What is gene expression?

  • (noun): Conversion of the information encoded in a gene first into messenger RNA and then to a protein.

Gene Expression

Gene expression is the process by which information from a gene is used in the synthesis of a functional gene product. These products are often proteins, but in non-protein coding genes such as ribosomal RNA (rRNA), transfer RNA (tRNA) or small nuclear RNA (snRNA) genes, the product is a functional RNA. The process of gene expression is used by all known life - eukaryotes (including multicellular organisms), prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea), possibly induced by viruses - to generate the macromolecular machinery for life. Several steps in the gene expression process may be modulated, including the transcription, RNA splicing, translation, and post-translational modification of a protein. Gene regulation gives the cell control over structure and function, and is the basis for cellular differentiation, morphogenesis and the versatility and adaptability of any organism. Gene regulation may also serve as a substrate for evolutionary change, since control of the timing, location, and amount of gene expression can have a profound effect on the functions (actions) of the gene in a cell or in a multicellular organism.

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Some articles on gene expression:

Gene Expression - Techniques and Tools
... The following experimental techniques are used to measure gene expression and are listed in roughly chronological order, starting with the older, more established ... Low-to-mid-plex techniques Reporter gene Northern blot Western blot Fluorescent in situ hybridization Reverse transcription PCR Higher-plex techniques SAGE DNA microarray Tiling array RNA-Seq ...
Santa J. Ono - Key Publications
... "IFN-gamma gene expression is controlled by the architectural transcription factor HMGA1" ... of its chromosomal location and assessment of its developmental expression" ... high mobility group I(Y) participates in photoreceptor-specific gene expression" ...
Sa RNA
... Small activating RNA (saRNA) molecules can induce target gene expression in a phenomenon referred to as dsRNA-induced transcriptional activation (RNAa) ... RNAi invariably leads to gene silencing via remodeling chromatin to thereby suppress transcription, degrading complementary mRNA, or blocking protein ... By targeting sequences in gene promoters, saRNAs readily induce target gene expression in a phenomenon referred to as dsRNA-induced transcriptional activation (RNAa) ...
The Centre For Applied Genomics - Core Facilities - Microarray and Gene Expression
... The Microarray and Gene Expression Core Facility has a dedicated manager, and operates Affymetrix and Agilent technologies ... Affymetrix MegAllele and Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) microarrays, Affymetrix gene expression, tiling, promoter and exon microarrays, and Agilent oligonucleotide microarrays are all run ...
C21orf59 - Gene - Gene Expression
... The C21orf59 primary sequence is found in high quantity in most tissues ... Some tissues with notable less expression are the ganglions, the heart, and the liver ...

Famous quotes containing the word expression:

    They are not callow like the young of most birds, but more perfectly developed and precocious even than chickens. The remarkably adult yet innocent expression of their open and serene eyes is very memorable. All intelligence seems reflected in them. They suggest not merely the purity of infancy, but a wisdom clarified by experience. Such an eye was not born when the bird was, but is coeval with the sky it reflects. The woods do not yield another such a gem.
    Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)