CB3 DNA & Protein Structure

Question 1

Describe the molecular structure of nucleic acids & proteins

Answer 1

Nuclei acids: DNA & RNA, composed of nucleotide monomers (pentose sugar,phosphate, nitrogen- containing base A, G, C, T

Proteins: composed of amino acid monomers (amino group, carboxyl group, h atom, side-chain)

Question 2

Name the monomers that make up nucleic acids & proteins

Answer 2

Nucleic acids = nucleotides

Proteins = amino acids

Question 3

Explain the concept of complementarity in nucleic acids

Answer 3

Adenine always pairs with thymine (or uracil)
Cytosine always pairs with guanine

Nuclei acid strand specifies the complementary strand

Question 4

Describe the colinearity of protein & nucleic acids

Answer 4

Nuclei acids and proteins are co-linear
The order of nuclei acids in DNA /RNA can specify the order of amino acids in protein

Question 5

Describe the relationship between nucleic acids & protein sequences

Answer 5

The genetic code is a triplet code where 3 nucleotides specify 1 amino acid
The amino acid sequence determines the primary structure of the protein