Lecture 4-1: Nucleic Acid Structure

These flashcards cover key vocabulary terms and definitions related to nucleic acid structure, essential for understanding DNA and RNA characteristics and functions.

Phosphodiester bond

The type of bond linking the sugar and phosphate group in nucleic acids.

Deoxyribonucleotide

The building block of DNA, consisting of a deoxyribose sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base.

Chargaff's rule

The observation that in DNA, the amount of adenine equals thymine (A=T) and the amount of guanine equals cytosine (G=C).

B-form DNA

The most common form of double helix DNA with a right-handed twist and anti conformations of bases.

Z-form DNA

A form of DNA that has a left-handed twist and is recognized for its unique structural features.

Quadraplex DNA

A four-stranded DNA structure stabilized by Hoogsteen hydrogen bonds, often found at telomeres.

Hairpin structure

A secondary structure in RNA formed when complementary sequences within a strand base pair with each other.

Nucleosome

A structural unit of a eukaryotic chromosome, consisting of DNA wrapped around a core of histone proteins.

Topoisomerases

Enzymes that alter the topological state of DNA, including supercoiling, by cutting and resealing DNA strands.

Base pairing

The specific hydrogen bonding between nitrogenous bases (A with T and G with C) in DNA.