Severo Ochoa — Questions and answers

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What was the big mystery that scientists like Severo Ochoa were trying to solve in the 1950s?

Choices

  1. How to build complex machines without instructions.
  2. How RNA, the genetic messenger, was put together. ✓
  3. How to find new types of DNA in cells.
  4. How to make scientists famous for their discoveries.

Answer: How RNA, the genetic messenger, was put together.

From page 1

What was RNA known for doing before Ochoa's discovery?

Choices

  1. Building strong cell walls.
  2. Carrying genetic instructions to make proteins. ✓
  3. Helping cells move around quickly.
  4. Finding new food sources for the cell.

Answer: Carrying genetic instructions to make proteins.

From page 2

What did Severo Ochoa name the special enzyme he discovered?

Choices

  1. RNA builder
  2. Polynucleotide phosphorylase ✓
  3. New York enzyme
  4. Surprise RNA maker

Answer: Polynucleotide phosphorylase

From page 4

How was Ochoa's enzyme, polynucleotide phosphorylase, different from other RNA polymerases?

Choices

  1. It made DNA instead of RNA.
  2. It needed a special template to work.
  3. It could build RNA chains without a template. ✓
  4. It worked much slower than other enzymes.

Answer: It could build RNA chains without a template.

From page 5

What exciting new thing could scientists do with Ochoa's enzyme?

Choices

  1. They could make the enzyme glow in the dark.
  2. They could grow new plants in a test tube.
  3. They could create RNA molecules with a specific, chosen makeup. ✓
  4. They could make the enzyme disappear.

Answer: They could create RNA molecules with a specific, chosen makeup.

From page 6

How did scientists check if the RNA made by Ochoa's enzyme was real RNA?

Choices

  1. They listened to the RNA sing.
  2. They smelled the RNA to see if it was correct.
  3. They used special techniques like ultracentrifugation and spectral analysis. ✓
  4. They asked other scientists to guess what it was.

Answer: They used special techniques like ultracentrifugation and spectral analysis.

From page 7

What was the very first 'codon' identified using Ochoa's synthetic RNA?

Choices

  1. DNA
  2. UUU ✓
  3. Phenylalanine
  4. Marshall Nirenberg

Answer: UUU

From page 8

What did Ochoa's discovery help make possible in biology?

Choices

  1. Building new kinds of robots.
  2. Genetic engineering and gene therapy. ✓
  3. Creating faster airplanes.
  4. Discovering new types of stars.

Answer: Genetic engineering and gene therapy.

From page 9

What special award did Severo Ochoa win in 1959 for his important discovery?

Choices

  1. A gold medal from the city.
  2. The Nobel Prize. ✓
  3. A certificate of appreciation.
  4. A new laboratory building.

Answer: The Nobel Prize.

From page 10