Related topics: genes · protein · cells · genome · chromosomes

Becoming human: An ancient genome perspective

Writing a commentary in the 50th anniversary issue of Cell, Fu Qiaomei and E. Andrew Bennett, both of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, explored the ...

An evolutionary mystery 125 million years in the making

Plant genomics has come a long way since Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) helped sequence the first plant genome. But engineering the perfect crop is still, in many ways, a game of chance. Making the same DNA mutation ...

How wild is the Bengal cat genome?

If you're wondering who holds the title of domestic cat royalty, look no further than the stunning Bengal breed. They take the prize for the most popular breed in The International Cat Association (TICA) registry due to their ...

Newly discovered protein prevents DNA triplication

Every time a cell divides, its DNA is duplicated so that the two daughter cells have the same genetic material as their parent. This means that, millions of times a day, a biochemical wonder takes place in the body: the copying ...

How trustworthy is your dog's DNA test?

Lila is a registered purebred beagle, but depending on what company does her DNA testing, she might be part rottweiler, part American foxhound, or not a beagle at all.

Tiny worms tolerate Chornobyl radiation, new research shows

The 1986 disaster at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant transformed the surrounding area into the most radioactive landscape on Earth. Humans were evacuated, but many plants and animals continue to live in the region, despite ...

Radio waves can tune up bacteria to become life-saving medicines

Scientists from Australia and the United States have found a new way to alter the DNA of bacterial cells—a process used to make many vital medicines including insulin—much more efficiently than standard industry techniques.

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DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and some viruses. The main role of DNA molecules is the long-term storage of information. DNA is often compared to a set of blueprints or a recipe, or a code, since it contains the instructions needed to construct other components of cells, such as proteins and RNA molecules. The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in regulating the use of this genetic information.

Chemically, DNA consists of two long polymers of simple units called nucleotides, with backbones made of sugars and phosphate groups joined by ester bonds. These two strands run in opposite directions to each other and are therefore anti-parallel. Attached to each sugar is one of four types of molecules called bases. It is the sequence of these four bases along the backbone that encodes information. This information is read using the genetic code, which specifies the sequence of the amino acids within proteins. The code is read by copying stretches of DNA into the related nucleic acid RNA, in a process called transcription.

Within cells, DNA is organized into X-shaped structures called chromosomes. These chromosomes are duplicated before cells divide, in a process called DNA replication. Eukaryotic organisms (animals, plants, fungi, and protists) store most of their DNA inside the cell nucleus and some of their DNA in the mitochondria (animals and plants) and chloroplasts (plants only). Prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea) however, store their DNA in the cell's cytoplasm. Within the chromosomes, chromatin proteins such as histones compact and organize DNA. These compact structures guide the interactions between DNA and other proteins, helping control which parts of the DNA are transcribed.

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