Genetics: Gene Expression

MCAT Basics (from MedSchoolCoach)

MedSchoolCoach

Science

4.6 • 612 Ratings

🗓️ 19 November 2024

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, we explore key topics in genetics, including how sex-linked and autosomal traits are inherited. We'll break down inheritance patterns using real-world examples, like X-linked recessive diseases, and walk through Punnett square problems to show how these traits are passed down.

We also cover the regulation of gene expression, focusing on epigenetic changes such as DNA methylation and how genetic imprinting impacts which genes are expressed. You'll gain insight into transcriptional and post-transcriptional control mechanisms in prokaryotes and eukaryotes, along with the processes of DNA repair that maintain genetic stability.

Finally, we discuss important genetic lab techniques, such as PCR, blotting methods, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), and how they are used in gene analysis and diagnostics.

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Jump into the conversation:

(00:00) Intro

(01:49) Inheritance patterns

(04:47) Solving X-linked inheritance problems using color blindness

(06:37) Overview of autosomal dominant and recessive traits

(08:08) Monohybrid and dihybrid crosses

(10:40) How epigenetic changes affect gene expression

(18:46) Transcriptional and translational control in prokaryotic operons

(23:03) Enhancers, silencers, and chromatin remodeling

(27:23) Post-transcriptional modifications

(31:52) DNA repair mechanisms

(40:14) Polymerase Chain Reaction

(44:06) What different blotting techniques are used for

(49:28) The FISH technique

(52:01) MCAT Advice of the Day

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to MCAT Basics, your ultimate guide to the essential topics you need to master for the MCAT,
0:07.0	brought to you by the physicians at Med School Coach.
0:10.0	Every week, Sam Smith breaks down high-yield MCAT topics, ensuring you're primed for success on test day.
0:17.0	Join Sam as we explore the most crucial subjects outlined by the AAMC, pulled from official practice materials and third-party resources.
0:24.7	Get ready to elevate your MCAT game with topics tailored to maximize your score potential.
0:29.7	Hello, I'm Sam Smith.
0:32.6	This podcast is going to cover three main topics.
0:35.7	The first of that is going to be different inheritance patterns that you'll see in the MCAT. The second is going to cover three main topics. The first of that is going to be different inheritance
0:38.7	patterns that you'll see in the MCAT. The second is going to be gene expression, which
0:42.4	is a pretty high yield topic on the MCAT. And then the third is going to be different genetic
0:49.1	laboratory techniques. So I'm going to talk about fish. I'm going to talk about the different
0:53.9	blotting techniques. I'll talk about PCR and a few different forms of PCR that you may not be
0:59.3	familiar with, things like QPCR or real-time PCR. And yeah, so I hope this all helps and
1:07.6	you get some good out of it.
1:19.6	So as I said, I want to get started with inheritance patterns. The first I'm going to talk about are sex-linked traits.
1:22.6	In some cases, a gene is present on the X chromosome. And so when the gene is present on the X chromosome, its inheritance pattern is going to be a little different than when it's inherited, when it's an autosomal trait.
1:37.9	So I'll go through those next.
1:39.5	These X-linked genes or X-linked traits are different than autosomal traits because these genes are present in different copy numbers in males versus females.
1:50.0	Males have one X chromosome and females have two X chromosomes.
1:56.0	And so genes on the X chromosome can either be recessive or dominant.
2:01.6	And when a gene is recessive on the X chromosome, it means that females need two copies
2:10.6	of this recessive allele, i.e., there are two X chromosomes, both must carry this recessive
	...

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