DNA and Genes Flashcards
Where is DNA found?
in the nucleus
Where are genes located?
encoded into DNA
What is DNA the template for?
RNA
What is RNA a template for?
proteins
What is the process called where RNA is formed from DNA?
transcription
What is the process called where proteins are formed from RNA?
translation
Who first discovered the double helix?
Watson and Crick
What are the names of the DNA bases?
adenine, thymine, cytosine and guanine
Which bases bond with each other?
adenine to thymine and guanine to cytosine
Which base pairs are joined by a double bond?
adenine and thymine
Which base pairs are joined by a triple bond?
guanine and cytosine
What is a nucleosome the packing unit of?
chromosomes
What is nucleosome formed of?
2 wraps of DNA around a protein
How many stages of folding are involved in forming chromosomes?
6
What do hox genes define?
body position/axis
By what process is hereditary information passed along?
templated polymerisation
What is the function of replication origins?
open up DNA down the centre for templated polymerisation
What cell phase does DNA replication occur in?
interphase
After what point can mitosis occur?
when DNA is fully copied
What does a gene contain?
the entire nucleotide sequence necessary to produce mRNA which codes for a protein
What additional sequences may be encoded in a gene that are not involved in protein coding?
regulatory region, promoter, intron, exon
What do regulatory regions and promoters do in DNA?
help to decide if a gene will be translated
What do introns do in genes?
encodes for mRNA but not protein, are removed
What do exons do in genes?
encode for mRNA and protein
What is the enzyme used in the transcription of DNA to RNA?
RNA polymerase
What happens in the first stage of DNA transcription?
RNA polymerase and associated factors unwind small region of DNA helix and initiate RNA synthesis using one strand of DNA as template
What strand of DNA does RNA polymerase make an RNA copy of?
sense strand
What strand of DNA is used as the template for RNA polymerase?
anti-sense strand
In what direction does RNA polymerase move along the template strand (anti sense)
3’ primed to 5’ primed
What primed end of the RNA chain are nucleotides added to?
3’
What is the sugar in DNA?
deoxyribose
What are the bases in DNA?
adenine, thymine, guanine and cytosine
What is the sugar in RNA?
ribose
What are the bases in RNA?
adenine, guanine, cytosine and uracil
What happens to intron sequences when pre mRNA matures?
form looped structures and are spliced out
At what primes is mRNA modified?
5’ and 3’ ends
What happens during capping of mRNA?
cap structure is added to 5’ end of mRNA shortly after transcription is initiated