ANALYSIS OF MOLECULAR
BIOLOGY, VIRAL GENETICS AND APPLIED BIOLOGY
Dr. VIPUL VAIBHAV (C.C.M.B. HYDERABAD)
At Grassroots, we take the
initiative and the responsibility to provide support and guidance to our
students beyond classroom teaching.
This analysis deals with the
integrated domains of Molecular Biology, Viral Genetics and Genomics. Areas of
applied biology including Transgenics and gene therapy etc are also included
here.
Applied
biology areas such as Transgenics, Gene therapy, Marker Assisted Selection
(MAS) are already making an impact upon our daily lives. This is possible
through application of bio-molecular and Recombinant DNA techniques and
genomics. Indeed this does not end here….applying a technique to produce a
product (say a GMO) may sound very glamorous and worthy of study. However in
order to develop and apply a technology, requires an in-depth understanding of
the basic phenomenon…….in this case, Molecular Biology.
Year
|
Section B
|
Section C
|
Jun-211
|
6
|
8
|
Dec-11
|
6
|
5
|
Jun-12
|
4
|
8
|
Dec-12
|
7
|
12
|
Jun-13
|
8
|
12
|
Dec-13
|
7
|
8
|
Jun-14
|
7
|
8
|
Dec-14
|
5
|
9
|
Jun-15
|
7
|
10
|
Dec-15
|
5
|
9
|
Jun-16
|
5
|
8
|
Dec-16
|
6
|
11
|
Jun-17
|
8
|
9
|
Dec-17
|
6
|
8
|
During
classroom teaching, we devote 70-80hrs to these domains, supported by extensive
illustrations and problem solving. As must be clear from above,
students must develop a good base in the basic concepts of
molecular biology to understand concepts of Genetic Engineering and
applied biology.
There
are no short cuts….
As we
analyse the trends of the previous CSIR paper, it is clear that 5-8 questions
in part B and 8-12 in part C are from these areas (see table).
We also performed topic wise analysis related to these domains.
- It is clear that regulation of gene expression
is a key area of focus in
these papers. Regulation at the level of transcription, translation, and
post-translational modifications are very important.
- Operons are a frequent focus, specifically the Lac and Trp
operon…and in great detail. This does not mean you
can skip the other operon systems.
- In eukaryotic regulation, the role of Regulatory RNAs such as
siRNA and miRNA, RNA Interference are
important. Questions on regulation of gene expression by DNA methylation and
chromatin re-modelling are frequently
asked.
- All these are concept based questions.
Students enjoy focusing on these areas……..….but here comes the
rider….regulation is difficult to understand without
understanding of the basic fundamentals of molecular biology.
- This is reflected in the fact, that at least
twice as many questions are asked from the fundamentals such
as chromatin organization, Gene and
genome organization, replication, DNA repair, basic transcription, RNA
processing and Translation. Question
from telomeres and its significance have been asked.
TOPICWISE ANALYSIS OF QUESTIONS
|
||||||||||||||
Topics
|
Jun-11
|
Dec-11
|
Jun-12
|
Dec-12
|
Jun-13
|
Dec-13
|
Jun-14
|
Dec-14
|
Jun-15
|
Dec-15
|
Jun-16
|
Dec-16
|
Jun-17
|
Dec-17
|
DNA structure, Gene and Genome Organization,
chromosomes, Chromatin re-modelling, transposons
|
2
|
4
|
2
|
3
|
1
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
||||||
Replication, Recombina-tion
and Repair of DNA
|
2
|
1
|
2
|
4
|
2
|
4
|
3
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
3
|
3
|
2
|
2
|
Transcription and RNA processing
|
4
|
2
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
1
|
1
|
4
|
3
|
3
|
Translation, Translational
regulation, post-translational and Protein modifications
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
2
|
3
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
2
|
4
|
2
|
Gene regulation, operons, RNA
interference, DNA methylation etc.
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
3
|
2
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
1
|
Genomics & Application, Gene
Therapy, Transgenic plants and animals, Mol markers and MAS
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
6
|
3
|
4
|
3
|
4
|
3
|
4
|
3
|
4
|
3
|
Viral molecular genetics
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
||||||
Total questions
|
14
|
11
|
12
|
19
|
20
|
15
|
15
|
14
|
17
|
14
|
13
|
17
|
17
|
14
|
- Viral genetics, specifically the
regulatory cascades are important. A
thorough understanding of the lambda phage regulatory cascades may serve
well, since it will clarify many concepts of prokaryotic gene regulation
in general. Kindly go through with significance of CI/Cro system in viral
life cycle. At grassroots, we devoted at least 4 hrs to this complicated
topic of lambda phage. The lecture is supported by extensive illustrations
to create a basic imagery of the entire process. We feel this task is well
worth the effort in helping the students.
- Finally, in applied biology section
technologies for creating genetically modified plants and animals are important. Agrobacterium based gene transfer
technology is a favorite topic. Site
specific recombination, specifically with the Cre-Lox system, Molecular
markers can be focused upon.
We hope this
helps. An investment of time on this area of the syllabus is well worth the
effort.
Grassroots Academy
www.grassrootsacademy.in
9650401888
I 001-45532207
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