MOLECULAR BIOLOGY PAPERS

“Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Genes Structure and Organization”

ARRANGED BY:

Name : Khazanah

Istiqomah NIM :

4213141009

Class : BESP 2021

LECTURER:

Prof. Dr. Fauziyah Harahap, M.Si.

BILINGUAL BIOLOGY EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

FACULTY OF MATHEMATICS AND NATURAL

SCIENCES STATE UNIVERSITY OF MEDAN

May 2024
 FOREWORD

Praise be to the presence of Allah SWT, God Almighty, for all His abundance of
mercy, favors, and guidance, so that the author can complete the task of preparing this paper
on time. The aim of this task is to fulfill one of the assignments in the Molecular Biology
course especially in prokaryotic and eukaryotic genes structure and organization of material.

The author would like to express many thanks to Ma'am Prof. Dr. Fauziyah Harahap,
M.Si. as a lecturer in the Molecular Biology course who has helped and guided the author
during the process of preparing this paper.

In the drafting process this paper, the author realizes that the paper that has been
prepared still has shortcomings. Therefore, the author apologizes for all errors and
shortcomings contained in this paper. The author requests constructive criticism and
suggestions so that this paper can be even better. In the end, the author hopes that this paper
can provide benefits to readers.

Medan, May 2024

Author

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD............................................................................................................................2

TABLE OF CONTENTS.........................................................................................................3

CHAPTER I..............................................................................................................................4

PRELIMINARY.......................................................................................................................4

1.1 Problem Background........................................................................................................4

1.2 Problem Formulation........................................................................................................5

1.3 Purposes............................................................................................................................5

1.4 Benefits.............................................................................................................................5

CHAPTER II............................................................................................................................6

DISCUSSION...........................................................................................................................6

2.1 Genes Concepts................................................................................................................6

2.2 Prokaryotic Genes Structure and Organization................................................................6

2.3 Eukaryotic Genes Structure and Organization.................................................................8

CHAPTER III.........................................................................................................................10

CLOSING...............................................................................................................................10

3.1 Conclusion......................................................................................................................10

3.2 Suggestions.....................................................................................................................10

BIBLIOGRAPHY..................................................................................................................11

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 CHAPTER I

PRELIMINARY

1.1 Problem Background

Organisms or living things are at the 6th level in the level of organization of life which is
above the level of molecules, cells, tissues, organs and organ systems and below the level of
population, community and ecosystem. Based on this, it can be understood that this organism
or living creature is a complex structure of life consisting of various molecules, cells, tissues,
organs and organ systems (Adrianto, 2017). Judging from the cellular aspect of living
organisms, organisms are divided into prokaryotic organisms (not having a nuclear
membrane) and eukaryotic organisms (having a nuclear membrane). Apart from being
viewed from the cellular aspect of living organisms, organisms can also be divided into 2
groups based on the number of cells that make up them, namely unicellular (one-celled)
organisms and multicellular (many-celled) organisms. In cells there are various cell
organelles, one of the organelles that plays a role in the inheritance of traits is the cell
nucleus. The cell nucleus contains various genetic materials known as DNA/RNA, genes,
genomes and chromosomes (Thomy & Harnelly, 2018).

All characteristics possessed by living creatures are controlled and determined by genetic
material known as genes. This gene is found in pieces or segments of DNA that contain
nitrogen base sequences. In living creatures there are 2 types of genes, namely: structural
genes and regulatory genes. Structural genes are a group of genes that act as coding for the
sequence of amino acids in proteins and as permanent components in cell structures, while
regulatory genes are a group of genes that act as controllers of the level of expression of
structural genes, regulate the rate of protein production, and are related to responses to
internal and external signals. extracellular (Gaffar, 2007).

Organisms or living things are divided into prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms based
on the presence or absence of cell nuclear membrane components. As living creatures, of
course these two groups of organisms also contain genetic material known as genes.
Therefore, this paper was prepared with the aim of explaining the concept of genes from
various sources and discussing the structure and organization of genes found in prokaryotic
and eukaryotic organisms.

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1.2 Problem Formulation
1. What is meant by genes?
2. How do the prokaryotic genes structure and organization?
3. How do the eukaryotic genes structure and organization?

1.3 Purposes
1. Knowing the concept of genes.
2. Understanding the prokaryotic genes structure and organization.
3. Understanding the eukaryotic genes structure and organization.

1.4 Benefits
1. Adding to the author's insight from various sources regarding genes concepts and
gene prokaryotic and eukaryotic structure and organization.
2. Becomes an additional reference in molecular biology course, especially in the
prokaryotic and eukaryotic genes structure and organization of material.

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 CHAPTER II

DISCUSSION

2.1 Genes Concepts

In the study of molecular biology, genetic material is included at the molecular level at
the level of organization of life. As a component of genetic material, genes have various
terminations. Some of them, namely a gene, is a segment of a DNA strand that contains
genetic information that can be expressed as a protein. Genes are also known as the smallest
genetic units that provide inherited characteristics in living things. From a molecular
perspective, a gene can be said to be a stretch of DNA that contains a typical nucleotide
sequence that codes for a functional polypetheide or protein or a functional RNA chain
(Thomy & Harnelly, 2018).

In other literature studies, it is said that a number of genes are genetic components
contained in chromosomes that determine an individual's physical and psychological
characteristics. Genes can also be said to be a blueprint for development that is permanent
and will be passed down from generation to generation. The inheritance of this gene occurs
through the process of fusion of the sex cells of the two parent organisms (Amini & Naimah,
2020). Genes are also known as part of complex and long strands of DNA which act as
protein codes and play an important role in the reproductive process. Based on its structure, a
gene consists of two main components, namely a regulatory sequence and an open reading
frame sequence (Mushlih, 2019).

Based on the definitions above, it can be concluded that genes are the smallest
components of genetic material located in DNA segments which contain genetic information
in the form of a sequence of nitrogen bases which is permanent and can be passed on to the
next generation which plays a role in regulating physical and psychological characteristics.
Genes not only play a role in the inheritance of traits but also play an important role in the
process of protein synthesis.

2.2 Prokaryotic Genes Structure and Organization

The structure of prokaryotic genes is generally very simple, consisting of a regulatory
sequence that controls the expression of the gene (there are silencers and enhancers) and a

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coding sequence (open reading frame). According to Mushlih (2019), the structure of
prokaryotic genes consists of:

1. Regulatory Sequence
a. Enhancer/silencer, where the enhancer component plays a role in speeding up the
transcription process (increasing the amount of RNA polymerase) while the
silencer component plays a role in slowing down transcription. These two
components can be located close or even far from the main part of the gene
depending on the type of gene.
b. The promoter is the part where RNA polymerase attaches and the transcription
initiation stage occurs. In this section there is a repeated TATA nucleotide
sequence so it is often called the TATA box.
c. The 5' UTR (upstream sequence) plays a role as a ribosome attractor in the
translation process and the 3' UTR plays a role as a release for the polymerase
enzyme in the transcription process (downstream sequence), which is the part that
is transcribed but not translated.
d. Terminator, is a part rich in GC sequences that is formed in the transcribed
molecule and is the final part of the transcription process.
2. Open Reading Frames, which contain sequences where transcription starts and ends,
are rarely found in prokaryotes or are even short at less than 60 bp. This part is also
called the coding region (structural part) which is the part that codes for the RNA
nucleotide sequence. The transcription process starts from the transcription initiation
sequence (ATG) to the stop codon (TAA/TGA/TAG).

Figure 1. Prokaryotic Genes

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2.3 Eukaryotic Genes Structure and Organization
The gene structure in eukaryotes is generally more complex compared to the gene
structure in prokaryotes. This happens because most eukaryotic genes are discontinuous
(coding parts are often separated by noncoding sequences). Cipher sequences are called
exons and non-cipher sequences are called introns. Exons generally have a much smaller size
than introns (up to 20,000 bp). The general character of introns is that most of their sequences
begin with GT (in RNA: GU) and end with AG. The more complex an organism, the higher
the proportion of genes that have introns. This is also supported by the existence of regulatory
sequences which are complex and located far from the structural gene sequences. The
regulatory sequence is located at the 5' or 3' end and is not translated (Sinaga, 2010).

The characteristic that differentiates the structure of genes in prokaryotes and eukaryotes
lies only in the structural part. Where in the eukaryotic gene structure, there are introns and
exons in the structural/coding region. Introns are DNA segments that do not code/are not
translated into amino acids, while exons are DNA segments that code for amino acids. The
length of this intron also varies from one gene to another. For example, the gene that codes
for one polypetide chain in the ovalbumin protein in bird eggs has introns that are longer than
exons, there are 7 introns that fill 85% of the gene. Likewise in the structure of the
hemoglobin beta subunit gene, where there are 2 introns but they are larger/more numerous
than the exons. The function of introns is currently unknown (Gaffar, 2007).

Figure 2. Ovalbumin and Hemoglobin Subunit Beta Genes

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According to Mushlih (2019), the structure of eukaryotic genes consists of:

1) Regulatory Sequence
a) Enhancer/silencer, where the enhancer component plays a role in speeding
up the transcription process (increasing the amount of RNA polymerase)
while the silencer component plays a role in slowing down transcription.
These two components can be located close or even far from the main part
of the gene depending on the type of gene.
b) The promoter is the part where RNA polymerase attaches and the
transcription initiation stage occurs. In this section there is a repeated
TATA nucleotide sequence so it is often called the TATA box.
c) The 5' UTR (upstream sequence) plays a role as a ribosome attractor in the
translation process and the 3' UTR plays a role as a release for the
polymerase enzyme in the transcription process (downstream sequence),
which is the part that is transcribed but not translated.
d) Terminator, is a part rich in GC sequences that is formed in the transcribed
molecule and is the final part of the transcription process.
2) Open Reading Frame, in which there is a sequence where the transcription
starts and ends. This part is also called the coding region (structural part)
which is the part that codes for the RNA nucleotide sequence. In this section
there are intron and exon components. Where the intron is the part that is
transcribed (does not contain the protein code) but is not translated and until
now its function is not known for certain, while the exon is the part that is
transcribed and translated (contains the protein code).

Figure 3. Eukaryotic Genes

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 CHAPTER III

CLOSING

3.1 Conclusion
Genes are the smallest components of genetic material located in DNA segments which
contain genetic information in the form of a sequence of nitrogen bases which is permanent
and can be passed on to the next generation which plays a role in regulating physical and
psychological characteristics. Genes not only play a role in the inheritance of traits but also
play an important role in the process of protein synthesis. The structure and organization of
genes in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes at first glance looks the same. Where the difference
between the two only lies in the structural part of the gene, namely in prokaryotes there are
no untranslated parts called introns, whereas in eukaryotes the structural part of the gene
contains introns and exons simultaneously. The existence of introns and exons is the process
of protein synthesis in different prokaryotes and eukaryotes.

3.2 Suggestions
Paper that has been prepared using various sources from books, modules, and research
journals. Therefore, the author hopes that this paper can be used as an additional teaching
resource, especially in molecular biology in prokaryotic and eukaryotic genes structure and
organization of material. However, the paper that has been prepared is not yet perfect, so it is
hoped that the preparation of subsequent papers can add and complete content that is in line
with the topic in this paper, thereby increasing the quality and richness of the information
contained on it.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Adrianto, H. (2017). Biologi Sel dan Molekuler. Yogyakarta: Deepublish.

Amini, N. & Naimah. (2020). FAKTOR HEREDITAS DALAM MEMENGARUHI

PERKEMBANGAN INTELEGENSI ANAK USIA DINI. Jurnal Buah Hati, 7 (2):
108-124

Gaffar, S. (2007). BUKU AJAR BIOTEKNOLOGI MOLEKUL. Bandung: Jurusan Kimia

Fakultas Matematika dan Ilmu Pengetahuan Alam Universitas Padjajaran.

Mushlih, M. (2019). Buku Ajar BIOLOGI MOLEKULAR Aplikasi Dasar Di Dunia

Kesehatan. Sidoarjo: UMSIDA Press.

Sinaga, E. (2010). Biologi Molekuler REGULASI EKSPRESI GEN. Jakarta: Fakultas biologi
Universitas Nasional.

Thomy, A. & Harnelly, E. (2018). BUKU AJAR DASAR-DASAR BIOLOGI SEL &
MOLEKULER. Banda Aceh: Syiah Kuala University Press.

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