Discussion Questions On The Difference Between Genomic And...

Discussion Questions Question #1 Alcaligenes faecalis is a gram-negative bacterium that is a rod-shaped, aerobe. It consists of a genome with the length of about 4kb (4000 bp) and most commonly inhabits water and soil environments. Infections caused by the alcaligenes faecalis are usually in the form of urinary tract infections, however numerous strains have been traced to the blood, urine and feces. Question #2 Plasmid DNA is an autonomously replicating circular DNA molecule that is only about 1,000-20,000 base pairs in size and is separate from bacterial chromosomes. Plasmids are a significant part of molecular biology because they are small enough to be cloned or modified, they endure self-replication, they are stable over long periods of time and they have a diverse range of gene expression. Having these characteristics allows plasmids to introduce genes into bacteria. The difference between genomic and plasmid DNA is that genomic DNA is DNA that is part of an organisms chromosomes, while plasmid DNA is a small loop which is separate from the organisms chromosomes. In order to introduce foreign genes into bacteria a 3-step process must occur. First scientists must use restrictions enzymes (or polymerase chain reaction if there is not enough restriction enzyme sites) to remove the foreign gene from the DNA sequence. Then they must use the same restriction enzymes to cut into the circular DNA sequence in the plasmid. Finally the foreign gene is placed into the opened