Chap20, Chapter 20

Multiple Choice

1. One major difference between bacterial and eukaryotic RNA polymerase is that
A. prokaryotes have several RNA polymerases.
B. eukaryotic RNA polymerase can polymerize RNA in the 3′ to 5′ direction.
C. prokaryotic RNA polymerase recognizes several different promoters.
D. eukaryotic RNA polymerase has only one polypeptide.
E. eukaryotic RNA polymerase cannot read DNA to find the promoter sequence.

2. Genes with promoters that are constitutively expressed and needed in all cells are
called
A. universal factors.
B. silencers.
C. activators.
D. housekeeping genes.
E. enhancers.

3. Eukaryotic RNA polymerase II synthesizes

A. 5S rRNA.
B. 28S rRNA.
C. mRNA.
D. 18S rRNA.
E. tRNAs.

4. TATA-binding protein (TBP) is required for initiation by

A. RNA polymerases I, II, and III.
B. RNA polymerases I and III.
C. RNA polymerase II.
D. RNA polymerase III.
E. RNA polymerase I.

5. The TATA box is a common component of promoters for

A. RNA polymerases I, II, and III.
B. RNA polymerases I and III.
C. RNA polymerase II.
D. RNA polymerase III.
E. RNA polymerase I.

6. A gene is said to be “poised” if it

A. is inactive.
B. has an assembled basal apparatus but requires a second signal for activation.
C. has a partially assembled basal apparatus.
D. is active.
E. is prevented from being expressed by chromatin structure.

7. A very large gene, such as DMD, may take hours to transcribe, mainly because
A. RNA polymerase may have difficulty clearing the promoter.
B. long mRNAs form secondary structures that interfere with transcription.
C. RNA polymerase has time-consuming error correction activity.
D. many histone octamers may need to be modified or disassembled.
E. there may be multiple abortive attempts at transcription.

8. The template strand of a transcribed gene is preferentially repaired because

A. it contains the coding sequence of the gene.
B. the altered secondary structure of the RNA it produces is likely to be recognized by
repair enzymes.
C. it contains specific sequences for binding repair enzymes.
D. damage on the nontemplate strand is less likely to result in mutation.
E. RNA polymerase will stall at a damaged site on the template strand.
9. An enhancer _____________________ the gene it affects.
A. must be upstream from
B. can be very distant from
C. cannot be within an intron of (can be)
D. must be in the same orientation as
E. must be downstream from

10. Generally, a gene is more likely to be active if

A. its DNA is unmethylated.
B. the RNA polymerase that binds to its promoter is methylated.
C. histones in its vicinity are methylated.
D. its DNA is deacetylated.
E. histones in its vicinity are deacetylated.

Chap21, Chapter 21

Multiple Choice

1. A eukaryotic hnRNP may not include

A. proteins for RNA processing.
B. hnRNA.
C. packaging proteins.
D. RNA polymerase.
E. proteins for export of RNA from the nucleus.

2. One major function of the 5′ cap of a eukaryotic mRNA is

A. to provide a ribosomal binding site.
B. to protect the mRNA from degradation.
C. to minimize transcriptional errors.
D. to provide a binding site for RNA polymerase.
E. to catalyze intron removal.
3. Pre-mRNA splicing does not involve which of the following structural features?
A. 5′ cap
B. branch site
C. 3′ splice site
D. 5′ splice site
E. All of these structural features are involved in pre-mRNA splicing.

4. U1 snRNA has a single-stranded 5′ end that is able to base-pair with the

A. 5′ cap.
B. branch site.
C. 3′ splice site.
D. 5′ splice site.
E. promoter.

5. The first stage in the assembly of the spliceosome, the commitment complex, is also
known as the
A. A complex.
B. B1 complex.
C. B2 complex.
D. C1 complex.
E. E complex.

6. How is the splicing of U2-dependent introns different from that of U12-dependent

introns?
A. U12-dependent introns have no branch site.
B. U2-dependent introns have longer consensus sequences at the splice sites.
C. Most of the snRNPs in the spliceosomes are different.
D. The SR proteins in the spliceosomes are different.
E. U12-dependent introns are self-splicing.
7. Which of the following statements about splicing is false?
A. Splicing is connected to mRNA stability.
B. Splicing is connected to mRNA export from the nucleus.
C. Splicing can influence local chromatin remodeling.
D. Splicing can occur during transcription.
E. Splicing can influence translation of the mRNA.

8. Which of the following is not a potential mode of alternative splicing?

A. alternative 3′ splice sites
B. alternative branch points
C. mutually exclusive exons
D. alternative 5′ splice sites
E. exon inclusion/skipping

9. trans-splicing of introns in C. elegans is used to

A. alternatively splice a transcript to produce different products in different cell types.
B. facilitate recombination between paralogous loci.
C. splice pre-mRNA without a spliceosome.
D. allow introns to self-splice.
E. convert polycistronic transcripts to monocistronic units.

10. snoRNAs are required for

A. processing and modification of rRNAs.
B. 3′ mRNA polyadenylation.
C. processing and modification of tRNAs.
D. pre-mRNA splicing.
E. 5′ mRNA capping.

Chap24, Chapter 24

Multiple Choice
1. The ribosomal E site
A. binds aminoacyl-tRNA.
B. binds the peptidyl-tRNA.
C. binds the Shine–Dalgarno sequence.
D. transiently binds deacylated tRNA.
E. binds the mRNA start codon.

2. The lowest rate of error in the steps of protein synthesis is in

A. having the wrong aminoacyl-tRNA bind to the ribosome.
B. having the aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase bind the wrong amino acid.
C. skipping a base during translation.
D. having the aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase bind the wrong tRNA.
E. transcription of mRNA.

3. In bacteria, the function of IF-2 is

A. to prevent premature binding of the 50S ribosomal subunit.
B. to assist the entry of the initiator tRNA into the ribosome.
C. to facilitate the binding of the 30S ribosomal subunit to mRNA.
D. to prevent entry of aminoacyl-tRNA into the A site.
E. to stabilize the 30S ribosomal subunit.

4. In bacteria, binding of the 30S ribosomal subunit to mRNA

A. involves recognition of the 5′ terminus of the mRNA by the 30S subunit.
B. involves ribosomal proteins binding to the Shine–Dalgarno sequence.
C. involves base pairing between the Shine–Dalgarno sequence and rRNA.
D. involves base pairing between the AUG start codon and rRNA.
E. follows the binding of the 50S subunit.

5. In eukaryotes, binding of the 40S ribosomal subunit to mRNA

A. involves recognition of the 5′ terminus of the mRNA by the 40S subunit.
B. involves ribosomal proteins binding to a recognition sequence in the mRNA.
C. involves base pairing between the mRNA and rRNA.
D. involves base pairing between the AUG start codon and rRNA.
E. follows the binding of the 60S subunit.

6. In bacteria, which protein complexes with aminoacyl-tRNAs and GTP to bind to the
ribosomal A site?
A. EF-Tu
B. eIF2
C. IF-2
D. EF-Ts
E. EF-G

7. In bacteria, which protein is required for ribosomal translocation?

A. EF-Tu
B. eIF2
C. IF-2
D. EF-Ts
E. EF-G

8. What is the function of class 1 release factors?

A. They release deacylated tRNAs from the ribosome.
B. They release class 2 release factors from the ribosome.
C. They recognize termination codons and bind to the ribosomal A site.
D. They assist in ribosomal translocation.
E. They release amino acids from tRNAs.

9. What is the function of the protein S1 in translation?

A. It assists release factors.
B. It hydrolyzes GTP.
C. It assists in ribosomal translocation.
D. It keeps the mRNA single-stranded and suitable for translation.
E. It mediates the regeneration of EF-Tu.
10. What part of the bacterial ribosome has peptidyl transferase activity?
A. a protein in the 30S ribosomal subunit
B. 23S rRNA
C. a protein in the 50S ribosomal subunit
D. 16S rRNA
E. 5S rRNA

MCQs Chap28, Chapter 28

Multiple Choice

1. Which of the following is not generally a way to control the activity of a positive
regulatory transcription factor?
A. binding of an inhibitor that affects its ability to bind to DNA
B. synthesis of protein in a specific tissue type
C. covalent modification of a protein
D. transport of the protein out of the cell
E. binding of a ligand

2. Which of the following is not usually an independent domain of an activator

transcription factor?
A. ATPase
B. dimerization
C. DNA binding
D. transcription activation
E. All of these are potential independent domains of an activator.

3. An activator that does not have an activating domain

A. must directly interact with RNA polymerase.
B. must also not have a DNA-binding domain.
C. may require a coactivator with an active domain.
D. is mutant and cannot activate a gene.
E. is called a repressor.
4. Which of the following is not a DNA-binding domain?
A. Cys2/His2 finger
B. helix-turn-helix
C. leucine zipper
D. Cys2/Cys2 finger
E. These are all DNA-binding domains.

5. All chromatin remodeling complexes have a subunit for __________ that is encoded
by one member of a gene superfamily.
A. histone binding
B. ATPase
C. repressor binding
D. DNA binding
E. transcription factor binding

6. Transcription activation via a remodeling complex often involves

A. histone deacetylation.
B. recruiting an activator to a promoter.
C. DNA methylation.
D. displacing nucleosomes from a promoter.
E. breaking apart nucleosomes.

7. Butyric acid induces chromatin changes similar to those of

A. gene inactivation, because it inhibits deacetylation.
B. gene activation, because it inhibits deacetylation.
C. gene inactivation, because it inhibits acetylation.
D. gene activation, because it inhibits acetylation.
E. gene activation, because it inhibits methylation.

8. Which statement best describes the relationship between methylation and gene
activity?
A. DNA methylation is generally associated with transcriptional inactivity.
B. DNA methylation is generally associated with translational inactivity.
C. DNA methylation is generally associated with transcriptional activity.
D. Histone methylation is generally associated with transcriptional inactivity.
E. Histone methylation is generally associated with transcriptional activity.

9. What circumstances are generally not associated with histone phosphorylation?

A. in association with chromatin remodeling during transcription
B. during DNA repair
C. during homologous recombination
D. cyclically during the cell cycle
E. Histone phosphorylation is associated with all of the above circumstances.

10. How is the yeast Gal gene control system unlike the E. coli lac operon?
A. GAL genes do not have a catabolite repression level of control.
B. GAL genes are constitutively expressed.
C. GAL genes are not induced by their substrate.
D. GAL genes are transcribed when the cell has a sufficient supply of glucose.
E. GAL genes are not expressed in a single polycistronic mRNA.

Chap30, Chapter 30

Multiple Choice

1. RNA generally functions as a regulator by

A. base-pairing with a single-stranded region.
B. influencing ribosomal activity.
C. recruiting proteins to gene promoters.
D. catalyzing biochemical reactions.
E. participating in chromatin remodeling.

2. The mRNA of the Neurospora gene NMT1

A. catalyzes a reaction involving its own product.
B. base-pairs with other mRNAs to regulate their expression.
C. has two domains; one is a coding sequence and the other is a ribozyme.
D. is only transcribed when the substrate of its product is present.
E. is alternatively spliced depending on the concentration of a metabolite of vitamin B1.

3. Which of the following is generally not a way that antisense RNA might inhibit gene
expression?
A. It might prevent translation.
B. It might affect RNA processing.
C. It might affect stability of the protein product.
D. It might prevent transcription.
E. All of the above are ways that antisense RNA might inhibit gene expression.

4. What types of genes are expected to experience transcriptional interference?

A. paralogous genes
B. nested genes
C. genes encoding subunits of the same protein
D. adjacent genes
E. alleles on homologous chromosomes

5. Bacterial regulator RNAs are called

A. CUTs.
B. CRISPRs.
C. PROMPTs.
D. sRNAs.
E. siRNAs.

6. ___________________ are a special class of eukaryotic miRNAs that are active in

germ cells.
A. CRISPRs.
B. CUTs.
C. piRNAs
D. siRNAs.
E. sRNAs.
7. Eukaryotic siRNAs originate from
A. viral infection.
B. siRNA-encoding genes that produce a transcript that is processed into many small
RNAs.
C. degraded messenger RNAs.
D. siRNA-encoding genes that produce a transcript that folds to become double-
stranded.
E. introns removed during mRNA processing.

8. The regulation of expression of the C. elegans gene lin14 by lin4 was one of the first
known examples of
A. a gain-of-function mutation.
B. nested genes.
C. a riboswitch.
D. an antisense gene.
E. RNA interference.

9. In mammals and other animals, the expression of a specific gene can be turned off by
the introduction of
A. long dsDNA.
B. short dsRNA.
C. short dsDNA.
D. short ssDNA.
E. long ssDNA.

10. In yeast, heterochromatin formation and transcriptional repression can be facilitated

by transcripts of
A. telomeric simple sequence satellites.
B. intronic sequences.
C. histone genes.
D. centromeric simple sequence satellites.
E. nested genes.