Why are polytene chromosomes ideal for cytogenetic analysis?
Because they undergo successive rounds of chromosome replication without cell division, producing large chromosomes.
What happens during meiosis in a triploid organism?
Two of the three homologues synapse, leaving a univalent free to move to either pole during anaphase, or all three homologues synapse forming a trivalent.
What are polyploids and why are many of them sterile?
Polyploids contain extra sets of chromosomes and are often sterile because their multiple sets of chromosomes segregate irregularly in meiosis.
What is the proportion of grasses that are polyploids?
About two-thirds of all grasses are polyploids.
Where did the cultivation of wheat originate?
In the Middle East, around 10,000 years ago.
What percentage of the food calories consumed by the human population is accounted for by wheat?
More than 20 percent.
What occurs during polyploidization without the separation of sister chromatids?
Duplicated chromosomes pile up next to each other, forming a bundle of strands aligned in parallel, resulting in polytene chromosomes.
How many rounds of replication do Drosophila polytene chromosomes undergo?
About nine rounds of replication, producing approximately 500 copies in each cell.
What does the bright green fluorescent dye target in chromosome painting?
DNA in only a few pairs of chromosomes.
How many bands can cytogeneticists identify in the entire human karyotype using high-resolution Giemsa staining?
About 850 bands.
How did the development of microscopes and staining procedures impact cytogenetics?
It led to significant advancements in the study of chromosome number and structure.
Why are cells in the middle of mitosis often used for cytological analyses?
Because chromosomes are most easily seen during this stage.
How has the development of cell-culturing techniques expanded cytological studies?
It has made it possible to study chromosomes in other types of cells, such as human white blood cells.
What proportion of known plant genera contain polyploid species?
One-half of all known plant genera contain polyploid species.
What are some examples of polyploid ornamental garden plants?
Roses, chrysanthemums, and tulips.
What is chromosome painting and how does it work?
Chromosome painting involves treating chromosome spreads with fluorescently labeled DNA fragments (probes) that bind to complementary DNA sequences in the chromosomes, creating colorful images that reveal the location of specific DNA sequences.
What is the scientific name of modern cultivated wheat?
Triticum aestivum.
How were chromosomes classified before banding and painting techniques?
Chromosomes were arranged into groups according to size, with the largest classified as group A, the next largest as group B, and so forth.
Why are most triploid species completely sterile?
Because zygotes formed by fertilization with aneuploid gametes are almost certain to die.
How is sterility in triploid species circumvented in agriculture and horticulture?
By propagating the species asexually through methods like cuttings, grafts, and bulbs.
What is the main activity of the discipline called cytogenetics?
The analysis of stained chromosomes.
What did Albert Blakeslee and John Belling discover about aneuploidy in Jimson weed?
They found that altered phenotypes were caused by dominant factors transmitted primarily through the female, and each mutant strain had an extra chromosome.
What is aneuploidy?
Aneuploidy is a numerical change in part of the genome, usually just a single chromosome.
What was the incorrect number of human chromosomes thought to be before the swelling technique was used?
48 chromosomes.
What is one general effect of polyploidy on cell size?
Polyploidy generally increases cell size.
Why are polyploid plants significant for humans?
Polyploid plants tend to produce larger seeds and fruits, providing greater yields in agriculture.
What is the limitation of traditional chromosome staining techniques?
They do not allow a researcher to distinguish one chromosome from another unless the chromosomes are very different in size or in the positions of their centromeres.
What is the role of a probe in chromosome painting?
A probe is a fluorescently labeled DNA fragment that binds to complementary DNA sequences in the chromosomes, labeling them with the fluorescent dye and revealing specific DNA sequences.
From which regions did the progenitors of modern wheat originate?
Syria, Iran, Iraq, and Turkey.
What is the smallest autosome in the human karyotype?
Chromosome 21.
What system did Bridges create to describe the features of polytene chromosomes?
An alphanumeric directory of sites along the length of each chromosome.
How do fertile tetraploids arise?
By chromosome duplication in a hybrid produced by crossing two different but related diploid species.
What is the term for organisms with complete, or normal, sets of chromosomes?
Euploid.
What is a trisomy?
A condition where an organism has an extra chromosome, resulting in three copies of that chromosome.
What is polyploidy?
The presence of extra chromosome sets.
Name some polyploid crop plants.
Wheat, coffee, potatoes, bananas, strawberries, and cotton.
What is the annual total wheat production worldwide?
700 million metric tons.
How has modern bread wheat, Triticum aestivum, evolved?
Through two hybridization events followed by chromosome doubling, resulting in a hexaploid with three different chromosome sets.
What are polytene chromosomes and where are they most spectacularly found?
Polytene chromosomes are bundles of aligned chromatin fibers, most spectacularly found in the salivary glands of Drosophila larvae.
What causes the variation in the density of chromatin in polytene chromosomes?
Differential coiling along the length of the bundle causes variation in the density of the chromatin.
What happens when dyes are applied to polytene chromosomes?
The denser chromatin stains more deeply, creating a pattern of dark and light bands.
How can polyploid cells arise in plants?
Through mitosis without cytokinesis or altered meiosis producing unreduced gametes.
Why are some tetraploids able to produce many viable progeny?
Because they contain two distinct sets of chromosomes, each duplicated, allowing regular meiosis.
What types of cells are traditionally used for cytological analyses?
Rapidly growing material such as animal embryos and plant root tips.
What is the correct number of human chromosomes?
46 chromosomes.
How does polyploidy affect the overall size of an organism?
Polyploid species tend to be larger and more robust than their diploid counterparts.
How many people rely on wheat as their principal food crop today?
More than a billion people.
What is the largest autosome in the human karyotype?
Chromosome 1.
What does the centromere divide each chromosome into?
The centromere divides each chromosome into long and short arms.
What does the pink fluorescent dye target in chromosome painting?
The centromeres of each of the chromosomes.
What is the significance of the banding pattern in polytene chromosomes?
The banding pattern is highly reproducible, permitting detailed analysis of chromosome structure.
Who were the pioneers of cytogenetics?
Nineteenth-century European biologists who discovered chromosomes and observed their behavior during mitosis, meiosis, and fertilization.
What is the difference between euchromatin and heterochromatin in polytene chromosomes?
Euchromatin contains most of the genes and forms banded chromosome arms, while heterochromatin is gene-poor, surrounds the centromere, and does not become polytene.
What are chromosome rearrangements?
Chromosome rearrangements are structural changes in chromosomes, such as a piece of one chromosome being fused to another or a segment within a chromosome being inverted.
What is the purpose of treating dividing cells with a chemical that disables the mitotic spindle?
To trap the chromosomes in mitosis, making them easier to see.
Why is polyploidy rare in animals?
Polyploidy is rare in animals because it interferes with the sex-determination mechanism.
What happens to zygotes formed from aneuploid gametes in polyploid species?
The resulting zygotes almost always die, leading to reduced fertility in polyploid species.
What is Quinacrine and how does it work in chromosome staining?
Quinacrine is a chemical relative of the antimalarial drug quinine. It stains chromosomes to show a characteristic pattern of bright bands on a darker background when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light.
What technique is used to uniquely identify each pair of human chromosomes?
Chromosome painting with probes made from human DNA fragments labeled with different fluorescent dyes.
What techniques have made it possible to distinguish each human chromosome?
Banding and painting techniques.
What is the result of chromosome separation during anaphase in triploid species?
It yields aneuploid cells.
What is endomitosis?
A process that produces polyploid cells by chromosome duplication followed by separation of sister chromatids without cell division, resulting in extra chromosome sets within a single nucleus.
What happens to homologous polytene chromosomes in Drosophila?
They pair precisely, point-for-point along their length, making the banding patterns of each perfectly aligned.
What is aneuploidy?
A numerical change in part of the genome, usually a change in the dosage of a single chromosome.
What is the difference between hypoploid and hyperploid organisms?
Hypoploid organisms have an underrepresented chromosome or chromosome segment, while hyperploid organisms have an overrepresented chromosome or chromosome segment.
How common is polyploidy in plants compared to animals?
Polyploidy is very common in plants but very rare in animals.
Why are some polyploid species sterile?
Extra sets of chromosomes may segregate irregularly in meiosis, leading to unbalanced (aneuploid) gametes.