Nucleic Acids & Flow of Genetic Info Flashcards
what is the purpose of nucleic acids
-store and transmit hereditary info in genes (unit of inheritance)
-program amino acid sequence of polypeptide (proteins)
what is the structure of nucleic acids
made of nucleotides (monomers)
what are the two types of nucleic acids
deoxyribonucleic acid (dna)
ribonucleic acid (rna)
what does the dna do
-stores information for protein synthesis
-acts as a blueprint to make the proteins
-a gene is a segment of DNA that encodes a protein
what does the rna do
-directs protein synthesis
-acts as messenger to relay information from dna
what replaces thymine iin RNA
uracil
what is the structure of nucleic acids
a phosphate molecule
a 5 carbon sugar
a nitrogenous base
-consists of monnomers called nucleotides that link to form polynucleotides
what sugars do dna and rna have
dna has deoxyribose
rna has ribose
what kind of formation do the dna strands have
antiparallel formation
3 prime to 5 prime
-Rna is opposite
is dna double or single stranded
double, rna is single
what are the three types of rna involved in protein synthesis
mRNA (messanger)
tRNA (transfer)
rRNA (ribosomes)
what are the functions of histones
-allows the dna to fit 2m into 10 nanometers of space
-control gene activation and deactivation
why is dna necessary
-needed for cell replication
-contains genes
-genes influence cells for which proteins to make
-complementary base pairing
what do gene have to do with proteins
genes have the information needed to make the specific protein and the primary sequence of the protein
what are the two major steps in protein synthesis
transcription (in nucleus)
translation (in cytosol)