more questions - (Nov/12/2007 )

Hi there,

Had my last exam yesterday and it was super hard!! And as always I've come to this site to see if some MCQs are right? So someone please answer as I'm really freaking about it...

why are genetic markers useful in identifying quantitative trait loci?
genetic markers can be closely linked to genes which affect phentotype
genetic markers have a high rate of mutation
genetic markers are responsible for differences in phenotype
every genetic marker is associated with a gene of large efect
genes of large effect occur in genome regions which are free of markers

which is true with regard to population studies?
association studies can only be used to find genes which cause a disease
a new set of genetic markers is required for each population association study
mixing samples from different populations with different marker frequencies can produce statistically false associations
association studies can only find genes of large effect, but not casual SNPs
a large number of SNP markers (>300000) are required for fine-scale gene analysis

the neutral theory of gene evolution implies that:
the date of evolutionary divergence of two species can be estimated from their genetic differences
natural selection does not exist
only those genetic changes whichhave no selective effect will survive in a population
all genetic differences between populations are the reult of random processes
the overall rate of evolution is the same for every gene

which of the following features will be part of a vector plasmid designed for high level expression in E.coli (can be more than one)
an origin of replication and a selectable marker
a multiple cloning site inserted within the lac alpha fragment
a multiple cloning site fused a protein or peptide for which a good purification system is available
an origin of replication from the yeast 2-micron plasmid
an origin of replication from phage f1 to allow single stranded DNA preperation
an inducible system to regulate gene expression

I can't comment on the gene evolution question, but the others look OK to me.