molecular biology assignment help

molecular biology assignment help

Exploring the Foundations and Applications of Molecular Biology

1. Introduction to Molecular Biology

Molecular biology has its roots in the late 19th century when Gregor Mendel, who is considered the father of genetics, showed that heritable traits depend on the inheritance of particular gene sequences, now known to be nucleotides (A, T, C, or G). The development of X-ray crystallography in the 20th century facilitated the rapid determination of the molecular structure of biomolecules such as nucleic acids and proteins. Currently, molecular biology has a prominent role in many areas of biotechnology, such as the use of genetic engineering to produce an immense variety of products in fields including agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and environmental management. In medicine, the application of molecular biology not only enables the development of novel therapeutic strategies but also the determination of the genetic basis of numerous diseases.

Molecular biology is the field of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological processes. It studies the structure of biological macromolecules, including proteins and nucleic acids, and how they participate in the processes needed to sustain life. In the 20th century, molecular biology advanced as a separate discipline as scientists began to determine the molecular structures of proteins, to study gene expression, and to sequence DNA. It has made significant contributions to the understanding of life, and its applications have led to advancements in the fields of biotechnology and pharmacology.

2. Fundamental Concepts in Molecular Biology

The molecules we describe here as being part of molecular biology are widespread and indispensable for the advancement of fundamental, health, and applied research. At the same time, in the majority of roles, it is not the molecule itself, but that which brings about the association of the molecule to its requisites for association. In considering the problem of cataract formation, we noted that the structure and distribution of the lens crystallin molecules were major determinants in maintaining lens transparency. The smaller glucose molecules did not scatter light, a fact we utilized in growing large crystals. With information known today, we may analyze the structure of other lens molecules in terms of the amount of light scattering likely to be associated with them in specific states of association. If the composition, in turn, were to change by the accumulation of other molecules, we would soon exceed a tolerable level of scattering. If the composition approximates the presently occurring one closely enough to warrant continued transparency, then we may presently view the bonding forces to be adequate to maintain optical clearness. Is the disruptive force the result of new molecules being introduced into the crystalline array, or of changes in the properties of the molecules now present?

Heredity, mutation, genetic exchange, the structure of chromatin, the mechanism of replication, the transcription of DNA to give various classes of functional RNA, and the translation of messenger RNA into proteins. Each of these areas has been studied by investigators from many disciplines, including biochemists, geneticists, biophysical researchers, physicists, and organic chemists, as well as molecular biologists. In this respect, molecular biology is a recognizable part of modern biology broadly defined. Since molecules are held together by chemical forces, particularly as these forces appear in large molecular arrays, it is then apparent that it is not possible to speak of the problems of molecular biology as distinct from the problems of biology.

3. Techniques and Tools in Molecular Biology Research

Other molecular biology techniques that can be applied to biomedical, agricultural, and environmental research and aid with gene function, mapping, and transfer include polymerase chain reaction, digital PCR and real-time polymerase chain reaction, reverse transcription real-time polymerase chain reaction, cell biological and organism level imaging, transgenesis, and CRISPR techniques, as well as DNA and RNA sequencing, and interrogation techniques such as computational biology and bioinformatics techniques. These applications have enabled molecular biologists to study living organisms at the molecular level, leading to the characterization and manipulation of organisms, which has revolutionized the field of biotechnology.

Numerous other important techniques and tools can be found in a well-equipped molecular biology lab. When the desired gene is not yet cloned, gene cloning is performed to clone the target gene of interest, which can then be isolated and sequenced. Over the years, multiple types of gene cloning have been developed to help researchers take the next step in molecular biology research. Various techniques help researchers express the gene of interest in the target organism or in the cell lines and detect gene expression after using a reporter gene or immunohistochemistry. Some of the techniques involve DNA or RNA modifying and manipulating techniques for protein expression and purification. Then, once the gene or protein is known, molecular biologists can apply decision analysis, design of experiments, and statistical analysis tools to conduct recombinant DNA regulatory site plasmid map, create a recombinant DNA regulatory amended site plasmid map, or verify that the plasmid map has no inserted mutations in the ampicillin gene open reading frame. Once these steps are complete, the gene can be electroporated or transformed into a bacterium, and large-scale expression and antibody conjugation processes can commence.

One of the simple yet informative techniques or tools that lay the groundwork for many experiments conducted in a molecular biology wet lab involves growing tissue culture cells or bacteria growing in liquid culture. Media and dishes for the tissue culture and growing of bacteria are prepared and sterilized using an autoclave. An inoculum is prepared from a single colony or liquid culture and adjusted to the appropriate density or number of cells. After the cells are density adjusted or diluted, they are plated in bacterial biohazard level II containment, and plates are marked and carefully wrapped in autoclave paper for incubation. One day later, the bacteria are removed from the nutrient agar plates, and cases containing a large number of sterile pipettes are available to be used for picking and transferring individual colonies. Finally, molecular biologists employ a light microscope for viewing live mammalian cells grown in tissue culture or bacterial cells mixed with antibiotic selection media. Additional basic lab procedures include plasmid DNA, total DNA, and total RNA extraction from tissue culture and bacterial cells.

Molecular biology research is typically conducted in a wet lab setting, which is also referred to as a laboratory of mainly non-computer and non-instrument based equipment, chemicals, test tubes, and microscopes. The increased reliance on these biologically based technology improvements in scientific equipment and techniques has enabled molecular biologists to separate, visualize, study, and then reassemble biological complexity for greater understanding and manipulating organisms in a wide range of ways.

Many of the techniques and tools used in molecular biology were gained from older disciplines, such as microbiology, genetics, and biochemistry, which emerged within the biology research field long before molecular biology was even a term. Since molecular biology combines aspects of these unique disciplines, the fields from which molecular biology is built serve as its foundation.

Utilizing the fundamentals: Techniques and tools in molecular biology research

4. Applications of Molecular Biology in Biotechnology and Medicine

Important products are produced using recombinant DNA technology, and advances in genomics and proteomics are being made at an accelerating speed. DNA testing and gene therapies have also advanced significantly over the past decade. In plant biotechnology, multiple advancements are currently enabling DNA to be introduced and combined from a variety of sources, offering the chance of producing new crop varieties at unprecedented rates. These technologies increase agricultural yields and minimize inputs, improving environmental safety and reducing the environmental footprint of agriculture. Rapid advances in biotechnologies, producing cheap, portable DNA sequencing machines, have also enabled a new discipline: environmental discovery. High-throughput sequencing can identify over 10,000 species in a single sample.

The applications of molecular biology in biotechnology and medicine are vast, and biotechnology innovations are likely to play a vital role in satisfying the demand for food and improving human health. An emerging wave of molecular biotech companies is focusing on food development, particularly meat-like products produced through cellular agriculture or fermentation. Their products are created by using cells that multiply over time, allowing repeating harvests without new inputs. Although most people are still unfamiliar with these new food production methods, gene technologies have become essential to medical research and molecular medicine in developed countries.

5. Emerging Trends and Future Directions in Molecular Biology

The future of molecular biology lies in our ability to understand how all genomes encode the functioning and regulation of cells and organisms, how molecular details can be linked to human disease and treated by interventions, and how a flow of genetic information can be achieved through molecular biotechnology. Major challenges in the more applied aspects of molecular biology include pertinent edification of genomes and their functional relationships, development of effective drug therapies, advances in preventative medicine and epidemiological surveys, and the creation of novel breakthroughs in the rational genetic manipulation of cells and organisms. Exciting milestones can be expected in the form of biological insights, technological breakthroughs, and useful applications.

The complexity of the interactions and chemical processes at the scale of cells has limited the success of reductionist approaches in molecular biology and genetics. Scientists need better models of how these networks of interacting molecules determine the properties of living organisms, how different populations of these molecules interact to form spatiotemporal patterns, flow of information in the molecular world, theoretical principles that govern the transformations of these populations as a whole, and so on. A molecular understanding of life will be the culmination of molecular biology and the basis of both customized medicine and a better understanding of complex biological systems.