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Chapter 12: Problem 14

An alanine residue exists at position 180 of a certain plant protein. If the codon specifying alanine is GCU, how many singlebase substitutions will result in an amino acid substitution at position \(180,\) and what are they?

Short Answer

Expert verified
Answer: There are 5 single base substitutions that will result in an amino acid substitution at position 180. The resulting amino acids are Aspartic acid, Glutamic acid, Glycine, and Valine.

Step by step solution

01

Identify the codon and its constituent bases

The given codon for alanine is GCU, which consists of three bases: Guanine (G), Cytosine (C), and Uracil (U).
02

Determine possible single base substitutions

For each base in the codon, there are three possible substitutions as there are four nucleotide bases (A, U, C, and G) in total. We will list down the possible substitutions for each base in the GCU codon: - First base (G): GAU, GAA, GGU - Second base (C): GAU, GUU, GCA - Third base (U): GCA, GCC, GCG, GCU
03

Identify which substitutions result in amino acid changes

Now, we will identify which of these codons code for a different amino acid than alanine. To determine this, we can refer to the genetic code table: - First base (G): GAU (Aspartic acid), GAA (Glutamic acid), GGU (Glycine) - Second base (C): GAU (Aspartic acid), GUU (Valine), GCA (Alanine - not a substitution) - Third base (U): GCA (Alanine - not a substitution), GCC (Alanine - not a substitution), GCG (Alanine - not a substitution)
04

Count the base substitutions and list the resulting amino acids

There are a total of 5 single base substitutions that result in an amino acid substitution at position 180, and they are: 1. GAU (Aspartic acid) 2. GAA (Glutamic acid) 3. GGU (Glycine) 4. GAU (Aspartic acid) 5. GUU (Valine) Therefore, 5 single base substitutions will result in an amino acid substitution at position 180, and the resulting amino acids are Aspartic acid, Glutamic acid, Glycine, and Valine.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Review the Chapter Concepts list on p. 231. These all center on how genetic information is stored in DNA and transferred to RNA prior to translation into proteins. Write a short essay that summarizes the key properties of the genetic code and the process by which RNA is transcribed on a DNA.

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"Breaking the genetic code" has been referred to as one of the most significant scientific achievements in modern times. Describe (in outline or brief statement form) the procedures used to break the code.

When the amino acid sequences of insulin isolated from different organisms were determined, some differences were noted. For example, alanine was substituted for threonine, serine was substituted for glycine, and valine was substituted for isoleucine at corresponding positions in the protein. List the single-base changes that could occur in triplets to produce these amino acid changes.
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