Lecture 4: Molecular basis of inheritance Flashcards
Your genetic endowment is your
DNA, contained in the 46 chromosomes you inherited from your parents.
Nucleic acids are
unique in their ability to direct their own replication.
The resemblance of offspring to their parents depends on
the precise replication of DNA and its transmission from one generation to the next.
It is this DNA program that directs the development of..
biochemical, anatomical, physiological, and (to some extent) behavioral traits.
Who used X-ray crystallography to study the molecular structure of DNA
Maurice Wilkins and Rosalind Franklin
Franklin’s X-ray crystallographic images of DNA enabled Watson to deduce that:
– DNA was helical,
– the width of the helix
– the spacing of the nitrogenous bases
– the DNA molecule was made up of two strands, forming a double helix
DNA: in April 1953
James Watson and Francis Crick proposed the double-helical model for the structure of DNA
DNA: in 1962
Crick, Watson and Wilkins were awarded the Nobel prize in Physiology/ Medicine.
DNA
deoxyribonucleic acid
DNA is a polymer of ____ each consisting of
NUCLEOTIDES
- A nitrogenous base, thymine, adenine, cytosine or guanine
- A sugar, deoxyribose
- A phosphate group
Nitrogenous bases of DNA
- Thymine
- Adenine
- Cytosine
- Guanine
Structure of DNA;
formation of sugar phosphate backbone
The P group of one nucleotide is attached to the sugar of the next to form the ‘backbone’ of the DNA molecule
Structure of DNA directionality:
from the 5’ end with the P group to the 3’ end with the OH group of the sugar.
DNA: 5’ refers to
the specific carbon of the sugar molecule to which the P group is attached
DNA: 3’ refers to
the carbon in the sugar molecule with the OH group.
The double helix of DNA is due to
the base pairing rules of the different nitrogenous bases.
Adenine and guanine are
purines with 2 organic rings.
Thymine (Uracil) and cytosine are
pyrimidines with a single ring
Adenine always pairs with thymine via
2 hydrogen bonds
Guanine pairs with cytosine via
3 hydrogen bonds
the two strands of DNA run
anti parallel to each other
5’ —–3’
3’——5’
The two strands are held together by
hydrogen bonds between the bases in the interior of the double helix
Watson and Crick noted that the specific base pairing suggested a
possible copying mechanism for genetic material
Each ‘daughter’ DNA molecule consists of
one parental strand and one new strand
DNA replication is a
Semi-conservative model of replication
Each nucleotide that is added to a growing DNA strand is a
Nucleoside triphosphate, adenine, thymine guanine or cytosine triphosphate. (dATP, dTTP, dGTP & dCTP)
DNA polymerases add nucleotides only to the free ___
3’ end of a growing strand
A new DNA strand can elongate only in the
5’ to 3’ direction
The copying of DNA is
remarkably fast and accurate