What would happen if a nucleotide was deleted in the exon region of a gene? the intron?
If a nucleotide is deleted in the exon region of a gene, it can lead to a frameshift mutation. This means that the reading frame of the gene will be altered, causing all subsequent codons to be read incorrectly. As a result, the amino acid sequence encoded by the gene will be completely altered, which can potentially lead to a non-functional or truncated protein. This can have significant consequences on the normal function of the protein and may result in a genetic disorder or disease.
In contrast, if a nucleotide is deleted in the intron region of the gene, it generally has a less significant impact on the gene's final protein product. Introns are non-coding regions of the gene that are spliced out during mRNA processing. Deletions in the intron region often do not affect the coding sequence of the gene, as long as the splicing process is not disrupted. However, there are some rare cases where intronic deletions can affect gene regulation or alternative splicing, which can lead to abnormal protein production or gene expression patterns.