In your job as a crime scene investigator, you are summoned to investigate a mys
ID: 88123 • Letter: I
Question
In your job as a crime scene investigator, you are summoned to investigate a mysterious death. A male in his early thirties, otherwise apparently healthy, is found dead in his home. There is no indication of foul play; in fact, there is no obvious cause of death at all. Upon closer inspection of the man’s home, you discover several small bits of what appear to be unusual mushrooms on the kitchen counter. Based on this observation, you play a hunch and perform a tox screen on what contents there are in the man’s bladder. Your hunch is rewarded, with the tox screen revealing the presence of alpha amanitin in the man’s urine. From this information, what do you conclude about the cause of death? In formulating your answer, be sure to talk in detail about the process that was affected in the victim. To aid you in this, use the following DNA sequence – discuss what would happen to this sequence under normal circumstances, and show the product(s) that would normally be produced by the affected process under normal circumstances. Discuss specifically what part of the process didn’t happen in this case, and how that led to the man’s death.5'-TTCGACTCGGTATAAATGCCAGAAGTCCTAGAGACTGTCCTCACTCTCGTGACTAGTGCACCGCTAATGCTTGATGGGGCCCTGCCACAT..-3’ 3’-AAGCTGAGCCATATTTACGGTCTTCAGGATCTCTGACAGGAGTGAGAGCACTGATCACGTGGCGATTACGAACTACCCCGGGACGGTGTA..-5’ In your job as a crime scene investigator, you are summoned to investigate a mysterious death. A male in his early thirties, otherwise apparently healthy, is found dead in his home. There is no indication of foul play; in fact, there is no obvious cause of death at all. Upon closer inspection of the man’s home, you discover several small bits of what appear to be unusual mushrooms on the kitchen counter. Based on this observation, you play a hunch and perform a tox screen on what contents there are in the man’s bladder. Your hunch is rewarded, with the tox screen revealing the presence of alpha amanitin in the man’s urine. From this information, what do you conclude about the cause of death? In formulating your answer, be sure to talk in detail about the process that was affected in the victim. To aid you in this, use the following DNA sequence – discuss what would happen to this sequence under normal circumstances, and show the product(s) that would normally be produced by the affected process under normal circumstances. Discuss specifically what part of the process didn’t happen in this case, and how that led to the man’s death.
5'-TTCGACTCGGTATAAATGCCAGAAGTCCTAGAGACTGTCCTCACTCTCGTGACTAGTGCACCGCTAATGCTTGATGGGGCCCTGCCACAT..-3’ 3’-AAGCTGAGCCATATTTACGGTCTTCAGGATCTCTGACAGGAGTGAGAGCACTGATCACGTGGCGATTACGAACTACCCCGGGACGGTGTA..-5’ In your job as a crime scene investigator, you are summoned to investigate a mysterious death. A male in his early thirties, otherwise apparently healthy, is found dead in his home. There is no indication of foul play; in fact, there is no obvious cause of death at all. Upon closer inspection of the man’s home, you discover several small bits of what appear to be unusual mushrooms on the kitchen counter. Based on this observation, you play a hunch and perform a tox screen on what contents there are in the man’s bladder. Your hunch is rewarded, with the tox screen revealing the presence of alpha amanitin in the man’s urine. From this information, what do you conclude about the cause of death? In formulating your answer, be sure to talk in detail about the process that was affected in the victim. To aid you in this, use the following DNA sequence – discuss what would happen to this sequence under normal circumstances, and show the product(s) that would normally be produced by the affected process under normal circumstances. Discuss specifically what part of the process didn’t happen in this case, and how that led to the man’s death.
5'-TTCGACTCGGTATAAATGCCAGAAGTCCTAGAGACTGTCCTCACTCTCGTGACTAGTGCACCGCTAATGCTTGATGGGGCCCTGCCACAT..-3’ 3’-AAGCTGAGCCATATTTACGGTCTTCAGGATCTCTGACAGGAGTGAGAGCACTGATCACGTGGCGATTACGAACTACCCCGGGACGGTGTA..-5’
Explanation / Answer
Alpha-Amanitin or -amanitin is a cyclic peptide of eight amino acids and is one of the most deadly amatoxin found in several species of mushroom. It has an unusually strong and specific attraction to the enzyme RNA polymerase II and is a selective inhibitor of RNA polymerase II and III. It catalyzes the transcription of DNA to synthesize precursors of mRNA and most snRNA and microRNA. RNA polymerase binds to the TATA box which is a DNA sequence (cis-regulatory element) found in the promoter region of genes in archaea and eukaryotes and is involved in the process of transcription by RNA polymerase.
The TATA box has the core DNA sequence 5'-TATAAA-3' or a variant, which is usually followed by three or more adenine bases. During the process of transcription, the TATA binding protein (TBP) normally binds to the TATA-box sequence, which unwinds the DNA
Upon ingestion and uptake by liver cells, it binds to the RNA polymerase II enzyme, effectively causing cytolysis of hepatocytes (liver cells). Toxic effects -amanitin appears slowly making -amanitin poisoning even more difficult to diagnose and all the more dangerous. The toxin has severe effects on the liver and kidneys, leading to total system failure in both. Death usually takes place around a week from ingestion due to kidney failure, liver failure, hepatic coma, respiratory failure and death.