Question

6.) Vitamin C is an essential dietary vitamin for us because we cannot make it in our own bodies, the way that most animals can. This is because an important gene was inactivated by mutation in one of our ancestors millions of years ago. But vitamin C is not a protein. How can there be a gene to code for a molecule that is not a protein? (You may have to look some things up to answer this.) 7.) RNA polymerase is the enzyme that reads a DNA sequence and “writes it" into a new RNA molecule. Most of our genome is NOT genes, though. How does RNA polymerase know where to find genes and start transcribingthem? (2-3 detailed sentences, and note differences between bacteria and eukaryotes.)

Answer 1

6. Humans cannot synthesize vitamin C in their bodies. they have to obtain it from their diet.
This is due to the fact that humans are mutant for L-gluconolactone oxidase.
L-gulonolactone oxidase produces the precursor to Ascorbic acid.
Ascorbic acid is spontaneously converted to vitamin C.

So, We cannot synthesize vitamin C in our body due to a mutation in a gene.

7. The promoter is the binding site for RNA polymerase.
RNA polymerase is recruited to the promoter by transcription factors.
Functional genes contain promoters to mediate their transcription.