Topic 1: Navigating and Understanding the NCBI Database In a few sentences, explain why bioinformatics is such an important discipline for understanding the structure and function of genes. Bioinformatics is very up to date with information on gene structure and function. It can locate a gene within a sequence and predict the structure and/or function of a particular gene. By applying bioinformatics to understand different biological processes, it allows a more global perspective in design, to test hypotheses about a gene or protein, and also allows us to take advantage of future technology. How many exons does the estrogen receptor ERS1 have? contain?ERS1 contains 10 exons.What does the ATG gene code for and what is the role of ATG?The ATG codes for initiation and the role of ATG is to initiate the translation process of the gene.The stop codon sequence is TGA. What is the role of the stop codon? The role of the stop codon is to stop the translation process of the gene. What does CDS mean? What is the difference between gene and CDS? CDS stands for coding DNA sequence. CDS refers to the portion of the DNA sequence that is translated, i.e. coding sequence. CDS are the portion of DNA of a gene composed of exons, which codes for a protein. The gene is a localizable region of the genomic sequence composed of nucleic acids, which codes for mRNA. What is the function of polyA signaling? The function of the polyA signal is to dissociate the ribosome that is translating the gene, add a PolyA tail to cleave the transcript, and add a long chain of adenine nucleotides to increase the stability of a molecule.Topic 2: Understanding Gene FunctionWhy UTRs Are they important components of an mRNA sequence? UTRs are an important component of an mRNA sequence because they are involved in the regulation and stability of translation. Why are ORFs important and what is the consequence of a STOP codon inserted into a protein coding sequence? ORFs (open reading frames) are important because they are located before the transcription termination point which is beyond the translation stop codon. If a stop codon were to be inserted into a protein coding sequence, transcription would cease and an incomplete protein would be produced that could be harmful or harmless. What is post-translational modification? Post-translational modification occurs when proteins are modified after they are created, being activated or inactivated.