QCE Biology Unit 4 - Topic 1 - DNA Flashcards
What are the two types of nucleic acids?
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA)
What do all nucleotides have?
A sugar ring, a phosphate and a nitrogen base
What do the sugar and the phosphate combine to create in a nucleic acid?
the sugar creates a strong bond with the phosphate, creating a sugar-phosphate backbone
What does the nitrogen base do in a nucleic acid?
nitrogen bases help form the structure, allowing them to carry and transmit genetic information
RNA consists of a ______ sugar-phosphate backbone with an ________ base
single, unpaired
(note: unpaired here means that there’s just one strand, so no base pairs)
DNA consists of a _______ sugar-phosphate backbone with the base pairs bonding with the ________ _____
double, complementary pair
What are the two ends of the sugar-phosphate backbone?
the 3’ end (hydroxyl group exposed) and the 5’ end (phosphate exposed)
How can you recognise a 3’ (3 prime) end?
the end of the strand has the third carbon atom of the sugar molecule and free hydroxyl group (OH-) not linked to anything else
How can you recognise a 5’ end?
the end of the strand has the fifth carbon atom of the sugar molecule and a free phosphate group
Why are DNA strands antiparallel?
crucial for stability and functioning, allows for pairing with complementary bases
What are the four nitrogen bases in RNA?
adenine, guanine, cytosine, uracil
What are the four nitrogen bases in DNA?
adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine
Which nitrogen bases are purines?
guanine and adenine
What are purines?
a double carbon-ringed nitrogen base
Which nitrogen bases are pyrimidines?
cytosine, thymine, uracil
What are pyrimidines?
only has a single carbon-ring nitrogen base
In DNA, the uracil is replaced with….
thymine
List the two base pairs in RNA
cytosine-guanine
adenine-uracil
List the two base pairs in DNA
cytosine-guanine
adenine-thymine
What are the base pairs (purine and pyrimidine bases) bonded by?
a weak hydrogen bond
What is the difference between the sugar used in DNA and RNA?
RNA uses the sugar ribose (RIBO nucleic acid) and DNA uses the sugar deoxyribose (DEOXYRIBOSE nucleic acid)
DNA always forms a shape known as…
the double helix
What are nucleosomes and what are they comprised of?
its a molecule that prevents the DNA from tangling or breaking, comprised of 8 proteins called histones
How do nucleosomes and DNA interact?
The DNA wraps around the nucleosome 1 and 3/4 times, ensuring order and structural integrity (no tangles/breaks)
Why are histone tails important?
they can be chemically modified, which means that epigenetic factors (lifestyle, stress, diet) influences how DNA behaves. as histones control how tightly the DNA is wound, it can influence how freely DNA is copied.
What is a gene?
segment of DNA that codes for a protein (which gives a trait)
What is a chromosome?
a long continuous thread of DNA that consists of numerous genes
no gene is the same because the ____ of the ____ are different.
order, bases
What are the two main types of chromosomes?
prokaryotic and eukaryotic chromosomes
How many chromosomes do humans have?
46 chromosomes in 23 pairs
What are the characteristics of prokaryotic chromosomes? (you should list 4 things in total)
no nucleus, have a single chromosome floating freely about the cell, DNA is circular and not bound to histone proteins
Which organelles have DNA similar to prokaryotic DNA?
mitochondria and chloroplasts
Where are the eukaryotic chromosomes found?
Within the nucleus of the cell
Eukaryotic chromosomes come in pairs, passed on to offspring via…
sexual reproduction
What are the four main steps of DNA replication? (acronym for you: SPBET 💫)
- Separation of DNA strands
- Primer binding
- Elongation
- Termination
What does DNA helicase do in DNA replication?
breaks the hydrogen bonds between the nitrogen bases so DNA ‘unzips’
What does DNA polymerase do in DNA replication?
Joins individual nucleotides to make complementary strands and proofreads the sequence of bases and corrects errors
Why is the direction of the DNA important in regards to DNA polymerase?
DNA direction is important because DNA polymerase can only add nucleotides from the 5’ to 3’ direction
What is semiconservative replication?
DNA replication where each replicated DNA contains one strand of the original and one newly synthesised strand
What is a replication bubble?
A locally denatured segment of DNA where replication originates
What is the separation step of DNA replication?
separating the two DNA strands of the parental molecule by DNA helicase attaching at points of origin, attaching and unwinding the DNA
What is the primer binding step of DNA replication?
RNA primase (primer) binds to the 3’ end of the leading strand, signifying the starting point of replication
What is the elongation step of DNA replication?
The leading strands starts by DNA polymerase binding to the site of the primer and beginning adding complementary nucleotides.
The lagging strand begins replication by binding with multiple primers. DNA polymerase adds pieces of DNA (Okazaki fragments) to the strand between the primers. Once the OF’s cover the whole lagging strand, RNA primers are removed and replaced with DNA ligase (basically a glue lol)
What are Okazaki fragments?
Short lengths of single-stranded DNA made on the lagging strand, and the replication is discontinuous as the newly created fragments are disjointed.
What is the termination step of DNA replication?
Occurs when the replication fork is stopped/blocked. A termination sequence is a nucleic acid sequence that marks the end of the replication site. Result is 2 identical DNA strands, joined at the centromere. This produces the X shaped chromosome with 2 chromatids.
What are homologous chromosomes?
pairs of matching chromosomes that carry the same genes
What are diploid cells?
presence of two complete sets of chromosomes (homologous) in an organism’s cells, with each parent contributing a chromosome to each pair.
What are haploid cells?
cells with a single set of chromosomes (egg and sperm cells)
What does n stand for in diploid (2n) and haploid (n) cells?
n stands for the number of chromosomes, diploid have 2 sets, haploid have one set
What are the six steps of mitosis?
interphase, prophase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase, cytokinesis
What is mitosis?
Cell division that generates new cells for growth and repair. The division of one cell into two genetically identical daughter cells with the same amount of chromosomes
What is interphase (mitosis)?
Time when the cell growing and “living” – when it is not actively dividing, about 90% of the cell’s life
Following DNA replication, there is twice the amount of ___ but the number of ___________ remain the same.
DNA, chromosomes
Chromosomes can be ______ or ________
single, bivalent (two chromatids)
What happens during prophase (mitosis)?
- DNA threads condense to form condensed, thick chromosomes containing two chromatids
- protein threads create a spindle that spans the length of the cell (the spindles are called poles), the middle region is the equator
- the nuclear membrane breaks down
What happens in metaphase (mitosis)?
Chromosomes line up in the middle of the cell and attach the centromere to a spindle fibre
What happens in anaphase (mitosis)?
Chromatids separate and begin to move to opposite ends of the cell
What happens in telophase (mitosis)?
- chromosomes congregate tightly at each pole
- the spindle breaks down,
- new nucleus formed
- chromosomes uncoil to revert to chromatin threads
What is chromatin?
DNA molecules that are tightly coiled around proteins call histones (uncoiled DNA)
What happens during cytokinesis (mitosis)?
Cytoplasm divides and results in 2 identical daughter cells.
What is meiosis?
a type of cell division that results in four daughter cells each with half the number of chromosomes of the parent cell, as in the production of gametes and plant spores.
Meiosis goes from _______ ____ to _______ ____
diploid cells, haploid cells
What are the two stages of meiosis?
Meiosis I (separation of bivalent chromosomes into separate cells) and Meiosis II (separation of the sister chromatids at the centromere)
What is crossing over?
the random exchange of alleles between homologous chromosomes, resulting in a mixture of parental characteristics in offspring. happens when the chromatids become entwined and genetic information is exchanged. this mixture is called RECOMBINATION, increasing variation
What are alleles?
alternative version of a gene
What happens in Prophase I (meiosis)? (there are 4 steps)
- starts with a diploid cell with two uncoiled, spread-out sets of DNA (one from each parent).
- after replication, it condenses into 4 chromosomes. then, synapsis happens. synapsis is when a chromosome pairs up and binds with its homologous chromosome, forming a tetrad.
- then, crossing over happens.
- the nucleus disappears, the centrioles move to opposite ends of the cell, and spindle fibres fan out.
What happens in Metaphase I (meiosis)?
the homologous chromosomes line up in the equator and attach to spindle fibres
What happens during Anaphase I (meiosis)?
spindles pull homologous chromosomes apart (2 on each side), but still x shaped because sister chromatids remain joined at the centromeres
What happens during Telophase I (meiosis)?
the spindle fibres disappear, nuclear membrane reforms, cytokinesis occurs
What happens in Prophase II (meiosis)?
(note: now there are two haploid cells, each with one set of chromosomes, no DNA replication happens)
the nuclear membrane disappears and spindles fan out from the centrioles.
What happens in Metaphase II (meiosis)?
Chromosomes line up in the middle of the cell and attach to spindle fibres from both poles
What happens in Anaphase II (meiosis)?
The sister chromatids are pulled apart (one half of an X to each side of the two cells) by spindle fibres and move to opposite sides of the cell. they are now not sister chromatids, but chromosomes.