Nucleic Acids and Protein Synthesis

A collection of vocabulary flashcards derived from the lecture notes on nucleic acids and protein synthesis.

Nucleic Acids

Large molecules found in the nuclei of cells that store information and direct cellular growth and reproduction.

DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid; the genetic material found in the nucleus of a cell.

RNA

Ribonucleic acid; interprets genetic information in DNA for protein synthesis.

Nucleotide

The basic building block of nucleic acids, composed of a nitrogenous base, a sugar, and a phosphate group.

Nitrogenous Base

A component of nucleotides; can be either purines (adenine, guanine) or pyrimidines (cytosine, thymine in DNA; uracil in RNA).

Purine

A type of nitrogenous base with a double-ring structure; includes adenine (A) and guanine (G).

Pyrimidine

A type of nitrogenous base with a single-ring structure; includes cytosine (C), thymine (T), and uracil (U).

Phosphate Group

A chemical group consisting of a phosphorus atom bonded to four oxygen atoms; a key component of nucleotides.

Phosphodiester Bond

The bond formed between the phosphate group of one nucleotide and the sugar of another, creating a sugar-phosphate backbone.

Complementary Base Pairing

The specific pairing between nitrogenous bases in DNA (A-T, G-C) and RNA (A-U, G-C).

Transcription

The process of copying a segment of DNA into mRNA.

Translation

The process by which mRNA is converted into a sequence of amino acids to form a protein.

Codon

A sequence of three nucleotides in mRNA that codes for a specific amino acid.

Anticodon

A sequence of three nucleotides in tRNA that is complementary to a codon in mRNA.

Mutation

A change in the nucleotide sequence of DNA that may lead to changes in the amino acid sequence of proteins.

Recombinant DNA

DNA that has been artificially formed by combining constituents from different organisms.

Virus

A small infectious agent that requires a living cell to replicate and cause disease.

Retrovirus

A type of virus that uses reverse transcription to convert its RNA into DNA within the host cell.

Enzyme

A protein that increases the rate of a chemical reaction by lowering the activation energy.

Helicase

The enzyme that unwinds the DNA helix during replication.

DNA Polymerase

An enzyme that synthesizes new strands of DNA by adding nucleotides complementary to the template strand.