Mol Bol Flashcards
3´–OH terminus
The end of a polynucleotide that terminates with a hydroxyl group attached to the 3´-carbon of the sugar.
5´–P terminus
The end of a polynucleotide that terminates with a mono-, di- or triphosphate attached to the 5´-carbon of the sugar.
β-N-glycosidic bond
The linkage between the base and sugar of a nucleotide.
adenine
A purine base found in DNA and RNA.
A-form
A structural configuration of the double helix, present but not common in cellular DNA.
antiparallel
Refers to the arrangement of polynucleotides in the double helix, these running in opposite directions.
base pairing
The attachment of one polynucleotide to another, or one part of a polynucleotide to another part of the same polynucleotide, by base pairs.
B-form
The commonest structural conformation of the DNA double helix in living cells.
complementary
Refers to two nucleotides or nucleotide sequences that are able to base-pair with one another.
cytosine
One of the pyrimidine bases found in DNA and RNA.
guanine
One of the pyrimidine bases found in DNA and RNA.
hydrogen bond
A weak electrostatic attraction between an electronegative atom such as oxygen or nitrogen and a hydrogen atom attached to a second electronegative atom.
major groove
The larger of the two grooves that spiral around the surface of the B-form of DNA.
minor groove
The smaller of the two grooves that spiral around the surface of the B-form of DNA.
monomer
One of the structural units that are joined together to form a polymer.
nucleoside
A purine or pyrimidine base attached to a five-carbon sugar.
nucleotide
A purine or pyrimidine base attached to a five-carbon sugar, to which a mono-, di-, or triphosphate is also attached. The monomeric unit of DNA and RNA.
pentose
A sugar comprising five carbon atoms.
phosphodiester bond
The chemical link between adjacent nucleotides in a polynucleotide.
polymer
A compound made up of a long chain of identical or similar units
polynucleotide
A single-stranded DNA or RNA molecule.
purine
One of the two types of nitrogenous base found in nucleotides.
pyrimidine
One of the two types of nitrogenous base found in nucleotides.
thymine
One of the pyrimidine bases found in DNA.
Z-DNA
A conformation of DNA in which the two polynucleotides are wound into a left-handed helix.
complex multigene family
A type of multigene family in which the genes have similar nucleotide sequences, but are sufficiently different to code for proteins with distinctive properties.
discontinuous gene
A gene that is split into exons and introns.
exon
A coding region within a discontinuous gene.
intergenic DNA
The regions of a genome that do not contain genes.
intron
A noncoding region within a discontinuous gene
kilobase pair (kb)
1000 base pairs.
megabase pair (Mb)
1000 kb; 1,000,000 bp.
molecular clock
A device based on the inferred mutation rate that enables times to be assigned to the branch points in a gene tree.
multigene family
A group of genes, clustered or dispersed, with related nucleotide sequences.
pseudogene
An inactivated and hence non-functional copy of a gene.
simple multigene family
A multigene family in which all of the genes are the same.
tandem array
A set of identical or very similar genes that are arranged one after the other in a group.
buoyant density
The density possessed by a molecule or particle when suspended in an aqueous salt or sugar solution.
conservative replication
A hypothetical mode of DNA replication in which one daughter double helix is made up of the two parental polynucleotides and the other is made up of two newly synthesized polynucleotides.
dispersive replication
A hypothetical mode of DNA replication in which both polynucleotides of each daughter double helix are made up partly of parental DNA and partly of newly synthesized DNA.
DNA topoisomerase
An enzyme that introduces or removes turns from the double helix by breakage and reunion of one or both polynucleotides.
plectonemic
Refers to a helix whose strands can only be separated by unwinding.
semiconservative replication
The mode of DNA replication in which each daughter double helix is made up of one polynucleotide from the parent and one newly synthesized polynucleotide.
type I topoisomerase
A topoisomerase that makes a single-stranded break in a double-stranded DNA molecule.
type II topoisomerase
A topoisomerase that makes a double-stranded break in a double-stranded DNA molecule.
3´→5´ exonuclease
An enzyme that sequentially removes nucleotides in the 3´→5´ direction from the end of a nucleic acid molecule.
5´→3´ exonuclease
An enzyme that sequentially removes nucleotides in the 5´→3´ direction from the end of a nucleic acid molecule
DNA polymerase III
The main DNA replicating enzyme of bacteria.
DNA polymerase α
The enzyme that primes DNA replication in eukaryotes.
DNA polymerase δ
The main eukaryotic DNA replicating enzyme.
DNA-dependent DNA polymerase
An enzyme that makes a DNA copy of a DNA template.