Question

What can happen if the TRP operon is turned on?

Answer 1

TRP operon:

1. TRP operon is a type of repressible operon and is generally found in anabolic pathways.
2. TRP operon stays active and the functional product or enzyme is already present in the cell.
3. When this end product has reached its maximum value, the operon is turned off.
4. The TRP operon includes five genes that encode enzymes needed for tryptophan biosynthesis, along with a promoter (RNA polymerase binding site) & an operator (binding site for a repressor protein).
5. The genes of such TRP operon are transcribed as single mRNA.
6. TRP operon is turned on when such tryptophan levels are low.
7. When the TRP operon is turned on, these genes are expressed, transcription is initiated and tryptophan is synthesized.

Bacteria like Escherichia coli (a friendly inhabitant of our gut) need many amino acids to survive—because, like us, they also need to build proteins. One of the amino acids they need is tryptophan.