NUCLEIC ACIDS
Week 16
Learning Outcomes:
• Describe the nitrogen bases and ribose sugars that make up
the nucleic acids DNA and RNA.
• Draw the general structure of DNA and RNA molecules.
• Differentiate structure of DNA from RNA
• Explain DNA replication
• List three classes of RNA molecules and describe their
functions.
• Explain the process of transcription.
• Describe the process of translation.
• Describe the functions of the codons in the genetic code.
NUCLEIC ACIDS
• Molecules in our cells
that store and direct
information for
cellular growth and
reproduction
• Made up of
nucleotides, found as
a double helix in
DNA,and as single
strands in RNA.
Two Types of Nucleic Acids:
• DNA: Deoxyribonucleic Acid: Found within cell nucleus
• Storage and transfer of genetic information (genome)
• Passed from one cell to other during cell division
• RNA: Ribonucleic Acid: Occurs in all parts of cell
• Primary function is to synthesize the proteins
• Translates the genome in DNA and carries it to the
ribosome where the synthesis of protein takes place.
NUCLEIC ACIDS
• A Nucleotide has three
components:
• Pentose Sugar -
Monosaccharide
• Phosphate Group
(PO43-)
• Heterocyclic Base
Pentose Sugar
• Ribose is present in RNA
and 2-deoxyribose is
present in DNA
• Structural difference:
• a —OH group present on
carbon 2’ in ribose
• a —H atom in 2-
deoxyribose
• RNA and DNA differ in the
identity of the sugar unit in
their nucleotides.
Nitrogen-Containing Heterocyclic Bases
• Heterocyclic amines
• Cyclic compounds with at least 1 nitrogen atom in the ring structure
• There are a total five bases (four of them in most of DNA
and RNAs)
• Three pyrimidine derivatives - thymine (T), cytosine (C),
and uracil (U)
• Two purine derivatives - adenine (A) and guanine (G)
• Adenine (A), guanine (G), and cytosine (C) are found in both
DNA and RNA.
• Uracil (U): found only in RNA
• Thymine (T) found only in DNA.
Major Purine Bases
• Purines are a double ring structure
• A 6-member ring fused to a 5-member ring
Major Pyrimidine Bases
Pyrimidines consist of a single 6-membered
ring
Phosphate
• Phosphate - third
component of a
nucleotide is derived
from phosphoric acid
(H3PO4)
• Under cellular pH
conditions, the
phosphoric acid is fully
dissociated to give a
hydrogen phosphate ion
(HPO42-)
Nucleoside Formation
• Nucleoside- produced when pyrimidine or purine forms a
glycosidic bond at C1’ of a sugar either ribose or
deoxyriose
Nucleotide Formation
• Formed when the C5’ –OH group of ribose or deoxyribose
in a nucleoside forms a phosphate ester.
• Two step process:
• The pentose sugar and nitrogenous base react to
form a “Nucleoside”
• The Nucleoside reacts with a phosphate group to
form a “Nucleotide”
Nucleotide Formation
Naming Nucleotides
• The name of a nucleotide is obtained from the name of
the nucleoside followed by 5’-monophoshate
• Nucleotides of DNA have the prefix –deoxy added to the
beginning of the of the nucleoside name.
• The letters A,G, C, U and T represent the bases, they are
often used in the abbreviations of the respective
nucleotides as well
Primary Structure of Nucleic Acids
• Refers to the unique sequence of the bases in nucleic
acids
• It is this sequence that carries the genetic information
from one cell to the next.
• Sugar-phosphate groups are referred to as nucleic acid
backbone - Found in all nucleic acids
• In any nucleic acid,
the sugar at the one
end has an
unreacted or free 5’-
phosphate terminal
end, and the sugar
at the other end has
free 3’-hydroxyl
group.
• The nucleic acid
sequence is read
from the from the
sugar with the free 5’-
phosphate to the
sugar with the free 3’-
hydroxyl group. The
order of bases is
often written using
only the letters of the
bases
• 5’-TGCA-3’
DNA
• Proposed in 1953 by James Watson and Francis Crick as
a double helix that consists of the polynucleotide strands
winding about each other like a spiral staircase
• Nucleic acids have secondary and tertiary structure
• The secondary structure involves two polynucleotide
chains coiled around each other in a helical fashion
• The two polynucleotides
run anti-parallel
(opposite directions) to
each other, i.e., 5’ - 3’
and 3’ - 5’
• The bases are located at
the center and hydrogen
bonded (A=T and GΞC)
• Base composition: %A =
%T and %C = %G)
• Example: Human DNA
contains 30% adenine,
30% thymine, 20%
guanine and 20%
Complementary Base Pairs
• plays a crucial role in cell replication and transfer of
hereditary information
• Complementary bases are pairs of bases in a nucleic acid
structure that can hydrogen-bond to each other.
• Adenosine bonds only to Thymine
• Guanine bonds only to Cytosine
• A-T and G-C
• The specificity of the bond pairing is due to the fact that
adenine and thymine form two hydrogen bonds while
cytosine and guanine form hydrogen bonds.
• X-ray diffraction patterns of DNA indicate that is a right-
handed or α-helix
• In mitochondria, bacteria, and viruses, DNA molecules are
compact, highly coiled molecules.
• In the chromosomes, DNA strands are wrapped around
proteins called histones, a structure that provides the
most stable and orderly arrangement for the long DNA
molecules.
• Example :
• List of bases in sequential order in the direction from the
5’ end to 3’ end of the segment:
• 5’-A-A-G-C-T-A-G-C-T-T-A-C-T-3’
• Complementary strand of this sequence will be:
3’-T-T-C-G-A-T-C-G-A-A-T-G-A-5’
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reserved
Practice Exercise
• Predict the sequence of bases in the DNA strand
complementary to the single DNA strand shown below:
5’ A–A–T–G–C–A–G–C–T 3’
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reserved
Practice Exercise
• Predict the sequence of bases in the DNA strand
complementary to the single DNA strand shown below:
5’ A–A–T–G–C–A–G–C–T 3’
Answer:
3’ T–T–A–C–G–T–C–G–A 5’
DNA Replication
• Process by which DNA molecules produce exact
duplicates of themselves
• During DNA replication, DNA polymerase makes new
DNA strands along each of the original DNA strands that
serve as templates
• Complementary base pairing ensures the correct pairing
of bases to give identical copies of the original DNA.
[Link]
Information Flow in Biological Systems
• The central dogma states that the flow of biological
information in cells is DNA RNA protein.
• The RNA is unbranched polymers of nucleotides that
makes up most of the nucleic acid found in the cell.
• Involved in transmitting the genetic informations needed
to operate the cell
Differences of DNA and RNA
• The sugar in RNA is
ribose while in DNA its
deoxyribose
• The nitrogen base uracil
replaces thymine
• RNA moleucles are
single,not double stranded
• RNA molecues are much
Types of RNA
• Ribosomal RNA (rRNA)-major components of the
ribosomes responsible for protein synthesis
• Messenger RNA (mRNA)-carries information for
protein synthesis from the DNA in the nucleus to the
ribosomes
• Transfer RNA (tRNA) translates the genetic code of the
mRNA into primary sequence of amino acids in the
protein (clover leaf shaped)
Transcription
• The process by which RNA polymerase produces mRNA
from one strand of DNA
• The bases in the mRNA are complementary to DNA
except U is paired with A in RNA.
• The production of mRNA occurs when certain proteins
are needed in the cell
• It has 3 stages: Initiation, Elongation and Termination
• Initiation- binding of RNA polymerase to a specific nucleotide
sequence (the promoter) to recognize the start point of transcription.
And it determines also the DNA strand that will be transcribed.
• Chain Elongation- RNA polymerase catalyzes the polymerization of
the RNA copy
• Termination- RNA polymerase finds an termination sequence at the
end of the gene and releases the newly formed RNA molecule.
Translation
• The process by which the genetic message on the mRNA
is read by the tRNA to produce a protein. (protein
synthesis).
• Stages: Initiation: The start codon (5’AUG) must be recognized.
This codon is specific to the amino acid methionine, which is nearly
always the first amino acid in a polypeptide chain.
• Elongation: involves peptide bond formation and growing of
polypeptide chain.
• Termination: happens when a stop codon which has a release
factor frees the polypeptide chain from the ribosome
GENETIC CODE
• a sequece of three bases (triplet) or codon that specifies
each amino acid in protein
• The codons have now been determined for all 20 amino
acids
• A total of 64 codons are possible from the triplet
combination of A,G, C and U
mRNA Codons
• UGA, UAA and UAG are stop signals that code for the
termination of protein synthesis
• The codon - coding for the amino acid methionine (AUG)
functions as initiation codon.
Practice:
• What is the sequenc of amino acids coded by the
following codons in mRNA?
5’-GUC-AGC-CCA-3’
Practice:
• What is the sequenc of amino acids coded by the
following codons in mRNA?
5’-GUC-AGC-CCA-3’
GUC- valine
AGC- serine
CCA- Proline
The sequence of amino acid is Val-Ser-Pro
Genetic Mutation
• Change in the DNA nucleotide sequence that alters
sequence of amino acids, which may alter the structure
and function of a protein in a cell
• Silent Mutation- do not cause any change in the function
of the protein encoded by the gene.
• Some mutations are known to destroy or damage the
functions of a protein. May have result from X-rays,
overexposure to sun (ultraviolet or UV light), chemical
called mutagens and possibly some viruses.
Types of Mutations
• Substitution Mutation – replacement of one base in the
coding strand of DNA with another
• Frameshift Mutation- a base is added or deleted from
normal order of bases in the coding strand of DNA.
• The most detrimental mutation
Effect of Mutation
• When the mutation causes a change in the amino acid
sequence, the structure of the resulting protein can be
altered severely and may lose its biological activity.
• If a defective enzyme occurs in a metabolic pathway or in
building of a cell membrane, the mutation can be lethal.
• When a protein deficiency is genetic, the condition is
called a genetic disease.
