Molecular Biology-Genetics

Specific Foundation / Core

The course is also offered to exchange programme students.

Key learning objective is for the students to develop an understanding of the following: a. nucleic acid structure and the central dogma of Molecular Biology b. basic Molecular Biology techniques applied to Veterinary Science c. genotype-phenotype relationship in animals of veterinary interest d. mode of inheritance of key animal traits of veterinary interest

Molecular Biology (8 hours) Instructor: K. Angelopoulou 1st hour Nucleic acid structure. The Watson-Crick double helix. RNA secondary structure. DNA denaturation 2nd hour DNA replication. DNA repair. 3rd hour DNA transcription. Transcription enzymes. Initiation, elongation and termination of RNA synthesis. Inhibition of transcription. Post-transcriptional modifications 4th hour The genetic code. Point mutations. Frameshift mutations 5th hour Protein synthesis. Initiation, elongation and termination of polypeptide chain synthesis. Post-translational modifications of polypeptide chains. Inhibition of protein synthesis 6th hour Regulation of gene expression 7th hour Methods for DNA analysis 8th hour The polymerase chain reaction Laboratory exercise 2 hours Polymerase chain reaction and agarose gel electrophoresis Genetics (14 hours) Instructors: Georgios Banos and Georgios Valergakis Lectures 1st hour Structural and numerical chromosomal anomalies. 2nd hour Genome mapping, map types, applications. Historical account of developments in genetics. 3rd hour Mendel’s experiments. Laws of segregation and independent assortment. Genotypic ratios. 4th hour Relationships between alleles within the same locus: dominance, one-sided inheritance, partial dominance, overdominance. 5th hour Relationships between genes at different loci: Epistasis (7 types). Impact on phenotypic ratios. 6th hour Gene linkage and recombination. Recombination rate. Lethal genes. 7th hour Relationship between sex and inheritance. Sex-linked and partially sex-linked genes; sex-influenced and sex-restricted traits. Single-gene and oligogenic traits of interest in animal husbandry. 8th hour Calculation of gene and genotypic frequencies. Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium rule under random mating; assumptions. 9th hour Checking and confirmation of populations in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Calculation of gene frequency in case of multiple alleles and sex-linked loci. 10th hour Impact of natural selection, mutation, migration and genetic drift on gene frequency. 11th hour Comparison between oligogenic and polygenic (quantitative) traits. Genotype-environment relationship and interaction. Additive gene action. Variation and variance of genetic values and phenotypic records of farm animals. 12th hour Genetic parameters of traits (heritability, repeatability, genetic correlation). Pleiotropic gene actions. 13th hour Study of genealogical trees and assessment of genetic relationships among individuals. 14th hour Application of genetics: detection of recessive allele carriers. Practicals 2 hours Single- and multiple-trait inheritance. 2 hours Epistasis and gene linkage. 2 hours Relationship between sex and inheritance. 2 hours Population genetics. 2 hours Estimation of genetic value and producing ability of individual animals. 1 hour Estimation of genetic relationships among individuals and inbreeding.

25-11-2020