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Bio
362 Human Genetics Spring 2005
Take home final exam |
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Read
the following paper:
Horike et al. 2005. Loss of silent-chromatin looping and impaired imprinting of DLX5 in Rett syndrome. Nat. Genet. 37: 31-40.
(Available on Louise.)
Write a summary and critique of the paper. In your introduction, include thorough information on Rett syndrome in general and on the molecular functions of the various genes associated with the disorder. You will need to look up further sources for this. Make sure you give sufficient background to clarify how the Horike et al. paper fits in with the current state of affairs regarding Rett syndrome research. For the assigned paper, summarize the reasoning behind the experiments, the approaches taken (be specific on how they work), and the data generated (be specific on why the authors can make their conclusions). Critique the paper in terms of the quality of the data, the accuracy of the authors' interpretations, and the implications for future research. SPECIAL HINT for finding background sources: occasionally a PubMed search gives you a hit that is apparently not freely available, but when you click the article link you still get it for free. Somehow this is working for the Journal of Medical Genetics, perhaps due to a college subscription of some sort.
You MAY use your textbook, the WWW, and any printed material you can find. Be sure to cite any sources properly!!! (See the Davidson Department of Biology Statement on Plagiarism.) You may NOT use your classmates (or any other person) as a resource. You may NOT tell each other about reference sources you have found. Feel free to contact me with questions; if I feel that your question is appropriate to answer, I will email a copy of the question and my response to the whole class. Please note that I will be out of town on May 4th and 5th.
There is no length restriction. Be concise but complete. A hard copy is due to me by Monday May 9th at 4PM, and also please email me the file.
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