A clinical study investigates a mutation in the non-coding promoter region of the TERT TERT\,TERT gene (which encodes the telomerase reverse transcriptase protein) frequently observed in human cancer cells. Which of the following describes the mechanism by which this non-coding mutation contributes to tumorigenesis?
It alters the amino acid sequence of the telomerase catalytic domain, directly increasing its enzymatic activity.
It mutates the translation start codon (AUGAUGAUG) in the first exon, preventing ribosomal translation of the telomerase enzyme.
It creates a novel binding site for transcription factors, leading to increased recruitment of RNA polymerase and overexpression of the TERTTERTTERT gene.
It disrupts the consensus sequence of a splice-donor site, preventing the splicing of the first intron from the pre-mRNA transcript.
97 exam-style questions on OCR GCSE Biology 5.1 Inheritance, covering 5.1.1 The genome, 5.1.2 Environment and phenotype, 5.1.3 Variants and mutations, 5.1.4 How genetic variants influence phenotype, 5.1.5 Asexual and sexual reproduction, 5.1.6 Haploid and diploid, 5.1.7 Meiotic cell division, 5.1.8 Single gene inheritance, 5.1.9 Predicting single gene crosses, 5.1.10 Sex determination, 5.1.11 Multiple gene inheritance, and 5.1.12 Development of our understanding of genetics. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.