Replication

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to DNA replication.

Meselson and Stahl's experiment

An experiment that demonstrated DNA replication is semiconservative by using isotopes of nitrogen.

DNA Replication

The process by which DNA makes a copy of itself in preparation for cell division.

Topoisomerase

An enzyme that breaks, swivels, and rejoins parental DNA to relieve strain during replication.

Leading Strand

The DNA strand that is synthesized continuously in the same direction as the replication fork.

Lagging Strand

The DNA strand that is synthesized discontinuously in short segments (Okazaki fragments) opposite to the direction of the replication fork.

Okazaki Fragments

Short DNA segments synthesized on the lagging strand during DNA replication.

Primase

An enzyme that synthesizes an RNA primer needed to start DNA synthesis.

DNA Polymerase III

The primary enzyme in DNA replication that adds nucleotides to the growing DNA strand.

RNA Primer

A short strand of RNA that provides a starting point for DNA synthesis.

Semiconservative Replication

The method of DNA replication in which each new DNA molecule consists of one original and one new strand.

Replication Fork

The Y-shaped region where the DNA is being unwound and replicated.

Single-Stranded Binding Proteins (SSBPs)

Proteins that bind to single-stranded DNA and prevent it from re-annealing during replication.

Helicase

An enzyme that unwinds the DNA double helix at the replication fork.

Mismatch Repair

A process by which mismatched DNA nucleotides are corrected after DNA replication.

DNA Ligase

An enzyme that catalyzes the joining of Okazaki fragments by forming covalent bonds between them.

DNA Transcription

The process by which DNA is transcribed into messenger RNA.

RNA Translation

The process by which messenger RNA is translated into a protein.