For each question, please explain how you got the answer.

1. The major function of RNA polymerase's sigma factor is
A) recognition of the translational stop sequence
B) recognition of the transcriptional start sequence
C) recognition of the transcriptional stop sequence
D) recognition of the translational start sequence
E) None of these are correct

2. WHere is the amino acid attached to a tRNA molecule?

A) 3′-hydroxyl of an adenine containing residue of 3’ end of tRNA
B) 5′-hydroxyl of a uridine containing residue of 3’ end of tRNA
C) 5′-hydroxyl of a guanine containing residue of 3’ end of tRNA
D) 3′-hydroxyl of a cytosine containing residue of 3’ end of tRNA
E) 2′-hydroxyl of a guanine containing residue of 3’ end of tRNA

3. Functions of RNA polymerase in E. Coli include
A) searching for promoter sites.
B) unwinding short stretches of DNA.
C) detecting termination signals.
D) searching for promoter sites and detecting termination signals.
E) All the answers are correct.

4. Actinomycin D inhibits transcription by:
A) binding to the DNA template by intercalation
B) binding to the RNA polymerase
C) binding to rho protein
D) Binding to the sigma subunit
E) none of the above

Consider this question: What are the ethical and legal responsibilities of the nurse who believes a home care patient needs to be cared for in a hospital or that a home care patient needs to continue to receive care and not be discharged from the service?

Mr. Smith is 60 years old. He was diagnosed with a prostate cancer five years ago. Over the past few days, Mr. Smith has been feeling weak and increasingly tired and has also been suffering from a headache that did not respond to over-the-counter medications. He scheduled an appointment with his physician.

His physician performed a physical examination and recommended a battery of laboratory tests and imaging procedures.

The table below shows Reference values in the right-hand column. These values reflect the normal range of values for patients without disease or illness. The center column reflects the resulting values for medical test results obtained for Mr. Smith.

Take note whether Mr. Smith’s values are within normal limits.

After receiving Mr. Smith’s test results, his physician admits him to the hospital. Hospital staff treated him and discharged him.

The following week, Mr. Smith returns to his physician with the same complaint of weakness and a new complaint of shortness of breath. His blood pressure is 160/100 mmHg. MRI reveals metastasis of prostate cancer to osseous tissue. Abdominal CT shows obstruction of intestine due to nodular enlargement of adrenal glands.

Laboratory results from Mr. Smith’s second hospital admission and medical tests show following findings:

CONCLUSION AND DIAGNOSIS

Laboratory findings, MRI and CT confirmed metastatic prostate adenocarcinoma, hypertension and refractory hypokalemia due to ectopic ACTH production. High levels of circulating cortisol caused continuous activation of mineralocorticoid receptors resulting in hypokalemia, metabolic alkalosis and hypertension.

After reading provided scenario, answer the following questions:

1.   What are the components of physical examination? Describe each component. (See Module 1, Commentary, Topic 8. Disease Categories, Part B. Steps in Diagnosis)

2.   Mr. Smith’s blood pressure was 160/100 mmHg. How does a medical provider take or measure blood pressure? What do the top (numerator) and bottom (denominator) numbers mean in the biological sense? What is the significance the size of these two numbers? Is Mr. Smith’s blood pressure within normal range? Explain how you concluded whether Mr. Smith’s blood pressure is/is not within normal range.

3.   Based on the data provided, what laboratory tests were performed and what samples were taken from the patient? Select one of the laboratory tests ordered for Mr. Smith and discuss why Mr. Smith’s physician might have ordered the test and the information she might have expected to obtain from that particular test.

4.   Compare Mr. Smith’s values with reference values and indicate whether MR. Smith’s values are below, above, or within normal range (compare Mr. Smith’s values with the Reference values) for each laboratory tests in the table above from the second set of tests.

5.   What imaging procedures did Mr. Smith undergo? Discuss the distinctions and similarities between the two different imaging approaches. What were the results of imaging procedures in Mr. Smith’s case?

6. Select one of the medical terms from the CONCLUSION and DIAGNOSIS section above and define what it means. Also, discuss, in your own words and based on what you can gather about Mr. Smith’s condition, how the laboratory or imaging tests helped with drawing a conclusion or making the diagnosis. In your own words, discuss how medical providers use the scientific method to come to work through the examination and diagnosis of a patient.

In the early stages of CoVID 19 many public figures compared coronavirus to the influenza virus. The basis for this claim was because they both cause respiratory illness and because the flu shows seasonality they thought so would coronavirus. However the viruses that cause flu and CoVID 19 are very different from each other.

Discussion Post (3 points) : Identify and explain a feature that is different between these viruses.

IMMUNOLOGY ONLY

13. Mycobacterium tuberculosis is an intracellular bacterial pathogen. An individual’s exposure to this pathogen can be tested by injecting it into the skin. What type of reaction would you expect in an individual who had been exposed to M. tuberculosis? What is the principle behind this test?

Background:

You are a CDC (Center for Disease Control) researcher studying malaria. Your goal is to understand the evolution of malaria in order to be able to possibly predict where a future outbreak may be. To do this you will be using information from the evolution of the pathogen, the host, and changes in the environment. Topics to think about include:

• What is the evolutionary origin of human malaria? (hint: think about host-pathogen cospeciation or host shift)
  • What could you learn about the adaptability of the malaria pathogen based on its reconstructed evolutionary history?
• How does the information on the origin of human malaria affect your prediction for possible outbreaks? (hint: think what are the reservoirs for malaria pathogens)
• What would happen if changes in climate affect the distribution of the malaria mosquito vector?
  • Think if and how patterns of malaria geographic distribution would change by considering also the effect that the presence/absence of the sickle cell anemia allele would play
  • How likely is it that human populations living in a geographic area without malaria will have a high frequency of the sickle cell anemia allele?

The information that you have is:

• Knowledge of the malaria cycle, which includes one host, primate (human, chimpanzee, or gorilla), and one vector, mosquito. Malaria is prevalent in areas where the mosquitoes thrive (hot and humid).
• Access to three different pathogens: Plasmodium falciparum (host: human), P. reichenowi (host: chimpanzee), Plasmodium sp. (host: gorilla).
• The knowledge that individuals that have one (heterozygotes) or two (homozygote recessive) alleles for sickle cell are partially protected from malaria (although they still suffer some negative effects from the sickle cell disease)

Think about what type of information you would need to approach the problem above and how you would interpret different patterns. Answer the questions with a series of “if-then” scenarios in which you explore a different types of information you may get from the data and how you would interpret it.

Malaria life cycle

Question:

How would you distinguish between cospeciation and host shift (draw phylogenetic trees with the malaria pathogens and their hosts to illustrate the two scenarios)? Briefly describe and explain your phylogenies.

The WHO recommends that mothers breastfeed for a minimum of 2 years. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding for only 1 year. Why do you think these recommendations are different? Apes breastfeed on average 4-6 years, how does this compare to the average breastfeeding duration in humans in our society (3 months). Do you think there may be nutritional/developmental consequences for humans?

Nutrition During Adulthood

Our goal is to live longer lives through proper nutrition, but also to maintain a quality of life for as long as possible. What does it mean to compress morbidity? How do nutritional needs change as you enter your 60s and beyond? How can you adjust your nutrition and exercise now to conserve the function of your organ systems (reserve capacity) through old age?

Fill in the blank:

When performing a negative stain, the ____________ charged proteins inside the bacterial cell will be repelled by the _____________ charged dye, thus allowing for visualization under the microscope.

When performing a simple bacterial stain, the _______________ charged proteins inside the bacterial cell will be attracted to the ____________ charged dye, thus staining the interior of the cell to allow for visualization under the microscope.

Below is a chart I'm trying to fill out for Invertebrates. I wanted to know if my answers are correct, and if you can help me fill in the sections that I didn't understand (the blank parts). Thank you!

For which of the three types of endocytosis is transcytosis a subtype? What makes this the best category of endocytosis when considering the cell types which typically use transcytosis?

1. Describe the nature of the carbon cycle, the transfer of carbon within a biological community, and how humans have impacted this very important nutrient cycle.

2. Evaluate the role that humans have played in global environmental change, with reference to five specific examples of defined impacts.

1. Interspecific interactions have evolved over many generations and been favoured by natural selection which is why these interactions persist today. Discuss this statement with reference to at least five (5) types of interspecific interactions using relevant species examples.

2. Community structure is a dynamic that is influenced by many factors. Describe and discuss the interplay of five (5) factors with reference to Pacific Island biological communities

Biology of Stem Cells:

You injected 1000 Ovarian cancer stem cells into a SCID mouse and a tumor forms. How do you determine tumorigenic potential of the cancer stem cells