Keywords Flashcards
Central dogma
The central dogma of molecular biology is “DNA makes RNA and RNA makes protein”
Cell biology
The branch of biology dealing with the study of cells; formation, structure and function
Gene
A distinct sequence of nucleotides forming part of a chromosomes, the order of which determines the order of monomers in a polypeptide/nucleic acid molecule which a cell may synthesise
Replication
Biological process of producing two identical replicas of DNA from one original DNA molecule
Polymerase
An enzyme that synthesises long chains of polymers/nucleic acid
Helicase
An enzyme that utilises energy from nucleotide triphosphate hydrolysis in order to unwind the two annealed nucleic acid strands
Ligase
A specific type of enzyme that facilitates the joining of DNA strands together by catalysing the formation of a phosphodiester bond
Primase
An enzyme that synthesises short RNA sequences called primers; they serve as a starting point for DNA synthesis
Primer
A short single strand of RNA or DNA that serves as a starting point for DNA synthesis
Leading Strand
Strand of DNA being replicated continuously
Lagging Strand
Undergoes replication discontinuously in small fragments
Replication Origin
A particular sequence in a genome where replication is initiated
Telomere
A region of repetitive nucleotide sequences at each end of a chromosome, which protects the end of a chromosome from deterioration
PCR
Polymerase chain reaction is a fast technique used to ‘amplify’ small segments of DNA
Chain Termination
A set of three adjacent bases in the DNA that specifies the end of a polypeptide chain
Template
A molecular mold that shapes the structures or sequence of another molecule
Reverse Complement
Converts a DNA sequence into its reverse, complement or reverse-complement counterpart
Quality Score
Numeric probability that determines if a base is accurately sequenced
Dioxynucleotide
Chain-elongating inhibitors of DNA polymerase