51 WJEC Biology AS Level - Study And Revision Guide - Neil Roberts (1.5 Nucleic Acids And Their Functions) Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
1
Q

What are DNA and RNA made up of?

A

Both DNA and RNA are made up of monomers called nucleotides.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What does each nucleotide contain?

A

Each nucleotide contains

  1. a phosphate group
  2. a nitrogen-containing organic base
  3. a pentose (5-carbon) sugar
    either ribose (RNA) or deoxyribose (DNA)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

How many groups of organic bases are there?

A

There are two groups of organic bases

  1. pyrimidines (single ring)
  2. purines (double ring).
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What are the nitrogenous bases found in DNA and RNA?

A

Four nitrogenous bases found in DNA -

  1. Guanine (purine)
  2. Adenine (purine)
  3. Cytosine (pyrimidine)
  4. Thymine (pyrimidine in DNA)
  5. Uracil (pyrimidine in RNA)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What is adenosine triphosphate?

A

Adenosine triphosphate is also a nucleotide

It has a ribose sugar joined to the adenine base,
with three phosphate groups attached.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Describe the reaction that breaks down ATP.

A

When the high-energy bond between the second and third phosphate group is broken via hydrolysis by the enzyme ATPase -

  1. 30.6 kJ of energy is released for use in the cell
  2. Adenosine diphosphate is formed.

This reaction is reversible.
It requires energy from respiration of glucose to reform the bond.

ATP →→→ ADP+ Pi + 30.6kJ energy
(Pi = inorganic phosphate)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What is important to remember when spelling the various nucleotides.

A

Candidates often write

  1. thiamine instead of thymine
  2. cysteine instead of cytosine.

Thiamine is a vitamin
Cysteine is an amino acid

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is important to remember when spelling ATP?

A

It is NOT adenine triphosphate.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

How much ATP do we have in our cells?
How much ATP do we use everyday?
What is the implication?

A

We have a total of 5g of ATP in our cells
We use up 50kg every day.

This means that this reversible reaction must occur over 10,000 times a day because we cannot store it.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Draw a diagram of a nucleotide.

A
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Draw a diagram of ATP

A
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Draw a diagram of ADP

A
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly