Modern Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology

520 Modern Industrial Microbiology and BiotechnologyGlossaryAnabolism The biochemical processes involved in the synthesis of cell constituents from simplermolecules usually requiring energy.Anaerobic respiration When the final electron is an inorganic compound other than O 2 .Anotation The process by which useful information is added to a raw genomic DNA sequence,producing a frame work of understanding and enhancing its utility for downstream users.Anticodon A sequence of three bases in transfer RNA which base-pairs with a codon in themessenger RNA during protein synthesis.Antiparallel This refers to nucleic acids, where one strand runs 5' ~ 3', the other 3' ~ 5'.Antisense mRNA, an mRNA transcript that is complementary to endogenous mRNA; it is anoncoding strand and complementary to the coding sequence of the endogenous mRNA.Introducing a transgene coding for antisense mRNA is a strategy used to block expression of agene of interest.Antisense RNA This is produced from a gene sequence inserted in the opposite orientation, sothat the transcript is complimentary to the normal mRNA and can therefore bind to it andprevent translation.Artificial chromosomes Cloning vectors which can carry very large inserts of foreign DNA andexist in the cell very much like a cellular chromosome. The most widely used are bacterial artificialchromosomes (BACs) and yeast artificial chromosomes (YACs).ATP Adenosine triphosphate, the major energy carrier of the cell.Autoradiography Detection of radioactivity in a sample labeled with a radioactive material, byplacing it in contact with a photographic film; the radioactive portions will imprint on the filmAutotroph An organism able to use CO 2 as a sole source of carbon, for example plants and bluegreenalgae (Cyanobacteria).Auxotroph An organism that has developed a nutritional requirement through mutation.Wthout the addition of the required material, it will not grow. The opposite is a Prototroph or wildtype.B lymphocyte (B cell) A lymphocyte that has immunoglobulin surface receptors, producesimmunoglobulin, and may present antigens to T cells.Bergey’s Manual A compendium of an approved list of bacteria, first published in 1923. Thesecond edition is currently being published in 5 volumes beginning in 2001 and is expected to becompleted in 2007. Bergey’s Manual of Systematic Bacteriology gets its name from Dr David HBergey first Chairman of the Editorial Board of the Manual published by the then Society ofAmerican Bacteriologists (now called the American Society for Microbiology).Bioinformatics The revolution in computer technology and memory storage capability hasmade it possible to model grand challenge problems such as large scale sequencing of genomes