Bio 006 - 14A: Molecular Basis of Inheritance

DNA

Molecule storing genetic information in cells.

Nucleic Acids

Macromolecules including DNA and RNA.

• Most complex of macromolecules

• Stores info on how to build proteins so cells can grow, function, and replicate.

Nucleotide

Monomer unit of nucleic acids.

Polynucleotide

Polymer formed by nucleotide chains.

Phosphodiester Bond

Link between nucleotides in polynucleotides.

Nitrogenous Base

Component of nucleotides; includes A, T, C, G.

Adenine

Nitrogenous base pairing with thymine.

Thymine

Nitrogenous base pairing with adenine.

Cytosine

Nitrogenous base pairing with guanine.

Guanine

Nitrogenous base pairing with cytosine.

Purines

Double-ring nitrogenous bases: A and G.

Pyrimidines

Single-ring nitrogenous bases: C and T.

Chargaff's Rules

Scientist who studied the proportions of nitrogenous bases

• Base pairing rules: A=T, C=G.

Transformation

Process of genetic material transfer between bacteria.

• happened in Griffith’s Experiment

Antiparallel

DNA strands running in opposite directions.

Griffith

Showed transformation in pneumonia-causing bacteria.

Avery

Identified DNA as the transforming agent.

Hershey and Chase

Confirmed DNA as genetic material using bacteriophages.

Double Helix

Structure of DNA with two intertwined strands.

X-ray Diffraction

Technique revealing DNA's structural patterns.

Sugar-Phosphate Backbone

Structural framework of DNA and RNA.

Genetic Material

Substance carrying hereditary information in organisms.

Chromosome Theory of Inheritance

Genes are located on chromosomes.

1869

The year Nucleic acids were first discovered by Johann Miescher, a Swiss biologist.

1919

The year composition of nucleotides was discovered by Phoebus Levene, a Russian biochemist.

Watson and Crick

Discovered DNA's physical structure in 1953.

• Double helix structure (two strands)

• Sugar-phosphate backbone

• Bound nucleotides on the inside

Rosalind Franklin

Used x-ray diffraction crystallography that shows light patterns of the DNA structure