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Quizlet at this error rate, and given that the human genome contains about 3 billion base pair, how many mutations would you expect in each human cell division

User Joehat
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Final answer:

The number of mutations expected in each human cell division is approximately 0.004.

Step-by-step explanation:

The human genome contains about 3 billion base pairs of DNA. Given an error rate of 1,000 to 1,000,000 molecular lesions per cell per day, we can calculate the number of mutations expected in each cell division.

Let's assume the middle point of the error rate, which is 500,000 molecular lesions per cell per day. In one day, there are approximately 24 cell divisions. So, the total number of molecular lesions in one day will be 500,000 x 24 = 12,000,000. Since there are about 3 billion base pairs in the human genome, we can calculate the number of mutations expected in each human cell division as:

Number of mutations = Total number of molecular lesions / Total number of base pairs = 12,000,000 / 3,000,000,000 = 0.004 mutations

Therefore, we would expect approximately 0.004 mutations in each human cell division.

User Franco Rondini
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Final answer:

Given that the human genome has about 3 billion base pairs and the mutation rate during cell division is one mutation per 100 million nucleotides, we would expect approximately 30 mutations to occur in each human cell division.

Step-by-step explanation:

The human genome, which consists of about 3 billion base pairs of DNA, undergoes replication during cell division. Mutations can occur during this process; however, the error rate is estimated to be approximately one mutation per 100 million nucleotides replicated. Given this rate, we can calculate the expected number of mutations in each human cell division by dividing the total amount of DNA base pairs by the error rate. Therefore, the calculation would be 3 billion divided by 100 million.

Expected Mutations Calculation:

3,000,000,000 base pairs / 100,000,000 (error rate) = 30 mutations per cell division.

User Romah
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