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Chapter 18: Problem 3

Carefully distinguish between the terms differentiation and determination. Which phenomenon occurs initially during development?

Short Answer

Expert verified
Answer: Determination occurs initially during development, as cells must first become committed to a specific role in the organism before they undergo the changes necessary to specialize in structure and function.

Step by step solution

01

Definition of Differentiation

Differentiation is the process by which cells become specialized in structure and function. During differentiation, cells undergo changes in gene expression and acquire specific characteristics allowing them to perform specialized functions in the organism.
02

Definition of Determination

Determination is the process by which a cell's developmental fate is committed, meaning that its role in the organism has been predetermined. During determination, cells receive specific signals or cues that lead to changes in gene expression, which will eventually result in the process of differentiation.
03

Identifying the Initial Phenomenon

Determination is the phenomenon that occurs initially during development. This is because cells must first become committed to a particular role in the organism (determination) before they can undergo the changes necessary to specialize in their structure and function (differentiation).

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Much of what we know about gene interactions in development has been learned using nematodes, yeast, flies, and bacteria. This is due, in part, to the relative ease of genetic manipulation of these well-characterized genomes. However, of great interest are gene interactions involving complex diseases in humans. Wang and White (2011. Nature Methods 8(4) \(341-346\) ) describe work using RNAi to examine the interactive proteome in mammalian cells. They mention that knockdown inefficiencies and off-target effects of introduced RNAi species are areas that need particular improvement if the methodology is to be fruitful. (a) How might one use RNAi to study developmental pathways? (b) Comment on how "knockdown inefficiencies" and "off-tar-get effects" would influence the interpretation of results.

The identification and characterization of genes that control sex determination has been a focus of investigators working with \(C .\) elegans. As with Drosophila, sex in this organism is determined by the ratio of \(X\) chromosomes to sets of autosomes. A diploid wild-type male has one \(X\) chromosome and a diploid wild-type hermaphrodite has two X chromosomes. Many different mutations have been identified that affect sex determination. Loss- of-function mutations in a gene called her-1 cause an XO nematode to develop into a hermaphrodite and have no effect on \(\mathrm{XX}\) development. (That is, \(\mathrm{XX}\) nematodes are normal hermaphrodites.) In contrast, loss- offunction mutations in a gene called tra-I cause an XX nematode to develop into a male. Deduce the roles of these genes in wild-type sex determination from this information.

How can you determine whether a particular gene is being transcribed in different cell types?

(a) What are zygotic genes, and when are their gene products made? (b) What is the phenotype associated with zygotic gene mutations? (c) Does the maternal genotype contain zygotic genes?

In Arabidopsis, flower development is controlled by sets of homeotic genes. How many classes of these genes are there, and what structures are formed by their individual and combined expression?
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