Ch. 21 - Genes, Development, and Evolution

Freeman - Biological Science 7th Edition

Freeman7th EditionBiological ScienceISBN: 9783584863285Not the one you use?Change textbook

Freeman 7th Edition

Ch. 21 - Genes, Development, and Evolution

Problem 11

Chapter 21, Problem 11

Type I diabetes is a form of diabetes that is due to the loss of insulin-producing cells of the pancreas. The potential of stem cells—in particular, induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells—for therapy has gotten a lot of press.
What are iPS cells?
a. Cells taken from early human embryos
b. Cells taken from the pancreas of people without diabetes
c. Cells derived by de-differentiating specialized adult cells
d. Cells derived by differentiating pancreas precursor cells

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Understand the concept of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. These are a type of stem cell that can be generated directly from adult cells.

Recognize that iPS cells are created by reprogramming specialized adult cells to revert them to a pluripotent state, meaning they can differentiate into various cell types.

Differentiate between the options given: a) cells taken from early human embryos, b) cells taken from the pancreas of people without diabetes, c) cells derived by de-differentiating specialized adult cells, and d) cells derived by differentiating pancreas precursor cells.

Identify that option c) 'cells derived by de-differentiating specialized adult cells' accurately describes iPS cells, as they are created by reversing the differentiation process of adult cells.

Conclude that iPS cells are not derived from embryos or pancreas precursor cells, but rather from adult cells that have been reprogrammed to a pluripotent state.

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Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

Induced Pluripotent Stem (iPS) Cells

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are a type of stem cell created by reprogramming specialized adult cells to revert to a pluripotent state, meaning they can differentiate into any cell type. This process involves introducing specific genes that reset the adult cells' developmental program, offering potential for regenerative medicine and disease modeling without the ethical concerns associated with embryonic stem cells.

Pluripotency

Pluripotency refers to the ability of a stem cell to develop into any cell type in the body. This characteristic is crucial for stem cell therapies, as it allows for the generation of specific cell types needed for repairing damaged tissues or organs. Pluripotent cells, like iPS cells, can be used to study disease mechanisms and develop personalized treatments.

Cell Differentiation

Cell differentiation is the process by which a less specialized cell becomes a more specialized cell type, acquiring distinct functions and characteristics. In the context of iPS cells, differentiation is reversed to create pluripotent cells from adult cells, enabling the study and potential treatment of diseases like Type I diabetes by generating insulin-producing cells from iPS cells.

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Related Practice

Textbook Question

Which of the following provides the strongest evidence for the conservation of tool-kit genes?

a. Bicoid moved from one fly embryo into the posterior of another fly embryo causes the formation of two head regions.

b. Mutation of an unrelated gene in another species of fly has a similar effect to mutation of bicoid in Drosophila.

c. A mouse Hox gene can be used to take over the function of a mutated Drosophila Hox gene.

d. Sheep can be cloned by fusing a differentiated adult cell with an enucleated egg.

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Textbook Question

Imagine a situation in which a morphogen has its source at the posterior end of a Drosophila embryo. Every 100 µm from the posterior pole, the morphogen concentration decreases by half. If a cell required 1/16th the amount of morphogen found at the posterior pole to form part of a leg, how far from the posterior pole would the leg form?

a. 100μm

b. 160μm

c. 400μm

d. 1600 μm

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Textbook Question

Some stickleback fish develop protective spines, and other stickleback fish are spineless. Spine development is controlled by the expression of a gene known as Pitx1. The spineless phenotype is due to a mutation in Pitx1 that results in no expression of Pitx1 during development in regions where spines would otherwise form. When scientists compared the Pitx1 coding sequence in spined and spineless fish, they found this sequence was the same in both types of fish. Propose plausible hypotheses for the location of this mutation and for how it alters spine development.

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Textbook Question

Type I diabetes is a form of diabetes that is due to the loss of insulin-producing cells of the pancreas. The potential of stem cells—in particular, induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells—for therapy has gotten a lot of press.

If researchers were attempting to stimulate the differentiation of iPS cells, which of the following would they most likely add to the cell-culture medium (the liquid surrounding the cells)?

a. Activin A, an extracellular signal protein

b. Sox-2, a transcription factor active in early development

c. Grb-2, an intracellular signal transduction protein

d. Lactase, an enzyme that catalyzes the breakdown of lactose

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