DNA

The Molecule of Life

Specific Objectives
Illustrate the structure of RNA and DNA
Draw a nucleotide
Recognize the structural formulae of

nucleotides, ribose, deoxyribose, pyrimidines

and purines
Explain the importance of hydrogen bonding
and base pairing in DNA replication

What is DNA?
DeoxyriboNucleic Acid
The backbone of DNA is based on a

repeated pattern of a sugar group and a

phosphate group. The full name of DNA,
deoxyribonucleic acid, gives you the
name of the sugar present - deoxyribose.
James Watson and Francis Crick
Model of DNA
Double stranded structure
Bases inside

Deoxyribose

What is DNA Made of?

Deoxyribose sugar
Phosphate
Base (nitrogenous

base):
Purine

A, G

Pyrimidine

T, C

What are the Structures

of the bases?
Purines
Adenine
Guanine

What are the structures of

the bases?
Pyrimidines
Thymine
Cytosine

Base pairing: how it

works
Hydrogen Bonding between bases:
A-T Bonding

2 hydrogen bonds (double bond)

G-C Bonding
3 hydrogen bonds (triple bond)
Donor and Acceptor

A View of base pairing

A:T

A View of Base Pairing

G:C

What is important about base

pairs?
Can predict sequence of one strand based on

the sequence of the other.

Replication and Transcription
Repair of damaged DNA

Linking it all together: Nucleotide

A, G, C or T

Forms sugar
Phosphate
Backbone

What makes
DNA Different
from RNA?

Specific Objectives
Explain DNA as having an anti-parallel

structure
Explain the significance of the 5 and 3 end of
DNA in DNA replication
List the proteins /enzymes involved in DNA
replication
Explain how DNA replication occurs in a semiconservative manner
Explain the process of DNA replication

Joining the nucleotides into a

DNA strand
A DNA strand is simply a string of nucleotides

joined together.
The phosphate group on one nucleotide links
to the 3' carbon atom on the sugar of another
one. In the process, a molecule of water is lost
(condensation reaction).

Joining the nucleotides into a

DNA strand
A DNA strand is simply a string of nucleotides

joined together.
The phosphate group on one nucleotide links
to the 3' carbon atom on the sugar of another
one. In the process, a molecule of water is lost
-condensation reaction.

Joining the nucleotides into a

DNA strand

Anti-parallel structure

Joining the nucleotides into a

DNA strand
What matters in DNA is the sequence the four bases

take up in the chain

Use a simplified diagram in building up the chain

The individual bases are identified by the first letters

of the base names. (A = adenine, etc).

There are two different sizes of base. Adenine and
guanine are bigger because they both have two
rings. Cytosine and thymine only have one ring each.

Joining the nucleotides into a

DNA strand

Joining the two DNA

chains together
A adenine on one chain

is always paired with a

thymine on the second
chain.
And a guanine on one
chain is always paired
with a cytosine on the
other one.
Smaller base is always
paired with a bigger one.
WHY ?

Joining the two DNA

chains together
The pairing has to beexactly
adenine (A) pairs with thymine (T);
guanine (G) pairs with cytosine (C).
That is because these particular pairs fit

exactly to form very effective hydrogen bonds

with each other. It is these hydrogen bonds
which hold the two chains together.

Joining the two DNA

chains together
The pairing has to beexactly
adenine (A) pairs with thymine (T);
guanine (G) pairs with cytosine (C).

Joining the two DNA

chains together

5 3 notation
will become
important
when we
discuss genetic
code

Replication:
Why?
When cells replicate, each new cell needs its own copy

of DNA.

Where?
Nucleus in Eukaryotes.
Cytosol in Prokaryotes

When?
S phase of cell cycle

What?
Many proteins: major is DNA Polymerase

How?

Three theories for DNA replication

Semi-conservative
Conservative
Dispersive

Three theories for DNA replication

Three theories of DNA replication

Semi-conservative replication
A very simple look at the process
First two individual strands in the DNA double

helix start to unzip under the influence of the

enzyme helicase.
The diagram shows this happeningin the middle
of the DNA double helix- you mustn't assume that
the top of the diagram is the end of the chain. It
isn't. Further up the double helix, the two strands
will still be joined together.
In fact, this is happening lots of times along the
very long DNA molecule. Lengths of chain become
separated to form what are known as "bubbles".

Semi-conservative replication
A very simple look at the process
First two individual strands in the DNA double

helix start to unzip under the influence of the

enzyme helicase.
The diagram shows this happeningin the middle
of the DNA double helix- you mustn't assume that
the top of the diagram is the end of the chain. It
isn't. Further up the double helix, the two strands
will still be joined together.
In fact, this is happening lots of times along the
very long DNA molecule. Lengths of chain become
separated to form what are known as "bubbles".

Semi-conservative replication
A very simple look at the process
Now suppose have a source of nucleotides -

phosphate joined to deoxyribose joined to a

base, including all the four sorts of bases
needed for DNA.
The next diagram shows what would happen
if a nucleotide containing guanine (G) and one
containing cytosine (C) were attracted to the
top two bases on the left-hand strand of the
unzipped DNA - and then joined together.

Semi-conservative replication
A very simple look at the process
Now suppose have a source of nucleotides -

phosphate joined to deoxyribose joined to a

base, including all the four sorts of bases
needed for DNA.
The next diagram shows what would happen
if a nucleotide containing guanine (G) and one
containing cytosine (C) were attracted to the
top two bases on the left-hand strand of the
unzipped DNA - and then joined together.
This takes place under the influence of enzymes
including DNA polymerase I and III

Semi-conservative replication
A very simple look at the

process
Compare the double strands that
formed on the left- and right-hand
sides. They are exactly the same . . .
and if we continue this process, they
would continue to be the same.
And if you compare the patterns of
bases in the new DNA being formed
with what was in the original DNA
before it started to unzip, everything
is the same. This is inevitable
because of the way the bases pair
together.

Semi-conservative replication
What does semi conservative

mean ?
The original DNA is shown all in
blue.
The red strands in the daughter DNA
are the ones which have been built
on the original blue strands during
the replication process.
You can see that each of the
daughter molecules is made of half
of the original DNA plus a new
strand.
That's all "semi-conservative

replication" means. Half of the

original DNA is conserved (kept) in
each of the daughter molecules.

DNA replication

DNA replication

RNA
The sequence of bases in DNA carries

thegenetic code. Scattered along the DNA

molecule are particularly important sequences
of bases known asgenes. Each gene is a
coded description for making a particular
protein.

RNA
Getting from the code in DNA to the final protein is a

very complicated process.

The code is first transcribed ("copied", although with
one important difference - see later) to messenger
RNA.
That then travels out of the nucleus of the cell (where
the DNA is found) into the cytoplasm of the cell. The
cytoplasm contains essentially everything else in the
cell apart from the nucleus.
Here the code is read and the protein is synthesised
with the help of two other forms of RNA - ribosomal
RNA and transfer RNA.

RNA
How does messenger RNA differ from

DNA?
1. Length
RNA is much shorter than DNA. DNA contains
the code for making lots and lots of different
proteins. Messenger RNA contains the
information to make just one single
polypeptide chain - in other words for just one
protein, or even just a part of a protein if it is
made up of more than one polypeptide chain.

RNA
How does messenger RNA differ from

DNA?
2. Overall structure
DNA has two strands arranged in a double
helix. RNA consists of a single strand.
3. The sugar present in the backbone of
the chain
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) has a backbone
of alternating deoxyribose and phosphate
groups. In RNA (ribonucleic acid), the sugar
ribose replaces deoxyribose.

RNA
How does messenger RNA differ from

DNA?
4. RNA uses the base uracil (U) rather
than thymine (T)
The structure of uracil is very similar to that of
thymine.
The only difference between the two
molecules is the presence or absence of the
CH3group.

Replication
How?
53 directionality
Starts with RNA primer
Leading Strand
Lagging Strand

Okasaki Fragments

Sequence determined by basepairing

DNA Replication Animation

Transcription
DNA RNA
What is the difference between DNA

and RNA?
Ribose Sugar
Uracil not thymine

Transcription
Where?

Nucleus in Eukaryotes
Cytosol in Prokaryotes

What?

RNA Polymerase plus some minor proteins

When?

When RNA is needed

Why?

RNAs serve many important functions in cells

How?