DNA

Deoxyribonucleic
acid are polymer of
nucleotides
 Nucleotide

Nucleoside
Phosphate

N . Base Pentose

Deoxy
Pyrimidine
Ribose
Purine ribose

A, G T or U, C RNA DNA
 Nitrogenous Bases

• Pyrimidines
– Cytosine (DNA, RNA)
– Uracil (RNA)
– Thymine (DNA)
• Purines
– Adenine (DNA, RNA)
– Guanine (DNA, RNA)
Nucleoside

H
Nucleotide
ribonucleotide
2'-deoxyribonucleotide

H
DNA
synthesis

Synthesis of
deoxyribo-
nucleotides ---
reduction at the
2’-position of
the ribose ring
of nucleoside
diphosphates
 Deoxyribonucleotides
(Deoxynucleotides)

DNA, which lacks 2´ OH's, is more stable

than RNA
Watson-Crick Model for the Structure of DNA

Note 36 nm
James Dewey Watson Francis Harry Compton
Crick
 Deoxyribonucleic acid
• Double helix
Double stranded molecule that twists like a spiral
staircase.

• The outsides of the molecule, the railings of the

staircase, are made of deoxyribose sugars
alternating with phosphates. “Backbone".

• The strands run in opposite directions (this is

indicated by the 3-prime (3') and 5-prime (5')
“Anti-parallel".
•The inside of the molecule, the "steps" of the
staircase, are made of the nitrogenous bases .
Cytosine C, Guanine G, Adenine A, Thymine T.
Stands held together by:
1) Hydrogen Bonds
2) Base Stacking
 Complementary base pair
• C bonds to G by 3 hydrogen bonds.

• A bonds
These to T by bases
nucleotide 2 hydrogen
are thebonds
information carrying part of the molecule.
 The differences in the repeating
sequence of Cs, Gs, As and Ts makes us
all unique.
 5'-end DNA RNA

Phosphodiester
Bonds
Link Successive
Nucleotides in
Nucleic Acids
3'

5'

3'-end
Nucleotide sequences can be
represented schematically

5'-pApCpGpTpA-3'
5'-ACGTA-3'
ACGTA
 Human
Chromosomes
# of Base Pairs/ # of cells
Chromosomes genome
E. Coli 1 4 million 1

Human 23 (46) 3.3 billion 1014

Each human cell has 2

meters of DNA

Human beings have

124 billion miles of DNA
 The structure of chromosomes
• Chromosomes are complexes of equal parts of
protein and DNA.
• Elongated DNA would be 1 m so must be highly
folded to fit in cell (20 mm).

• Basic structural unit is the nucleosome.

• Core histone octamer (H2A, H2B, H3, H4). DNA

helix coils around in 1.75 turns with 146
nucleotides. Histone H1 connects adjacent
nucleosome.
Packaging of DNA in
chromosomes
 Nucleosomes are the
Fundamental Organizational
Units of Chromatin

In non-dividing cells chromatin is dispersed

throughout the nucleus
Histones are Small Basic Proteins
Nucleosomes are packed
into Successively Higher-
Order Structures
Supercoils
Topoisomerase I: cuts one DNA
strand; no ATP requirement;
relaxes supercoils

Topoisomerase II: cuts both

DNA strands; requires ATP.
 Mitochondrial DNA

• Double stranded small circular supercoil

(16,569 bp).
• Coded for 2 rRNA, 22 tRNA and 13
proteins.
• Mt DNA are maternally inherited.
 DNA

• The chemical basis of heredity.

•Organized into genes, the
fundamental units of genetic
information.