DNA AND PROTEIN SYNTHESIS TEST REVIEW Flashcards
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid, a polymer of nucleotides which are formed by dehydration synthesis. It is the UNITY of life
3 major functions of DNA
Controls cellular activities, DNA replication, and undergoes mutations
Significance of codes in DNA
Genetic information are encoded in the sequence of bases strung together in DNA
XX chromosome
Female
XY chromosome
Male
Two types of nucleic acids
DNA and RNA
Mutations
Mistakes during DNA replication
Significance of mutations
Different combinations of DNA sequences due to mutations and sexual reproduction explain the existence of all the different species that have lived on earth, creating diversity
First form of life on planet
Self-replicating strand of RNA, such as a virus
Who discovered DNA double helix
James Watson and Francis Crick
DNA and RNA are polymers of ___
Nucleotides
What is composed in a nucleotide
- 5 carbon pentose sugar (deoxyribose/ribose)
- Phosphate group
- Nitrogen base
Two types of bases
Purines and pyrimidines
Differences between purines and pyrimidines
Purines have a double carbon ring structure whereas pyrimidines have a single carbon ring structure.
Purines
Adenine and guanine
Pyrimidines
Thymine, cytosine, and uracil (RNA only)
DNA strand explanation
Sequence of nucleotides linked together by synthesis to form double helix. Each strand composed of backbone of alternating phosphate group and deoxyribose molecules with nitrogen base attached to the sugar unit
Anti-parallel
One side of DNA molecule is 5’ to 3’. The other side is upside down running from 3’ to 5’
Bonds holding the strands
Hydrogen bonds. The bases stick out the side of sugar molecules and are linked to bases of other strand
Complementary base pairing
Purine with a pyrimidine. Adenine bonds with thymine (2 hydrogen bonds) and guanine bonds with cytosine (3 hydrogen bonds)
Chargaff’s rule
Number of purine bases are always equal to the number of pyrimidine bases
Significance of sequence of bases
Codes heredity information in genetic code in DNA and RNA
Are DNA strands long
Yes
How long is a DNA strand stretched and how many pairs of bases
About 6 feet long and 3.2 billion pairs of bases