Nitrogen is an essential element for living organisms. It is needed to make proteins, nucleic acids and ATP. The nitrogen cycle shows how this element is transferred between different parts of an ecosystem. In this article we will look at the four major steps and the microorganisms involved in the processes. The nitrogen cycle The … Read more
Bacterial Transformation – Gene Technologies Ep 3
So far in the genetic engineering journey we have learnt how to isolate or produce a DNA fragment, and amplify it in vitro using PCR. Bacterial transformation is a method to amplify a DNA fragment in vivo (in a living organism), and to engineer bacteria to produce a protein. In this article we will look … Read more
Binary Fission – Cell Division Ep 3
In the last article we looked at mitosis as a method of cell division. However, mitosis can only take place in eukaryotic cells. Prokaryotic cells such as bacteria, which don't have a nucleus, divide by binary fission. This process produces two genetically identical daughter cells from the parent cell, and is a method of asexual … Read more