The sequence of base pairs that make up our DNA should be viewed like a bar code.

Every set of three bases code for one building block of a protein. That's all that DNA
is for: code for building proteins. A set of three bases is called a codon and tells
machinery in the cell (ribosome) to add one specific building block to a forming
protein. It's like lego and DNA is the instructions that tell you which block to add
next.

These different blocks give

shape and function to the
proteins it helps to build.

How DNA codes

for proteins:
The human genome has 3
billion of the base pairs( from
half of ur chromosomes) –you
have a pair of every
chromosome, it only takes 3
billion base pairs to describe
who you are, a lot of primates
don’t have that many base
pairs, when dna codes for a
protein, the process is called
transcription, the two strands
of the dna split up, this dna
transcribes a complimentary
mRNA( where uracil replaces
thymine), for example after
splitting a dna, if u have
suppose the sequence on one of
the strands:

AGCTGTAC------then this
DNA strand will cause the
making of a complimentary mRNA strand where u will see U instead of T.so u will get---
UCGACAUG..all of this is occurring within the nucleus( which contains chromosomes which
contains all the DNA)…then this mRNA formed detaches itself from the DNA strand and leaves
the nucleus and goes to ribosomes where this mRNA is translated into proteins. there are other
things called tRNA( everything we are made up of is proteins and the building blocks of proteins
are amino acids—proteins are long chains of amino acids) there are 20 different amino acids
which make up all the different kinds of proteins…so in a strand of mRNA, there are the
bases(which code for the 20 different amino acids which in turn code for all the proteins), and in
each position( bucket) we can have one of 4 different kinds of bases, but how can 4 bases make
up 20 different acids, if we take the next bucket, we have another 4 possibilities, equaling 4X4=
16 different combinations of forming amino acids, which is still not enough because we need 20,
so if we add another base, we have 4X4X4=64 different combos, which are enough. This
combination of 3 bases is called a codon, because it can code for an amino acid. But we don’t
need 64, we need only 20 amino acids, so we have redundant combinations ( UAC-for amino
acid 1, GGG-amino acid 10 for example)…at the ribosomes, the mRNA molecule actually act as
a template for tRNA molecules, tRNA molecules act as trucks for amino acids, because a 3 base
combo is attached to every amino acid(which come from foods and stuff like that, not like we
make amino acids, we just make proteins), a tRNA molecule with a code like GUC, would be
attracted or pull up as a truck next to the part of the mRNA with the sequence CAG, the bond
forming is acutally hydrogen bond( the bond between the mRNA and the tRNA) each tRNA
holds an amino acid and a bunch of tRNA molecules actually line up next to each other, and so
there are amino acids next to each other which bond together with help from ribosomes, and
once the amino acid bonds and forms a chain , the tRNA detaches and the chain starts to curl up
or fold, and when they fold they form ultracomplex patterns and form very intricate shapes,
which are really important in their function. ( some could be a linkage of multiple amino acids or
some could be a single amino acid chain) …insulin approximately has a chain of 50 amino acids
( which means 3X50=150 bases). Now the 150 base pairs that coded for insulin( make up that
protein or whatever) is a gene, it is one gene. ALL OF THE GENES DON’T MAKE UP
PROTEIN BUT ALL OF THE PROTEINS ARE MADE BY GENES. The genes could code for
a protein or they could have other regulatory functions telling what other parts of the DNA
should and shouldn’t be coded and how the DNA behaves. But the section of our dna that
eventually codes for a protein is called a gene, the specific part that forms the mrna and its
specific part that involves in making a protein. A gene is a specific part of our chromosome or
dna that codes for a protein or performs a specific function, there are different forms of genes,
there are slight variations of how insulin could be created, for example to code for insulin, there
could be a range of combinations that vary only slightly, for example in a certain place instead of
a C, there could be a T, but this change doesn’t quite make a big difference in how the final
protein turns out, so it will still be insulin only slightly different, there is a slight variant, now
each variant of the gene is called a allele,
There are huge sections of dna that we still don’t know what they do, so the long molecule of dna
coils up to form a chromosome

the pink part could be gene 1,

the other pink part could be a
longer gene maybe gene 10,
now this huge dna molecule
curls up and forms this
chromosome, which we can
actually see. And we have 23
pairs of chromosomes, 2 of
every kind, the largest
chromosome is the
chromosome no.1 contains
220 million base pairs.
Chromosomes are super long
strands of dna.

How does DNA replicate:

The two strands of the DNA splits, and the two parent strands act as templates to form
complimentary strands using free nucleotides. These new nucleotides are made up of a
nitrogenous base, pentose sugar,and a phosphate group. They are produced within the cell.

During DNA replication, the two strands are pulled apart by helicase and the other parts by of the
replication machine aid in this. Once the two strands are pulled apart, DNA
Polymerase( catalyzes the linkage of the adding of deoxyribonucleotides to the dna strand) is the
one that comes in and attaches to each DNA strand at the RNA Primer that is laid down so it can
start replication. The DNA Polymerase moves along the leading strand of DNA and adds
nucleotides ( A T C G) onto the strand depending on which one it needs

for example if the original strand has a T, the DNA Polymerase will add an A and so forth. The
lagging stand of DNA is different but I won’t go into that.