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Nucleic Acids: DNA and RNA

REMEMBER
- The nucleus is surrounded by a d_________________ n________________ m______________
with p________________.
- The nucleus contains two important components :-
o The n______________________ which is made of RNA.
o The c_____________________ n__________________ which is a tangle of threads
known as c_____________________.
- The chromosomes contain DNA.
- A system of membranes extends from the nucleus, out into the cytoplasm – this is the
e_______________________ r____________________.
- Rough endoplasmic reticulum is covered with r_______________________.

Functions
- The chromosomes store the genetic material of the cell.
- The nucleus regulates the structure and metabolism of the cell

NUCLEIC ACIDS
- These are organic molecules which are responsible for :-
o Synthesis of proteins
o Transfer of genetic information.
- There are two types of nucleic acid :-
o DNA
o RNA

DNA – Deoxyribonucleic acid.

Location of DNA
- It occurs mainly in the nucleus where it is known as c__________________ DNA
- A small amount is found in mitochondria and chloroplasts. This is known as e__________________ DNA.

Chromosomes and genes.

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- Chromosomes are long thread like structures comprised of DNA that is wrapped around proteins called
h____________________.

- A short section of DNA which codes for a particular protein is known as a g____________
- Each human nucleus contains 46 chromosomes (23 pairs).
- Each chromosome carries genes for thousands of different proteins.
- Chromosomes are only visible in a dividing cell.

Discovery of the structure of DNA

- Many scientists contributed to the discovery, however, it was W__________________ and
C_______________ who, in 1953, put all the pieces together to create the double helix model that we
use today.
- Watson and Crick received the Nobel prize in 1962.

The structure of DNA

- It is a very large molecule, the total length of DNA in one human nucleus is estimated to be in the order
of 2m.
- It is a d________________ h___________________ i.e. two interlocked spirals.
- It is a p___________________ i.e. a large molecule made up of many similar units or monomers.
- The monomers of DNA are known as n_______________________.
- Each nucleotide is made up of three parts:-
o A deoxyribose sugar
o A phosphate group
o A nitrogen base
- There are four different nitrogen bases :-
o Adenine (A)
o Thymine (T)
o Guanine (G)
o Cytosine (C)
- Adenine and Guanine are large molecules, known as purine bases.
- Thymine and cytosine are small molecules, known as pyrimidine bases.
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- A nucleotide contains a deoxyribose and a phosphate group and one of the four bases.
- There are therefore four different nucleotides in a DNA molecule.

How the nucleotides join to make DNA.

- The nucleotides combine to form a ladder-like structure.

- The deoxyribose and phosphate groups form the sides of the ladder while the nitrogen bases form the
rungs.
- Adenine will always combine with thymine to form a rung while guanine will always combine with
c______________________.
- These are known as the b______________ p________________.
- The pairs of bases are held together by w____________ h_________________ b_____________.
- adenine and thymine are held together by a double hydrogen bond while guanine and cytosine are held
together by a t_________________ hydrogen bond.
- This means that in any DNA molecule there will always be the same number of adenine bases as there
are thymine bases and the same number of guanine bases as there are cytosine bases.
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- The sequence of bases is of great importance as it provides the code that gives the instructions for the
synthesis of p___________________.
- One DNA strand is the complement of the other strand.

The role of DNA

- It carries the genetic code for the production of proteins.
- By producing the correct protein at the right time it controls the metabolism of the cell.
- It can replicate itself so that copies of the code can be passed on to new cells and new individuals.

Non-coding DNA

- Only about 2% of the DNA in living cells actually codes for proteins.
- The rest does not carry information to produce proteins – this is known as non-coding DNA.
- The non-coding DNA varies considerably between individuals and is used in DNA f__________________.
- It would appear that this non-coding DNA is important for :_
o Determining when genes are swithed “ön”and “öff’’
o Protecting genes from mutations.
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DNA Replication
- This is the duplication of the DNA to form two identical copies.
- It occurs during interphase of the cell cycle, just before cell division.
- The two identical copies are known as c____________________.
- The two chromatids formed from a DNA molecule are joined at the c____________________.

ONE CHROMOSOME STILL ONE CHROMOSOME

But two chromatids and
Two identical copies of DNA
The process of replication.

- The double helix structure u_________________

- The weak h________________ bonds break and the complementary DNA strands unzip. (This is done by
the enzyme helicase.)
- Free floating nucleotides in the nucleoplasm build new complementary strands on each of the original
DNA strands.
- The original strands act as t_________________ for the formation of the new strands.
- Two identical copies are formed from the original DNA molecule, each comprising one original strand
and one new strand.
- The new DNA molecules rewind to form short chromosomes once again.
- The two DNA molecules are joined at the c___________________ to create a single
c_____________________ which is made up of two genetically identical DNA molecules.
- This is under the control of the enzyme DNA p___________________.
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The importance of DNA replication = The biological significance of DNA replication

- DNA replication creates two genetically identical copies of DNA so that, when a cell divides, each
daughter cell can obtain its own copy of DNA.
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Mitochondrial DNA
- This occurs in the mitochondria and is not related to the chromosomal DNA that occurs in the nucleus.
- It is shorter and circular in shape.
- It codes for the enzymes that control c__________________ r____________________

Mitochondrial DNA and relatedness.

- Prior to fertilization both the egg cell and the sperm cell have their own mitochondria.
- During fertilization, the mitochondria in the sperm cell are discarded i.e. they do not enter the ovum
and do not become part of the zygote or the new individual.
- This means that all the mitochondria in any individual, male or female, came from their mother.
- Furthermore, the mitochondrial DNA does not get mixed up during meiosis (see next chapter).
- It also does not mutate easily.
- This makes it ideal for tracing lines of inheritance from mother to daughter.
- The more similar their mitochondrial DNA the more closely related two organisms are.

RNA – Ribonucleic acid.

Location of RNA
- RNA occurs in the nucleus and the c__________________
- It also forms part of the r___________________.
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Structure of RNA
- RNA consists of a single strand
- Like DNA, RNA is a polymer made up of many n_________________.
- The nucleotides contain the sugar r_______________ instead of the deoxyribose found in DNA.
- The four nitrogenous bases are guanine, cytosine, adenine and uracil. (uracil replaces the base
t_________________ , found in DNA)

Types of RNA
Messenger RNA (mRNA)
- This is formed in the nucleus, using DNA as a template.
- It collects the genetic code for a single protein.
- And carries it out of the nucleus and into the cytoplasm.

Transfer RNA (tRNA)

- This is only found in the cytoplasm.
- Its role is to collect amino acids and line them up in the correct order on the mRNA to create the correct
protein.

Ribosomal RNA (rRNA)

- This forms the ribosomes.
- Which control the process of protein synthesis.
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Differences between DNA and RNA

DNA RNA
Double helix Single strand

Sugar is deoxyribose Sugar is ribose

Has the nitrogenous base thymine The nitrogenous base thymine has been replaced by
uracil.
The number of adenine equals the number of thymine There are no fixed ratios among the bases.
and the number of guanine equals the no. of cytosine.
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PROTEIN SYNTHESIS

REVISION OF PROTEIN STRUCTURE

- Proteins are long chains of amino acids joined together by p_______________ bonds.
- Two amino acids linked = dipeptide, many amino acids linked = polypeptide
- There are 20 different amino acids which can be used to construct a protein.
- Most proteins contain around 300 amino acids, the shortest around 50 (insulin).
- The sequence in which the amino acids occur is known as the p___________ structure.
- The sequence in which the amino acids occur determines the overall structure and function
of the protein.
- The crucial aspect of protein synthesis is therefore to get the correct amino acids, in the
correct order.
- Proteins carry out many important roles from structural to enzymes and hormones.
- It is therefore our proteins that make us different from each other and from other organisms.
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THE ROLE OF PROTEIN SYNTHESIS IS TO USE THE INFORMATION

STORED ON A GENE ON A DNA STRAND TO CREATE A CHAIN OF
AMINO ACIDS OF THE CORRECT TYPE AND IN THE CORRECT ORDER.

PROTEIN SYNTHESIS CAN BE CONVENIENTLY SPLIT INTO TWO SECTIONS :-

TRANSCRIPTION TRANSLATION
Transcription
- This occurs in the n___________________.
- The enzyme RNA polymerase controls the transfer of the code from the DNA to the RNA and causes the
weak hydrogen bonds between the base pairs to break.
- A section of the DNA strand which contains the gene for the correct protein
- Unwinds and unzips.
- Three consecutive nitrogenous bases on the DNA strand are known as a b___________ t___________
and code for a particular amino acid.
- Free floating RNA nucleotides match up in their c____________________ pairs on one strand of the
DNA.
- As they line up the RNA nucleotides link together to form an RNA chain which carries the code for the
needed protein.
- This is m____________________ RNA ( mRNA ) .
- Each group of three nitrogenous bases on the m RNA is known as a c______________ and codes for a
particular amino acid.
- The two DNA strands rejoin and wind back into a double helix
- The m RNA detaches from the DNA and leaves the nucleus through a nuclear pore.
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Translation.
- This is the process during which the code collected by the mRNA is used to create the correct protein.
- It occurs in the cytoplasm (at the ribosomes of rough endoplasmic reticulum)
- tRNA molecules are found free floating in the cytoplasm.
- Each tRNA has three exposed nitrogenous bases, known as the a_________________ on one of its loops.
- A specific tRNA will attach to a specific amino acid in the cytoplasm i.e. a particular amino acid will
always attach to a tRNA with the same anticodon.
- As the ribosome moves down the length of the mRNA it matches the tRNA to the correct codon on the
mRNA .
- The amino acids associated with the tRNA molecules link to each other by means of p_____________
b_______________.
- This creates a polypeptide.
- This continues until all the amino acids in the protein have been added i.e the proteins primary structure
is complete.
- The protein is then released and folds into its secondary and tertiary shapes.
- Each mRNA can produce many protein molecules.
- The tRNA molecules will return to the cytoplasm where they will collect another amino acid of the
correct type and return to the mRNA to repeat the process.
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MUTATIONS
- A mutation is any change in the genetic composition of an organism.
- They may occur spontaneously/by chance or as a result of mutagens such as :-
o X-rays
o UV light
o Toxic chemicals
- The only mutations that can be inherited are those that occur in the sex organs during gametogenesis.
- There are two types of mutation:-
o Chromosomal mutations (See the next chapter on meiosis)
o Gene mutations.
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Gene mutations
- This is a change in the nucleotide sequence in the DNA molecule.
- This, in turn, will change the amino acid sequence in the resultant protein.
- Gene mutations usually occur during DNA r______________________.
- There are three types of gene mutation:-
o Substitution
o Deletion
o Insertion
-
- Substitution is a gene mutation during which one nitrogenous base is replaced by another.
- This results in the alteration of only one amino acid.
- This is known as a p___________________ m______________________

Substitution mutation

- Deletion – A gene mutation where one or more nitrogenous bases are lost.
- After such a mutation all the base triplets are altered and many incorrect amino acids are inserted in the
protein.
- This is known as a f_______________ s_______________ mutation.
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- Insertion - A gene mutation in which one or more nitrogenous bases are inserted.
- This too will result in a frame shift and many base triplets being changed and many incorrect amino acids
in the final protein.

Application of DNA Technology

DNA Fingerprinting/ profiling
- Scientists are able to extract DNA from human body cells
- The sample is prepared and represented as a ‘barcode’ that can be compared to the barcode of other
samples, individuals or species.
- The pattern of the bars coincides with the sequence of base pairs that a person inherits from his/her
parents.
- The ‘barcode’ pattern is known as a DNA p_________________ or DNA f____________________.
- Since we all have basically the same coding DNA, it is the non-coding DNA that is selected for this.
- Only identical twins will have the same DNA profile.
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Method of DNA fingerprinting.

PCR stands for Polymerase Chain Reaction - a technique for multiplying the DNA to create a sufficiently large
quantity to work with.

Uses of DNA profiling

- To identify suspects in forensic investigations.
- As proof of paternity.
- To identify genetic defects
- Trace missing people
- To establish compatibility for organ transplants.

CRISPR and Cas9

- When bacteria are attacked by a virus (a b________________________) the virus injects its DNA with
the aim of taking over the bacterial DNA to create new viruses.
- The bacteria fight back using an immune system called CRISPR that allows them to detect viral DNA and
destroy it.
- Cas 9 is an enzyme which is associated with the CRISPR system, which is able to cut DNA strands
accurately at particular points.(It uses a short section of RNA as a guide)
- Scientists have learned how to use Cas9 as a genetic tool to cut and insert genes in a cell’s DNA with
incredible precision.
- The CRISPR technology has already been used to change the DNA in mice, monkeys and even human
embryos.
- It allows scientists to make changes to the DNA of our cells that could cure genetic disease.
- This clearly raises ethical issues, CRISPR has the potential to create ‘designer babies’.
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