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Nucleic Acid Flashcards

1
Q

Who was the first person to identify “nuclein” inside the nuclei of white blood cells (WBC)?

A

Friedrich Miescher

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2
Q

What material did Friedrich Miescher use to extract DNA?

A

Pus from surgical bandages

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3
Q

What are the three major components of a nucleotide, as discovered by Phoebus Levene?

A

Phosphate, Sugar, Base

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4
Q

What carbohydrate component is found in DNA?

A

Deoxyribose

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5
Q

According to Erwinn Chargaff, the total amount of which two nitrogenous bases equals the total amount of pyrimidines?

A

Adenine + Guanine (purines) = Cytosine + Thymine (pyrimidines)

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6
Q

Who proposed the double helix structure of DNA?

A

James Watson & Francis Crick

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7
Q

What technique was crucial in determining the 3D structure of DNA?

A

X-ray Crystallography

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8
Q

Which two researchers conducted the X-ray crystallography work that helped Watson and Crick?

A

Rosalind Franklin & Maurice Wilkins

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9
Q

Who first identified the carbohydrate component of RNA?

A

Phoebus Levene

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10
Q

What enzyme is responsible for synthesizing RNA from a DNA template?

A

RNA Polymerase

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11
Q

Why is Friedrich Miescher often overlooked despite his discovery of DNA?

A

His discovery was overshadowed by later researchers, despite being the first to extract and identify DNA

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12
Q

How did Phoebus Levene contribute to understanding DNA structure?

A

He discovered the order of nucleotide components and correctly identified how DNA and RNA molecules are put together.

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13
Q

What important observation did Chargaff make about nucleotide composition?

A

He discovered that the nucleotide composition of DNA varies among species and that purines and pyrimidines exist in equal amounts.

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14
Q

How did Rosalind Franklin’s work contribute to the discovery of DNA’s structure?

A

Her X-ray crystallography images provided the key evidence for the double helix model.

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15
Q

Why was Watson and Crick’s discovery of the DNA structure significant for molecular biology?

A

It provided a foundational understanding of DNA’s structure, leading to advances in genetics and molecular biology.

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16
Q

Who proposed the Human Genome Project in 1987?

A

Dr. Alvin W. Trivelpiece

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17
Q

How long was the Human Genome Project originally estimated to take?

A

15 years

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18
Q

In what years did the Human Genome Project operate?

A

1990 to 2003

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19
Q

What was the main goal of the Human Genome Project?

A

To determine, store, and publicly share the sequences of almost all the human genome

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20
Q

How many chemical base pairs make up the human genome?

A

3 billion base pairs

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21
Q

What are three key objectives of the Human Genome Project besides sequencing the human genome?

A

(1) Improve technologies to interpret genomic sequences, (2) Identify all genes in human DNA, (3) Address ethical, legal, and social implications

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22
Q

What database, along with the Human Genome Database, helped identify genes associated with diseases?

A

HapMap database

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23
Q

How has the Human Genome Project contributed to medicine?

A

It has helped identify genes associated with diseases, allowing for more accurate diagnoses, even before symptoms appear.

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24
Q

What is personalized medicine?

A

A medical approach that tailors treatments to a patient’s unique genome.

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25
What field of science is personalized medicine anchored in?
Molecular Biology
26
What are the five elements that make up DNA?
Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Phosphorus, Hydrogen
27
What is the function of DNA in an organism?
DNA holds genetic information unique to an organism.
28
What are the three components of a nucleotide?
Nitrogenous base, Pentose sugar, Phosphate group
29
What is a polynucleotide?
A macromolecule made of many nucleotide monomers (the “building blocks” of nucleic acids).
30
What are the four nitrogenous bases found in DNA?
Adenine, Guanine, Cytosine, Thymine
31
Which nitrogenous base is found in RNA but not in DNA?
Uracil
32
What are the four nitrogenous bases found in DNA?
Adenine (A), Thymine (T), Cytosine (C), Guanine (G)
33
Which nitrogenous base is found in RNA but not in DNA?
Uracil (U)
34
What is the structural difference between purines and pyrimidines?
Purines have a double-ring structure (9-membered), while pyrimidines have a single-ring structure (6-membered).
35
Which nitrogenous bases are purines?
Adenine (A) and Guanine (G)
36
Which nitrogenous bases are pyrimidines?
Thymine (T), Cytosine (C), and Uracil (U in RNA)
37
Why is the sugar in DNA called deoxyribose?
DNA lacks an -OH (hydroxyl) group at the C-2’ position, making it “deoxygenated” compared to RNA.
38
What functional group is found at the C-2’ position in RNA but not in DNA?
Hydroxyl (-OH) group
39
What makes ribose structurally different from deoxyribose?
Ribose has a hydroxyl (-OH) group at the C-2’ position, while deoxyribose has only a hydrogen (H) at that position.
40
What is the bond that links nucleotides together in a DNA strand?
Phosphodiester bond
41
What components make up a nucleoside?
Nitrogenous base + Pentose sugar
42
What additional component is added to a nucleoside to form a nucleotide?
Phosphate group
43
What type of bond connects a phosphate group to a sugar in a nucleotide?
Phosphoester bond
44
What is the difference between a phosphomonoester bond and a phosphodiester bond?
A phosphomonoester bond connects a phosphate group to one sugar, while a phosphodiester bond links two sugars via a phosphate group, forming the backbone of DNA.
45
What are the two ends of a DNA strand called?
3’ end and 5’ end
46
How do the two strands of DNA interact to form the double helix?
strands of DNA intertwine to form a double helix, with nitrogenous bases pairing through hydrogen bonds.
47
How are the carbon atoms in the ribose sugar numbered?
From 1’ (one prime) to 5’ (five prime) to distinguish sugar carbons from nitrogen base ring carbons.
48
What type of bond connects the nitrogenous base to the sugar in a nucleoside?
Glycosidic bond
49
What is a nucleoside monophosphate?
A nucleotide with one phosphate group attached to the nucleoside.
50
How is a nucleoside diphosphate formed?
By adding a second phosphate group to a nucleoside monophosphate.
51
What is the significance of nucleoside triphosphates?
They serve as precursor molecules for nucleic acid synthesis in the cell.
52
What type of bond connects nucleotides in a polynucleotide chain?
Phosphodiester bond
53
What two sugar carbons are involved in forming a phosphodiester bond?
5’ carbon of one sugar and 3’ carbon of another sugar
54
What kind of reaction forms a phosphodiester bond?
Dehydration reaction (removal of a water molecule)
55
What is the function of the sugar-phosphate backbone in DNA?
It provides structural stability and directionality to the DNA strand.
56
How is the DNA chain given polarity?
By having a 5’ phosphate end and a 3’ hydroxyl end.
57
What are the two ends of a DNA strand called?
5’ end (with a free phosphate) and 3’ end (with a free hydroxyl group).
58
What does it mean that DNA is antiparallel?
The two DNA strands run in opposite directions: one strand is 5’ to 3’, while the other is 3’ to 5’
59
Where are the nitrogenous bases located in the DNA double helix?
Toward the center of the double helix, where they form base pairs
60
What type of bond stabilizes base pairing in DNA?
Hydrogen bonds
61
How do the two strands of DNA remain connected to form a stable double helix?
Hydrogen bonding between complementary nitrogenous bases holds the two strands together.

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