| dominant gene | dominance of traits |
|---|---|
| immediate early gene | Class of genes whose expression is low or undetectable in quiescent cells, but whose transcription is activated within minutes after extracellular stimulation such as addition of a growth factor. C fos and c myc proto-oncogenes were among the first IEG's to be identified. Many IEG's encode transcription factors and therefore have a regulatory function. (18 Nov 1997) |
| immune-response gene | <molecular biology> Any of several genes of the major histocompatibility complex that control the immune response of lymphocytes to specific antigens. (09 Oct 1997) |
| integrator gene | <molecular biology> In the Britten & Davidson model for the co ordinate expression of unlinked genes in eukaryotes, sensor elements respond to changing conditions by switching on appropriate integrator genes, which then produce transcription factors that activate appropriate subsets of structural genes. (18 Nov 1997) |
| Ir gene | Immune response genes, located within the MHC of vertebrates. Originally recognised as controlling the level of immune response to various synthetic polypeptides, they are now also recognised as mapping within the regions controlling T-cell help and suppression (I region). (18 Nov 1997) |
| operator gene | A gene with the function of activating the production of messenger RNA by one or more adjacent structural loci; part of the feedback system for determining the rate of production of an enzyme. (05 Mar 2000) |
| overlapping gene | <molecular biology> Different genes whose nucleotide coding sequences overlap to some extent. The common nucleotide sequence is read in two or three different reading frames thus specifying different polypeptides. (18 Nov 1997) |
| therapy, gene | Insertion of normal DNA directly into cells to correct a genetic defect. Gene therapy is the treatment of disease by replacing, altering, or supplementing a gene responsible for the disease. In gene therapy for cancer, for example, researchers are trying to bolster the body's natural capacity to combat cancer and make the tumour more sensitive to other kinds of therapy. Gene therapy, still in its early stages, holds great promise for the treatment of many diseases. (12 Dec 1998) |
| early gene | <genetics, molecular biology> Genes that are expressed soon after viral infection of a host cell. (18 Nov 1997) |
| egg polarity gene | A gene whose product distribution in the egg determines the anterior posterior axis of subsequent development. Best characterised in Drosophila: See: bicoid, maternal effect gene. (18 Nov 1997) |
| transforming gene | <molecular biology> Genes, originally of tumour viruses, responsible for their ability to transform cells. The term now serves as an operational definition of oncogenes. (18 Nov 1997) |
| env gene | <molecular biology> One of three retrovirus genes which codes for the env glycoproteins. (09 Oct 1997) |
| epistatic gene | A gene which suppresses another gene when the two are not alternate alleles. (09 Oct 1997) |
| essential gene | <genetics> Any gene that, if it does not workcorrectly, kills the organism. (09 Oct 1997) |
| european molecular biology lab gene bank | <molecular biology> A large database of DNA sequence data in Heidelberg, Germany, compiled from international sources. It is the European equivalent to the Genbank DNA sequence databank in the United States of America. WWW: EMbase. (09 Oct 1997) |