Genetic Material - DNA and

RNA

Structure of
Nucleotides
Functions of
Nucleic Acids
Humans vs.
Chimps
DNA vs. RNA
Nitrogenous bases
DNA Facts
Genes

DNA and RNA = Nucleic

Acids!!

Which is this?

DNA Introduction

Nucleic Acid

Structure of a nucleotide:
A sugar
A phosphate group
A nitrogenous base
These three molecules are bonded together
to form a nucleotide

Nucleic Acid
Is

the polymer of nucleotides

Same as proteins are the polymer
of peptides and complex
carbohydrates are the polymer of
monosaccharide's
Composed of C, H, O, N and P
atoms

Function

DNA:
Genetic blue print for the organism
Encoded in the structure of the DNA is the
information that programs all the cells activities

RNA:
Is the link between genetic information
from DNA to protein
RNA interacts with the cells proteinsynthesizing machinery to produce a
polypeptide

Although we look very different, DNA

doesnt differ very much between species
especially those that are closely related.

For example

What is the difference between human DNA and chimps

There is approximately
1% difference in the
sequence of DNA (coding
regions) and an
additional 2-3% in the
non-coding regions
There is very little
difference between us
Some are closer than
others!!!!

Structure

Either DNA or RNA

What do these stand for?

DNA =
Deoxyribonucleic
acid

RNA =
Ribonucleic acid

Structure

DNA Recall
DNA: 2 long strands of nucleotide strands
wound together to form a double helix
Composed of a Deoxyribose sugar

What does this mean? Sugar is missing an

O

Nucleotides

The difference between DNA and

RNA is the O attached to the 2

DNA Cont

Base Pairs
4 Nitrogenous bases
Adenine (A)
Thymine (T)
Cytosine (C)
Guanine (G)

Structure Cont
RNA
RNA: 1 long strand of
nucleotides wound to form a
helix
Composed of a Ribose sugar

RNA Cont

Base Pairs
4 Nitrogenous bases
Adenine (A)
Uracil (U)
Cytosine (C)
Guanine (G)

Nucleic Acid

Base Pairs
DNA nucleotides always pair as
follows:
A-T (or T-A)
G-C (or C-G)
RNA nucleotides do not contain
thymine, rather another base
called uracil (U)
A-U

Nitrogenous Bases

There are two general types of nitrogenous base:

pyrimidines and purines.
Pyrimidine bases are single organic rings,
whereas purine bases are two-ringed organic
structures.
The three pyrimidine bases are uracil (U),
thymine (T), and cytosine (C).
The two purine bases are adenine (A) and
guanine (G).

Nitrogenous Bases

Cytosine, Adenine and Guanine are found in DNA

and RNA
Thymine is only found in DNA and Uracil

Covalent bonds between

phosphate group of one nucleotide
and hydroxyl group of carbon 3 on
sugar - facilitated by an enzyme condensation reaction

DNA

Base pairing
occurs via
Hydrogen Bonds
GC
AT

DNA Structure Video

The DNA Song

RNA

Although RNA is
single stranded,
its job is to copy
the DNA.

When copying the

DNA is needs to
make a
complementary
strand by pairing

Our DNA

A DNA strand is wrapped around special proteins called

histones to form a complex we call a chromosome
Our DNA is packaged onto 23 pairs of chromosomes (23
X 2 = 46 total)
The chromosomes are grouped as either autosomal or sex
chromosomes
Autosomal chromosome pairs are numbered 1-22
and encode for non-gender related traits
Sex chromosomes determine gender and encode for
many gender based traits

 The

DNA
coils and
loops
around the
histone
proteins
allow the
structure to
become very

DNA Facts

The human genome is composed of more than 3 billion nucleotide

bases.
There are 4 types of nucleotide base: A- adenine, T- thymine, Ccytosine, G- guanine.
The order of the nucleotide bases contains the instructions for making
an organism. Every three bases codes for an amino acid.
The total number of human genes is estimated to be between 20,000
25,000
Almost all nucleotide bases (99.9%) are exactly the same in all
people.
Less than 2% of the genome codes for proteins.
The vast majority of the DNA in the genome (>97%) has no known
function.

DNA Fact Concluded

The functions remain unknown for over 50% of discovered genes.

Chromosome 1 has the most genes (2,968) and chromosome Y
has the least (231).
There are 100 trillion cells in your body.
If unwound and tied together, the strands of DNA in one
cell would stretch 6 feet.
If all the DNA in your body was tied together, it would stretch to
the sun and back over 600 times.
The entire human genome requires more than 3 gigabytes of
computer storage space.
If a person recited the genome at a rate of one nucleotide per
second, 24 hours a day, it would take them a full century to
complete.

What is DNA?

Genes

Short segments on DNA which code

for proteins are called Genes
Genes are the result of a specific
sequence of nucleotides

Genes
We have 23 pairs of chromosomes
Within each pair, 1 chromosome
comes from mom and one from dad
Both #1 chromosomes represent the
same genes but will create different
proteins
You are a mix of those different
Proteins
You will always get an X from
mom and either a X if youre
female or a Y if youre male from
dad.

Genes

A gene can be defined as a region of DNA that

controls a hereditary characteristic.
Genes can be as short as 1000 base pairs or as long as
several hundred thousand base pairs.
Humans are thought to have between 20,000 to
25,000 genes.
More genes doesnt mean more complex

Genes code for everything

including:

DNA Hierarchy
Genome (one complete set of genetic
information)
Chromosome
Gene
Nucleotide

The Human Genome Project Video