DNA BIODIVERSITY

Complimentary base

matching nitrogen base on a strand of a nucleic acid

Double helix

the double stranded structure of a molecule of DNA that resembles a twisted ladder

Deoxyribose

sugar found in DNA

Semiconservative

during replication of DNA, one strand of the new molecule of DNA comes directly from the original parent molecule of DNA

Nitrogenous base

A, T, C, G make up the code for DNA

DNA

nucleic acid that has the directions for making proteins

Replication

process of copying DNA prior to cell division

Monomers

The simplest unit, or the repeating unit, of a polymer

Nucleic acids

organic molecule carry genetic information, made of nucleotides

Nucleotide

building blocks (subunits) of nucleic acids – has a phosphate group, sugar, and base

Nucleus

Organelle that holds the DNA

Chromosomes

Tightly coiled DNA (only present during mitosis & meiosis)

Sister chromatids

The identical copies of the chromatids attached at a centromere (formed by DNA replication)

Centromere

region of a chromosome where the two sister chromatids attach

Chromatin

Loosely coiled DNA (How DNA is usually found)

Homologous chromosomes

Chromosome pairs (1 from each parent) that have the same genes, but the genes may contain different alleles.

Gene

sequence of DNA that codes for a protein

Allele

different versions of a gene