Topic 2 (nucleic acids) Flashcards
(9 cards)
1
Q
What are the subunits of DNA?
A
Nucleotides
2
Q
What information is kept in DNA
A
Genetic material
3
Q
Describe the parts of a DNA nucleotide
A
Phosphate group, sugar, nitrogen base (ATCCG)
4
Q
How are DNA strands oriented
A
‘5 to ‘3 and ‘3 to ‘5
5
Q
How are nucleotides linked?
A
covalent bonds (condensation)
6
Q
What is the result of covalent links?
A
Sugar-phosphate skeleton
7
Q
3 main differences of DNA and RNA
A
Chains:
DNA has two strands
RNA has one strand
Nitrogenous bases:
DNA has tymine
RNA has uracil
8
Q
Why is the genetic code universal?
A
All living organisms decodificate their genetic information (to produce proteins)
9
Q
Why is the genetic code degenerate?
A
Because different codons can code for the same amino acid.
