MicroSynBio Quiz
Name:
C. Kohn, Agricultural Sciences, Waterford WI
Hour
Date:
Score:
/ 16
1. A genetically modified organism (GMO) is…
a. The science of creating new biological organisms that do not exist naturally in the environment.
b. Any kind of manipulation of the genetics of organisms to make useful products
c. An organism that has been genetically modified through the addition of a small amount of genetic
material from other organisms.
d. An organism found naturally in an environment that was genetically changed by organisms other than
humans
2. Biotechnology is…
a. The science of creating new biological organisms that do not exist naturally in the environment.
b. Any kind of manipulation of the genetics of organisms to make useful products
c. An organism that has been genetically modified through the addition of a small amount of genetic
material from other organisms.
d. An organism found naturally in an environment that was genetically changed by organisms other than
humans
3. Synthetic Biology is…
a. The science of creating new biological organisms that do not exist naturally in the environment.
b. Any kind of manipulation of the genetics of organisms to make useful products
c. An organism that has been genetically modified through the addition of a small amount of genetic
material from other organisms.
d. An organism found naturally in an environment that was genetically changed by organisms other than
humans
4. “Bt” in Bt corn stands for…
a. “Bigger Tassels” b. Bacillus thuringiensis c. Borer-toxic
5. What is Bt corn?
a. A type of corn that produces its own insecticide because of an inserted gene for toxin production
b. A type of corn that is organically produced and cannot be sprayed with insecticides
c. Any kind of corn that is genetically modified
d. Corn that is especially vulnerable to the corn pest, Bacillus thuringiensis
6. How does Bt corn prevent being attacked by insects?
a. It kills all insects that touch it
b. When a specific inset, the corn borer, ingests it, it breaks down its intestinal tract
c. It prevents insects from reproducing
d. It does not prevent insect attacks
7. Which of the following is TRUE about Bt Corn and monarchs
a. While an early strain of Bt corn did initially cause harm to monarchs, this strain is not used anymore and
the impact on monarch butterflies is insignificant
b. Bt corn has been shown to cause significant harm to monarch butterflies
c. Bt corn has never had any impact on monarch butterflies
8. Recombinant DNA is…
a. A kind of genetic material taken from species that do not exist.
b. When the DNA of two different species are combined.
c. The kind of DNA that is found in all bacteria.
d. The kind of DNA that is only found in humans.
9. A “sticky end” is…
a. The kind of DNA needed in order to insert a vector
b. The kind of enzyme needed to cut DNA
c. The cutting of DNA by a restriction enzyme so that a single-stranded portion remains
d. The ultimate demise of ants who fall into honey
Use the cut DNA sequence below to answer the following question
10. A gene inserted into this genome would to begin with what sequence (i.e. what letters do the x’s below have to
be in order for this gene to be inserted into this genome)?
a. TTAA
b. AATT
c. CGAT
d. GCTA
X X X X
11. Which of the following would make the inserted gene a
permanent part of its new genome?
a. DNA Vector
b. Restriction Enzyme
c. DNA Ligase
d. DNA Superglue
12. Which of the following would be an example of Synthetic Biology?
a. The development of specialized bacterial cells through selective conditions
b. The addition of a gene to bacteria for increased competitiveness via recombinant DNA.
c. The creation of an entirely new species from scratch by combining the genes of many species.
d. All of the above
13. Which of the following have been addressed so far using Synthetic Biology?
a. The creation of more effective rumen microbes for cattle
b. The development of microbes that can clean up oil spills
c. The development of more effective vaccines
d. All of the above
14. One of the first major successes with Synthetic Biology was the production of precursor to the compound
artemisinin. What is artemisinin?
a. A drug to fight cancerous tumors
b. A precursor to the plant oils needed to produce biodiesel.
c. A malaria drug
d. A compound that enables the body to produce Vitamin A
15. How was the artemisinin compound produced on large-scale?
a. The tree that produces this compound was selectively bred over years to produce 10,000 times as much
as the wild versions of this species.
b. Genes were taken from yeast and from the sweet wormwood tree and inserted them into E. coli
bacteria, combining the genes of 3 different species.
c. A gene was created completely from scratch in a lab and inserted into a yeast genome.
16. Which of the following is NOT a difficulty associated with Synthetic Biology?
a. The placement of a gene affects its expression; in order for a gene to be expressed correctly, it has to be
placed in the correct spot in a genome.
b. Modified organisms lose their competitiveness as they become more and more modified.
c. There is no standard way to modify an organism and make it competitive and functional outside of a lab.
d. We cannot take the genes from a plant or animal and put it into bacteria; we can only put the genes of
one kind of species into the same kind of species.
Review Concepts:
- Definition of:
1. Genetically Modified Organism (GMO)
2. Biotechnology
3. Recombinant DNA
4. Synthetic Biology
5. DNA Ligase
6. Sticky Ends
7. DNA Vector
- Bt Corn, how it functions, and how it was produced.
- Bt Corn and Monarch Butterflies
- Bt Corn and Human safety
- Issues addressed by Synthetic Biology
- How the compound artemisinin was produced via synthetic biology
- What artemisinin does
- Difficulties of synthetic biology and barriers to success.