Gene Cloning and DNA Analysis: An Introduction, Sixth Edition ...

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Glossary
Nick translation The repair of a nick with DNA polymerase I, usually to introduce
labeled nucleotides into a DNA molecule.
Northern transfer A technique for transferring bands of RNA from an agarose gel to a
nitrocellulose or nylon membrane.
Nuclear transfer A technique, used in the production of transgenic animals, that
involves transfer of the nucleus of a somatic cell into an oocyte whose own nucleus
has been removed.
Nucleic acid hybridisation Formation of a double-stranded molecule by base pairing
between complementary or homologous polynucleotides.
Oligonucleotide A short, synthetic, single-stranded DNA molecule, such as one used
as a primer in DNA sequencing or PCR.
Oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis An in vitro mutagenesis technique that involves
the use of a synthetic oligonucleotide to introduce the predetermined nucleotide
alteration into the gene to be mutated.
Open-circular DNA (ocDNA) The non-supercoiled conformation taken up by a circular
double-stranded DNA molecule when one or both polynucleotides carry nicks.
Open reading frame (ORF) A series of codons that is or could be a gene.
ORF scanning Examination of a DNA sequence for open reading frames in order to
locate the genes.
Origin of replication The specific position on a DNA molecule where DNA replication
begins.
Orphan An open reading frame thought to be a functional gene but to which no function
has yet been assigned.
Orthogonal field alternation gel electrophoresis (OFAGE) A gel electrophoresis technique
that employs a pulsed electric field to achieve separation of very large molecules
of DNA.
Out of Africa hypothesis A hypothesis that holds that modern humans evolved in
Africa, moving to the rest of the Old World between 100 000 and 50 000 years ago,
displacing the descendants of Homo erectus that they encountered.
P element A transposon from Drosophila melanogaster used as the basis of a cloning
vector for that organism.
P1 A bacteriophage that infects E. coli, derivatives of which are used as cloning vectors.
P1-derived artificial chromosome (PAC) A cloning vector based on the P1 bacteriophage,
used for cloning relatively large fragments of DNA in E. coli.
Papillomaviruses A group of mammalian viruses, derivatives of which have been used
as cloning vectors.
Partial digestion Treatment of a DNA molecule with a restriction endonuclease under
such conditions that only a fraction of all the recognition sites are cleaved.
Pedigree analysis The use of a human family tree to analyze the inheritance of a genetic
or DNA marker.
Peptide mass fingerprinting Identification of a protein by examination of the mass spectrometric
properties of peptides generated by treatment with a sequence-specific protease.
Phage display A technique involving cloning in M13 that is used to identify proteins
that interact with one another.
Phage display library A collection of M13 clones carrying different DNA fragments,
used in phage display.
Phagemid A double-stranded plasmid vector that possesses an origin of replication from
a filamentous phage and hence can be used to synthesize a single-stranded version of
a cloned gene.