DNA, RNA, and Protein Synthesis

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts related to DNA, RNA, protein synthesis, and mutations.

Nucleotide

The basic structural unit of DNA and RNA, consisting of a sugar, phosphate, and nitrogenous base.

Chargaff’s Rule

The principle stating that in DNA, the amount of adenine equals thymine and the amount of cytosine equals guanine.

Double Helix

The structure of DNA, formed by two strands of nucleotides twisted around each other.

Semiconservative Replication

Model of DNA replication where each new DNA molecule consists of one old strand and one new strand.

Helicase

An enzyme that unwinds the DNA double helix during DNA replication.

DNA Polymerase

The enzyme responsible for synthesizing new strands of DNA by adding nucleotides in the 5' to 3' direction.

Okazaki Fragments

Short sequences of DNA nucleotides synthesized discontinuously on the lagging strand during DNA replication.

Transcription

The process of converting DNA into RNA by synthesizing a complementary RNA strand.

Translation

The process of synthesizing proteins from mRNA by translating codons into amino acids.

Introns

Non-coding regions of pre-mRNA that are removed during RNA processing.

Exons

Coding regions of pre-mRNA that remain after RNA processing and are translated into protein.

Point Mutation

A chemical change in a single base pair of DNA that can lead to genetic variation.

Missense Mutation

A type of point mutation where the altered codon codes for a different amino acid.

Nonsense Mutation

A mutation that changes a codon to a stop codon, leading to truncated and typically nonfunctional proteins.

Frameshift Mutation

A mutation caused by insertions or deletions that alters the reading frame of the genetic code.