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An updated version of this lesson is available at Visionlearning: Nucleic Acids

With over 100,000 different proteins to manufacture, how the heck does our
body get it right? When one thinks of the amount of information the body needs to
keep track of, - eye, hair and skin color, protein sequence, toenail size, etc. - it would
seem a task for a supercomputer to record all of the necessary information. In essence
it is. But not a supercomputer made of silicon wafers and TV screens, rather one
made of an intricate biomolecule called DNA.
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is in the family of molecules referred to as nucleic
acids. One strand of DNA has a backbone consisting of a polymer of the simple sugar
deoxyribose bonded to something called a phosphate unit. Very unimpressively then,
the backbone of a strand of DNA resembles this:

sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-...

What is impressive about DNA is that each sugar molecule in the strand also binds to
one of four different nucleotide bases. These bases: Adenine (A), Guanine (G),
Cytosine (C) and Thymine (T), are the beginnings of what we will soon see is a
molecular alphabet. Each sugar molecule in the DNA strand will bind to one
nucleotide base. Thus, as our description of DNA unfolds, we see that a single strand
of the molecule looks more like this:

C T G A ...
sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-...

Each strand of DNA contains millions or even billions (in the case of human DNA) of
nucleotide bases. These bases are arranged in a specific order according to our
genetic ancestry. The order of these base units makes up the code for specific
characteristics in the body, such as eye color or nose-hair length. Just as we use 26
letters in various sequences to code for the words you are now reading, our body's
DNA uses 4 letters (the 4 nucleotide bases) to code for millions of different
characteristics.
Each molecule of DNA is actually made up of 2 strands of DNA cross-linked
together. Each nucleotide base in the DNA strand will cross-link (via hydrogen
bonds) with a nucleotide base in a second strand of DNA forming a structure that
resembles a ladder. These bases cross-link in a very specific order: A will only link
with T (and vice-versa), and C will only link with G (and vice-versa). Thus our
picture of DNA now looks like this:
 sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-...
G A C T ...
| | | | |
C T G A ...
sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-sugar-phosphate-...

In 1953, James Watson, Francis Crick and

Rosalind Franklin discovered that the structure
of DNA is actually a double helix. In other
words, the DNA ladder described above coils
around itself somewhat like the cord of a
telephone, as illustrated at right. To get a better
picture of the DNA double helix, Dr. Abby
Parrill and Dr. Jacquelyn Gervay at the
University of Arizona have put together a movie
of the DNA double helix and an interactive
strand of DNA that can be moved around by the
user. Both are available by clicking below
(Note: the interactive DNA strand
requires Chemscape's CHIME software to run).

Both may take several minutes to load on a 28.8

modem (and they may not work with MS
IExplorer).

(~576k movie opens in a new window) Artwork courtesy of Lisa Graf for MCET

(large animation opens in a new window)

The specific base-pairing of DNA aids in reproduction of the double helix when
more genetic material is needed (such as during reproduction, to pass on
characteristics from parent to offspring). When DNA reproduces, the 2 strands unzip
from each other and enzymes add new bases to each, thus forming two new strands.
This process is illustrated in the Access Excellence DNA Replicating Itself page (just
hit your browser's Back button to return here).
Within this coil of DNA lies all the information needed to produce everything in
the human body. A strand of DNA may be millions, or billions, of base-pairs long.
Different segments of the DNA molecule code for different characteristics in the
body. A K

is a relatively small segment of DNA that codes for the synthesis of a
specific protein. This protein then will play a structural or functional role in the
body. A —
is a larger collection of DNA that contains many genes and the
support proteins needed to control these genes.


  

How does a gene code for a protein? Protein synthesis is a 2 part process that
involves a second type of nucleic acid along with DNA. This second type of nucleic
acid is RNA, ribonucleic acid. RNA differs from DNA in two respects. First, the
sugar units in RNA are ribose as compared to DNA's deoxyribose. Because of this
difference, RNA does not bind to the nucleotide base Thymine, instead, RNA contains
the nucleotide base Uracil (U) in place of T (RNA also contains the other three bases:
A, C and G).

÷Ê Transcription: In the first step of protein synthesis, the 2 DNA strands in a gene
that codes for a protein unzip from each other. Similar to the way DNA
replicates itself, a single strand of messenger RNA (mRNA) is then made by
pairing up mRNA bases with the exposed DNA nucleotide bases. The top
column in the table below shows 6 bases in a DNA sequence. Click on each
DNA base to see the complementary mRNA base in the bottom column.

c

Sequence


Sequence
Remember that mRNA does not contain the base Thymine, so U is paired with
each of DNA's A bases.

÷Ê Translation: After the mRNA is manufactured, it leaves the cell nucleus and
travels to a cellular organelle called the ribosome (we will learn about the cell,
nucleus and ribosome in the next lesson). In the ribosome, the mRNA code is
translated into a transfer RNA (tRNA) code which, in turn, is transfered into a
protein sequence. In this process, each set of 3 mRNA bases (the mRNA base
triplet is called a —) will pair with a complimentary tRNA base triplet
(called an  —). Each tRNA is specific to an amino acid, as tRNA's are
added to the sequence, amino acids are linked together by peptide bonds,
eventually forming a protein that is later released by the tRNA. Using the
mRNA strand we obtained above, you can generate the complimentary
tRNA/amino acid sequence by clicking on the mRNA codons in the table
below.

mRNA codon
 After the processes of transcription and translation are complete, we are left
with a protein that consists of the chain:
Aspartic Acid -Leucine
Although our 'protein' is only 2 amino acids in length, proteins normally consist
of hundreds or thousands of amino acids.
Below are several sites that give additional information on DNA and the genetic code:

÷Ê This Cell to Protein page allows you to input any DNA sequence and it will
calculate the complementary mRNA sequence and the resulting amino acid
chain.
÷Ê Genentech's Access Excellence pages have excellent tutorials on the History of
DNA and Protein Synthesis.
÷Ê PBS has put together an outstanding, interactive DNA and Protein Synthesis
tutorial.