DNA Structure and Function

Chapter 6
1.1 Impacts/Issues
Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty, Kitty, Kitty

 Making clones (exact genetic copies) of adult

animals is now a common practice in research
and animal husbandry
6.2 Chromosomes

 A eukaryotic chromosome is a molecule of DNA

together with associated proteins

 Chromosome
• Structure made of DNA and associated proteins
• Carries part or all of a cell’s genetic information
Chromosome Structure

 Sister chromatid
• One of two attached members of a duplicated
eukaryotic chromosome

 Centromere
• Constricted region in a eukaryotic chromosome
where sister chromatids are attached
Chromosome Structure
 Proteins organize DNA structurally
• Allow chromosomes to pack tightly

 Histone
• Type of protein that structurally organizes
eukaryotic chromosomes

 Nucleosome
• A length of DNA wound around a spool of histone
proteins
Chromosome Structure
Chromosome Number
 A eukaryotic cell’s DNA is divided into a
characteristic number of chromosomes

 Chromosome number
• Sum of all chromosomes in a cell of a given type
• A human body cell has 23 pairs of chromosomes

 Diploid
• Cells having two of each type of chromosome
characteristic of the species (2n)
Examples of Chromosome Number
Types of Chromosomes
 There are two types of eukaryotic chromosomes:
autosomes and sex chromosomes

 Autosomes
• Paired chromosomes with the same length,
shape, centromere location, and genes
• Any chromosome other than a sex chromosome

 Sex chromosomes
• Members of a pair of chromosomes that differ
between males and females
Sex Chromosomes:
Sex Determination in Humans
 diploid diploid
reproductive reproductive
cell in female cell in male

XX XY

eggs sperm

X X X Y

X Y

X XX XY

X XX XY

union of sperm and

Stepped Art
egg at fertilization
Fig. 6-3a, p. 104
Karyotype

 Karyotyping reveals characteristics of an

individual’s chromosomes

 Karyotype
• Image of an individual’s complement of
chromosomes arranged by size, length, shape,
and centromere location
Constructing a Karyotype
6.3 Fame and Glory

 Erwin Chargaff
• Discovered the relationships between DNA bases

 Rosalind Franklin
• Discovered the basic structure of DNA by x-ray
crystallography

 James Watson and Francis Crick

• Built the first accurate model of a DNA molecule
Key Players
 Rosalind Franklin, Maurice Wilkins, James
Watson, and Francis Crick
The Double Helix

 A DNA molecule consists of two strands of

nucleotide monomers running in opposite
directions and coiled into a double helix

 DNA nucleotide
• A five-carbon sugar (deoxyribose)
• Three phosphate groups
• One nitrogen-containing base (adenine, thymine,
guanine, or cytosine)
The Double Helix

 Two double-helix strands are held together by

hydrogen bonds between nucleotide bases

 Chargaff’s rules
• Bases of the two DNA strands in a double helix
pair in a consistent way: A = T and C = G
• Proportions of A and G vary among species
The Four DNA Nucleotides
DNA Structure
Patterns of Base Pairing
 The order of bases (DNA sequence) varies
among species and among individuals
• Each species has characteristic DNA sequences

 DNA sequence
• The order of nucleotide bases in a strand of DNA
6.4 DNA Replication and Repair

 A cell replicates its DNA before it divides

 Each strand of the double helix serves as a

template for synthesis of a new, complementary
strand of DNA

 DNA replication results in two double-stranded

DNA molecules identical to the parent
DNA Replication and Repair

 During DNA replication, the double-helix unwinds

 DNA polymerase uses each strand as a template

to assemble new, complementary strands of DNA
from free nucleotides

 DNA ligase seals any gaps to form a continuous

strand
DNA Replication and Repair

 DNA replication
• Duplication of a cell’s DNA before cell division

 DNA polymerase
• DNA replication enzyme; assembles a new strand
of DNA based on sequence of a DNA template

 DNA ligase
• Enzyme that seals breaks in double-stranded DNA
DNA Replication
1) The two strands of a DNA molecule are
complementary: their nucleotides match up
according to base-pairing rules (G to C, T to
A).

2) As replication starts, the two strands

of DNA unwind at many sites along the
length of the molecule.

3) Each parent strand serves as a template

for assembly of a new DNA strand from
nucleotides, according to base-pairing rules.

4) DNA ligase seals any gaps that remain

between bases of the “new” DNA, so a
continuous strand forms. The base sequence
of each half-old, half-new DNA molecule is
identical to that of the parent.
Stepped Art
Fig. 6-8, p. 108
Animation: DNA replication
DNA Replication: The Double Helix
Checking for Mistakes

 DNA repair mechanisms fix damaged DNA

• Proofreading by DNA polymerase corrects most
base-pairing errors

 DNA repair mechanisms

• Any of several processes by which enzymes
repair DNA damage
Mutations

 Uncorrected errors in DNA replication may

become mutations

 Mutation
• A permanent change in DNA sequence
6.5 Cloning Adult Animals

 Reproductive cloning technologies produce an

exact genetic copy of an individual (clone)

 Reproductive cloning
• Technology that produces genetically identical
individuals
Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer

 Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT)

• Method of reproductive cloning in which nuclear
DNA from an adult somatic cell is transferred into
an unfertilized, enucleated egg

 Therapeutic cloning
• Using SCNT to produce human embryos for
research
Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer
Clones
 Clone produced by somatic cell nuclear transfer
Digging into Data:
The Hershey Chase Experiments
Fig. 6-12a, p. 113
 S remains
35

Virus proteins outside cells

labeled with 35S

DNA being
injected into
bacterium

Virus DNA
labeled with 32P 32
P remains
inside cells
Labeled DNA
being injected
into bacterium

Fig. 6-12b-c, p. 113