Glossary Term
Drug-, radiation-induced, or spontaneous injuries to DNA that introduce deviations from its normal double-helical conformation. These changes include structural distortions that interfere with replication and transcription, as well as point mutations that disrupt base pairs and exert damaging effects on future generations through changes in DNA sequence. If the damage is minor, it can often be repaired (DNA repair); extensive damage can induce apoptosis.
Pcr Terms
Glossary Term
An isomer of propyl alcohol with antibacterial properties. Although the exact mechanism of isopropanol's disinfecting action is not known, it might kill cells by denaturing cell proteins and DNA, interfering with cellular metabolism, and dissolving cell lipo-protein membranes. Isopropanol is used in soaps and lotions as an antiseptic.
Extraction Methodology
Glossary Term
Nucleotide Excision Repair (NER) mends DNA regions that contain chemical adducts, such as UV-induced thymine dimers or carcinogenic adducts, which distort the DNA helix and interfere with replication and transcription. NER is targeted to actively transcribed regions of the genome. During NER in eukaryotes, shape irregularities are detected by protein complexes that slide along the DNA molecule and induce cuts on each side of a lesion several nucleotides away. Removal of the damaged 25-30 nucleotide fragment is followed by repair synthesis and ligation.
Pcr Terms
Glossary Term
The ratio of a measure of useful information from a system to that of a measure of interfering unwanted, often random, information that is also present.
Performance Metrics
Glossary Term
A 20 to 25-nucleotide double-stranded RNA which is involved in a sequence-specific messenger RNA degradation process known as RNA interference.
Pcr Terms