The Genetic Material? ...............................................................................................................................

1
Halcyon Days ............................................................................................................................................1
Worlds Apart .............................................................................................................................................1
Strange Genomes, Strange Genetics .........................................................................................................2 The
Age of Aquarius .................................................................................................................................2 All that
Junk ..............................................................................................................................................2 The
Expanding Repertoire of RNA ..........................................................................................................2 Glimpses
of a Modern RNA World ...........................................................................................................3 Genome
Sequencing and Transposable Elements .....................................................................................3 The Human
Genome .................................................................................................................................3 Small RNAs with
Mighty Functions .........................................................................................................4 Large RNAs with Many
Functions ...........................................................................................................4 The
Epigenome ..........................................................................................................................................4 The
Programming of Development ...........................................................................................................5 RNA
Rules ................................................................................................................................................5
Plasticity ....................................................................................................................................................5
Beyond the Jungle of Dogmas ...................................................................................................................6
Chapter 2 The Genetic
Material? ...............................................................................................................................9 Sugars and
Fats ..........................................................................................................................................9 Proteins: ‘The
Locus of Life’ ....................................................................................................................9 Nucleic Acids and
Chromosomes............................................................................................................ 11 Chromosomes as the
Mediators of Genetic Inheritance .........................................................................12 The Modern
Synthesis.............................................................................................................................15 Distinguishing
DNA and RNA ...............................................................................................................16 One Gene-One
Protein and the ‘Nature of Mutations’ ........................................................................... 17 DNA Is the Genetic
Material ..................................................................................................................20 The Double Helix – Icon
of the Coming Age .........................................................................................20 Further
Reading ......................................................................................................................................22 Chapter 3
Halcyon Days ..........................................................................................................................................23 The
Big Question .....................................................................................................................................23 Discovery
of the Ribosome .....................................................................................................................23 The Messenger
and the Adaptor ..............................................................................................................24 The ‘Genetic
Code’ .................................................................................................................................26 The Lac Operon
and Gene Regulation ...................................................................................................27 Protein
Structure ..................................................................................................................................... 31 The Central
Dogma ................................................................................................................................. 31 It’s All Over
Now ....................................................................................................................................32 Further
Reading ...................................