Central Dogma of Biology

Introduction to Biotechnology
Presented by:
Sta. Teresa, Jabin M.
Siosana, Eric
Group 12
Overview: The Central Dogma
The central dogma of molecular
biology describes the two-step
process, transcription and
translation, by which the
information in genes flows into
proteins: DNA → RNA → protein.
Main Stages of Information Flow
1. Replication:
During replication, the DNA double helix is duplicated , producing
two double helices
2. Transcription:
Process of transfer of information from DNA to RNA (ribonucleic
acid)
3. Translation:
Synthesis of a protein, using the information carried by mRNA
(Messenger RNA)
The Double Helix

Complementary and antiparallel

nature of DNA. Note that one chain
ends in a 59-phosphate group,
whereas the other ends in a 39-
hydroxyl. The red bases represent
the pyrimidines cytosine (C) and
thymine (T), and the yellow bases
represent the purines adenine (A)
and guanine (G).
The size of a DNA molecule is expressed as the
number of nucleotide bases or base pairs per
molecule. Thus, a DNA molecule with 1000
bases is 1 kilobase (kb) of DNA. If the DNA is a
double helix, then kilobase pairs (kbp) is used.

Each base pair takes up 0.34 nanometer (nm) in

length along the double helix, and each turn of
the helix contains approximately 10 base pairs.
Therefore, 1 kbp of DNA is 0.34 micrometers
long with 100 helical turns.
 Transcription and Translation in Cells

• In a prokaryotic cell, transcription and translation are

coupled; that is, translation begins while the mRNA is still
being synthesized. In a eukaryotic cell, transcription occurs
in the nucleus, and translation occurs in the cytoplasm.
Transcription and Translation in Cells
• Transcription and translation Prokaryotic cell
are spatially and temporally
separated in eukaryotic cells
• The pre-mRNA is typically
processed to produce the Eukaryotic cell
mature mRNA, which exits
the nucleus and is translated
in the cytoplasm.
Types of RNAs
• There are 4 types of RNA, each
encoded by its own type of
gene.
• The genomic DNA contains all
the information for the structure
and function of an organism.
• In any cell, only some of the
genes are expressed, that is,
transcribed into RNA.
There are 4 types of RNA, each encoded by its own type of gene:
• mRNA - Messenger RNA: Encodes amino acid sequence of a
polypeptide.
• tRNA - Transfer RNA: Brings amino acids to ribosomes during
translation.
• rRNA - Ribosomal RNA: With ribosomal proteins, makes up the
ribosomes, the organelles that translate the mRNA.
• snRNA - Small nuclear RNA: With proteins, forms complexes that are
used in RNA processing in eukaryotes. (Not found in prokaryotes.)
Basic Structure of a Protein-Coding Gene
A protein-coding gene consists of a promoter followed by the coding sequence
for the protein and then a terminator.

• The promoter is a base-pair sequence that specifies where transcription

begins.
• The coding sequence is a base-pair sequence that includes coding information
for the polypeptide chain specified by the gene.
• The terminator is a sequence that specifies the end of the mRNA transcript.
The Transcription Process
RNA synthesis involves separation of the DNA strands and synthesis of
an RNA molecule in the 5' to 3' direction by RNA polymerase, using one
of the DNA strands as a template.
• In complementary base pairing, A, T, G, and C on the template DNA
strand specify U, A, C, and G, respectively, on the RNA strand being
synthesized.
Transcription begins at the promoter, proceeds through the coding
region, and ends at the terminator.
mRNA in Prokaryotes
The sequence of a prokaryotic protein-coding gene is co-linear with the
translated mRNA; that is, the transcript of the gene is the molecule that
is translated into the polypeptide.
mRNA in Eukaryotes
The sequence of a eukaryotic protein-coding gene is typically not co-
linear with the translated mRNA; that is, the transcript of the gene is a
molecule that must be processed to remove extra sequences (introns)
before it is translated into the polypeptide.
• Most eukaryotic protein-coding genes contain segments called
introns, which break up the amino acid coding sequence into
segments called exons.
• The transcript of these genes is the pre-mRNA (precursor-mRNA).
• The pre-mRNA is processed in the nucleus to remove the introns and
splice the exons together into a translatable mRNA. That mRNA exits
the nucleus and is translated in the cytoplasm.
Pre-mRNA Processing (Splicing)

Eukaryotic pre-mRNAs
typically include introns.
Introns are removed by
RNA processing in which
the intron is looped out and
cut away from the exons by
snRNPs, and the exons are
spliced together to produce
the translatable mRNA.
The steps of pre-mRNA splicing (intron removal) are as follows:
• The intron loops out as snRNPs (small nuclear ribonucleoprotein
particles, complexes of snRNAs and proteins) bind to form the
spliceosome.
• The intron is excised, and the exons are then spliced together.
• The resulting mature mRNA may then exit the nucleus and be
translated in the cytoplasm.
RNA Translation
In this stage, the mRNA is "decoded" to build a protein (or a
chunk/subunit of a protein) that contains a specific series of amino
acids.
• During translation, a cell “reads” the information in a messenger RNA
(mRNA) and uses it to build a protein. mRNA doesn’t always encode,
it always encodes a polypeptide, or chain of amino acids.
• In an mRNA, the instructions for building a polypeptide are RNA
nucleotides (As, Us, Cs, and Gs) read in groups of three. These groups of
three are called codons.
• There are 61 codons for amino acids, and each of them is "read" to
specify a certain amino acid out of the 20 commonly found in proteins.
One codon, AUG, specifies the amino acid methionine and also acts as
a start codon to signal the start of protein construction.
• There are that stop codons, UAA, UAG, and UGA. They tell the cell when a
polypeptide is complete. All together, this collection of codon-amino acid
relationships is called the genetic code, because it lets cells “decode” an
mRNA into a chain of amino acids.
Translation
• Transfer RNAs (tRNAs)
Transfer RNAs, or tRNAs, connect mRNA
codons to the amino amino acids they
encode. One end of each tRNA has a
sequence of three nucleotides called
an anticodon, which can bind to specific
mRNA codons. The other end of the
tRNA carries the amino acid specified by
the codons.
• There are many different types of tRNAs.
Each type reads one or a few codons and
brings the right amino acid matching
those codons.
Steps of Translation
• Initiation
Ribosome assembles around the mRNA to be read and the first tRNA
(carrying the amino acid methionine, which matches the start codon,
AUG)

• Elongation
In elongation, the mRNA is read one codon at a time, and the amino
acid matching each codon is added to a growing protein chain.
Each time a new codon is
exposed:
• A matching tRNA binds to
the codon
• The existing amino acid
chain (polypeptide) is linked
onto the amino acid of the
tRNA via a chemical
reaction
• The mRNA is shifted one
codon over in the ribosome,
exposing a new codon for
reading
• During elongation, tRNAs move through the A, P, and E sites of the
ribosome, as shown above. This process repeats many times as new
codons are read and new amino acids are added to the chain.
• Termination 
The stage in which the finished polypeptide chain is released. It
begins when a stop codon (UAG, UAA, or UGA) enters the ribosome,
triggering a series of events that separate the chain from its tRNA and
allow it to drift out of the ribosome.
Termination