Molecular Biology Overview and the Central Dogma

Flashcards covering key terms and definitions from the lecture notes on molecular biology, focusing on the central dogma, DNA and RNA structures, and mechanisms involved in replication and transcription.

Central Dogma of Molecular Biology

The flow of information from DNA to RNA to protein, illustrating how genetic information is transferred.

Semiconservative Replication

A model of DNA replication in which each daughter DNA molecule consists of one parental strand and one newly synthesized strand.

Base Pair

Two nucleotides on opposite complementary DNA or RNA strands connected via hydrogen bonds.

Hydrogen Bonds

Weak bonds between hydrogen and more electronegative atoms, essential in base pairing in DNA and RNA.

Nucleotide

The basic building block of DNA and RNA, consisting of a base, a sugar, and a phosphate group.

Deoxyribose

The sugar component of DNA nucleotides.

mRNA (Messenger RNA)

The RNA molecule that serves as a template for protein synthesis during translation.

tRNA (Transfer RNA)

The type of RNA that carries amino acids to the ribosome for protein synthesis.

rRNA (Ribosomal RNA)

The RNA component of the ribosome, playing both catalytic and structural roles in protein synthesis.

Codon

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

Kibobase

A unit of length equal to 1000 base pairs for double stranded DNA or 1000 bases for single stranded nucleotides.

DNA Polymerase

An enzyme responsible for DNA replication, catalyzing the addition of nucleotides to the growing DNA chain.

Promoter Site

A region of DNA where transcription is initiated, containing consensus sequences critical for RNA polymerase binding.

Introns

Non-coding regions in eukaryotic genes that are removed during mRNA processing.

Exons

Coding regions of a gene that are expressed in the protein product after introns are removed.

Consensus Sequence

Nucleotide sequences that show a high degree of similarity among genes, playing a role in gene regulation.

Alu Sequences

A type of short interspersed nuclear element (SINE) found in the human genome, non-coding and implicated in diseases.

LINEs (Long Interspersed Nuclear Elements)

Genetic elements found in eukaryotic genomes that can code for reverse transcriptase and can replicate themselves.