NUCLEIC ACIDS

Chapter 20 Sec 3
By:
Melissa Rodríguez
Paula Rivera
 Introduction
• Think about, whether personality wise or
physically, we all look like one or both of our
parents.
– Before you were born, you were single cell with equal
amounts of hereditary information from each parent.
• Hereditary information is not about the shape or
color of your features, but rather that you have
them and you’re human.
Your Body’s Construction Plans
• Nucleic Acids – an organic compound
(RNA/DNA) which chemically stores
genetic information.
 Structure of Nucleic Acids
• Like polysaccharides/polypeptides,
nucleic acids are biological
POLYMERS. Formed from:
• a Sugar
• a phosphate group
• one of several nitrogenous bases
 DNA
• Deoxyribonucleic Acid – the material that
contains the information that determines
inherited characteristics.
 DNA
• The sugar in DNA is deoxyribose.
– Has a ring in which four atoms are carbon and
the fifth atom is oxygen.
 DNA
– The phosphate group comes from phosphoric
acid. Two of the –OH groups from the
phosphoric acid condense with the –OH
groups on tow different sugar molecules,
linking the three together.

• See picture on pp. 726

 DNA
– The nitrogenous bases connect to the sugar units
in the backbone. There is one base per sugar.

• Heredity is written in DNA using 4-letter

alphabet.
– Adenine (A) - Thymine (T)
– Guanine (G) - Cytosine (C)
 DNA
• Any of the four bases (A, G, T, C) is
connected along the strand at the sugar
units.
• Human cells have:
– 46 molecules of DNA
– 6 billion bases
 DNA’s 3D Structure
• Though there are single stands of DNA,
the polymer is found in a double helix in
which tow DNA strands spiral around each
other
– (see Figure 11 pp. 727)
• The strands are not identical but rather
complementary.
 DNA’s 3D Structure
– Means that bases work in pairs. Where an
adenine is found in one strand, thymine is found
in the other. Also, a guanine in one strand is
matched with a cytosine in the other.
• Reason for complementary nature is the fact
that A & T form two hydrogen bonds, while G
& C can easily form three hydrogen bonds
between themselves.
 DNA’s 3D Structure

– Not other pairing can form the right hydrogen

bonds to keep strands together.

• The three-dimensional configuration of

DNA looks like a twisted ladder, with A-T
and G-C base pairs forming the steps.
 DNA Replication
• Because DNA can replicate itself, there is a
copy of your DNA in each cell in your body.
• Replication
– The double helix unwinds, providing two strands
• Each strand acts a template for new strands
– New nucleic acid units made by the cell meet up
with complementary bases.
 DNA Replication
– Hydrogen bonds form between the correct
base pairs.
– Covalent bonds form between the sugars and
phosphate groups of neighboring units or the
complementary strand.
– Eventually, original double helix becomes two
perfect copies.
 RNA and Protein Synthesis
• Protein determines what cells do, but DNA
determines what proteins are made of.
• Gene
– Segment of DNA that has the code for amino
acid sequence to build polypeptide.
• Gene translate into amino-acid sequence
using many proteins/RNA
 RNA and Protein Synthesis
• Protein synthesis
– Cell makes RNA stand that codes for specific protein
– DNA double helix unwinds
– RNA units match up with DNA bases.
• Process is similar to DNA replication, but uses
RNA units.
– Which has one oxygen on sugar unit and one on the
bases.
 RNA and Protein Synthesis
• As cytosine matches with guanine,
adenine matches with the base Uralic
instead of thymine in protein synthesis.

• Later, cell uses RNA strand as instructions

for building protein.
Any Questions?