Read the passage and answer the questions that follow: Mosquitoes can transmit pathogens that cause many human diseases , such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, chikungunya, and Zika fever. Many of these diseases can be physically devastating and even fatal. For example, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are over 200 million new cases of malaria per year worldwide, resulting in over 400,000 deaths, most of them children under the age of 5. Zika fever is caused by a virus transmitted to humans primarily by the bite of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Symptoms in infected human adults are typically mild, but if the virus infects a pregnant woman it can be transmitted to the developing fetus and affect brain development, causing a condition called microcephaly. To reduce the number of A. aegypti mosquitoes that may carry Zika virus, researchers at a biotechnology company called Oxitec have produced genetically modified (GM) A. aegypti mosquitoes that when released into the wild, mate with wild mosquitoes, and any offspring produced die before becoming adults. In one study, Oxitec scientists released GM mosquitoes into a neighborhood in Brazil. Sustained release over the course of a year led to a reduction of the local Aedes aegypti population by 80% to 95% according to different measures (Carvalho et al., 2015). The scientists chose densely populated neighborhoods for their study because mosquito-borne diseases can spread most easily in areas where lots of humans and mosquitoes are present. They hypothesized that if they could reduce both the population size of the A. aegypti mosquitoes and the mosquito population density, they would reduce the probability that a person becomes infected with a pathogen spread by these mosquitoes. (An activity that shows how scientists measure mosquito density, based on data from Oxitec scientists, is available on the BioInteractive website as “Tracking Genetically Modified Mosquitoes.”)
The fluorescence gene is used to_________ GM mosquitoes. The lethality gene, which is more accurately called tetracycline transcriptional activator variant (or tTAV), encodes a protein that blocks transcription of several other genes that are essential to mosquito development. GM mosquito larvae that produce the tTAV protein die before reaching maturity. However, the tTAV protein cannot prevent the transcription of other genes when it is bound to the antibiotic tetracycline. Therefore, tetracycline acts as a repressor of the lethality gene, or, in other words, its antidote. In the lab, the GM mosquito larvae are reared in water containing tetracycline and develop normally into adult mosquitoes. When adult GM mosquitoes are released into the wild and breed with wild, non-GM mosquitoes, their offspring inherit the lethality gene. Without tetracycline in the environment to protect them, the offspring die.
Choose the synonym for the word 'transcription' given in the passage?
copy
Finding the Synonym for 'Transcription' in the Passage
The question asks for a synonym for the word 'transcription' as used in the provided passage about genetically modified mosquitoes.
Let's analyze the context in which 'transcription' appears in the passage:
"The lethality gene, which is more accurately called tetracycline transcriptional activator variant (or tTAV), encodes a protein that blocks transcription of several other genes that are essential to mosquito development. GM mosquito larvae that produce the tTAV protein die before reaching maturity. However, the tTAV protein cannot prevent the transcription of other genes when it is bound to the antibiotic tetracycline."
In biology, transcription is a fundamental process of gene expression. It is the first step where the information stored in a segment of DNA is copied into a small, mobile RNA molecule. This RNA molecule can then be used as a template for creating proteins.
Considering this biological context:
- Transcription is the process of synthesizing an RNA molecule from a DNA template.
- This process is essentially making a 'copy' of the genetic information from DNA into RNA.
Evaluating the Options
Now let's look at the given options to find the best synonym based on this biological meaning:
- introduction: This means bringing something into use or existence. This does not fit the biological process of copying genetic information.
- copy: In the context of gene expression, transcription is exactly the process of copying genetic information from DNA to RNA. This fits the meaning well.
- variation: This refers to a difference or change. This is not a synonym for transcription.
- induction: This means initiating or producing something. While related to gene expression control (e.g., inducing gene expression), it is not a direct synonym for the process of transcription itself, which is the act of copying.
- None of these: We need to determine if 'copy' is a suitable synonym.
Based on the biological definition and the context in the passage, the word that best describes the process of 'transcription' among the given options is 'copy', as it represents the copying of genetic information from DNA to RNA.
Therefore, 'copy' is the most appropriate synonym for 'transcription' in this passage.
Important Questions from Reading Comprehension
Why, according to the writer can't people be motivated to use a resource prudently?
1. They feel that others may overuse the resource
2. It is possible to substitute the resource
3. Abundance of the resource availability
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
When do people use resources exhaustively?
The self-interest of people affects the use of renewable resources
People rooted in a locality
Which among the following is closest in meaning with the word 'deplete'?
