Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology

Vakinformatie

Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology

Examenvragen

12 januari 2026

Rolland

1. Give the necessary parts of a (binary) vector for the high expression of bacterial proteins in ER in trichomes (leaf hairs). How do you identify and evaluate the parts. How can constructs be further optimized for (heterologous) application in a specific organism?

2.Which RNAs exist in the plant cell (abundant and less abundant)? How do regulatory RNAs influence gene expression in the cell? How can this be used in biotechnological applications in the lab and/or in the field? Give one concrete example.

Geuten

1. Graph shown from the paper about maize. (fig 1 (a+b) and fig 3a) Why was a method used (to answer what questions) and what limitations does it have (what is the scope of the technique)? Give a methodological and biological explanation for the data shown below.

2. Discuss the functions and mechanisms of epigenetic gene and genome regulation, and which methods do you use to check this?

3 februari 2022

Rolland

• 1) Discuss the principles of the recently developed gene/genome editing tools and their respective advantages limitations and possible applications (and legislation).
• 2) How do you define/identify, select, isolate and evaluate a suitable promotor sequence for the expression of a transgene? Which other elements need to be present in a vector construct for the expression of a transgene? Which other elements need to be present for efficient protein synthesis (and localization? How can constructs be further optimized for (heterologous) application in a specific organism?

Geuten

• 1) Describe how you would map the causal gene behind a mutant phenotype. Which concepts, plant and genotyping procedures would you use and how?
• 2) Discuss the conceptual, methodological and differences in application range between QTL and GWAS.

23 augustus 2019

Rolland

• 1) Which RNAs exist in the plant cell (abundant and less abundant)? How do regulatory RNAs influence gene expression in the cell? How can this be used in biotechnological applications in the lab and/or in the field? Give one concrete example.
• 2) Give all the recent developed techniques for gene editing (DSB). Describe their working principle and the pro's & con's of every technique.

Geuten (same as 24 jan 2019)

• 1) Given are two graphs with phenotypic data concerning mutants of 3 genes. Use these to determine the epistatic relations between the three genes involved, e.g. a switch regulatory pathway or a substrate dependent pathway.
• 2) Explain the differences between QTL and GWAS. (don't give yourself a carpal tunnel by writing down al the statistics. Have an idea of how the statistics work. The question wants to see if you understand why they are two separate techniques.)

24 januari 2019

Rolland (mondeling)

• 1) Which RNAs exist in the plant cell (abundant and less abundant)? How do regulatory RNAs influence gene expression in the cell? How can this be used in biotechnological applications? Give one concrete example.
• 2) ?

Geuten (mondeling)

• 1) Given are two graphs with phenotypic data concerning mutants of 3 genes. Use these to determine the epistatic relations between the three genes involved, e.g. a switch regulatory pathway or a substrate dependent pathway. (Tip: study/take a look at the scheme used in the slides)
• 2) Explain the differences between QTL and GWAS. (don't give yourself a carpal tunnel by writing down al the statistics. Have an idea of how the statistics work. The question wants to see if you understand why they are two separate techniques.)

25 januari 2018

Rolland (mondeling)

• 1) Which RNAs exist in the plant cell (abundant and less abundant)? How do regulatory RNAs influence gene expression in the cell? How can this be used in biotechnological applications? Give one concrete example.
• 2) How can you define, pick, isolate and evaluate a promoter region? What other elements are necessary on a vector for stable transgenic expression?

Geuten (mondeling)

• 3) Give three methods of next generation sequencing and their possible applications.
• 4) Explain the principle and process of QTL analysis.