DNA and RNA Guided Notes
What are Nucleic Acids?
Structure: ___organic polymer___ composed of ____nucleotides___.
Function: __blueprint__ for __proteins__ that control all cellular activities.
Two Types of Nucleic Acids:
Draw and label a nucleotide here.
1) ___Deoxyribonucleic Acid____ ( __DNA__)
2) ___Ribonucleic Acid_____________ (__RNA__)
Important Facts about Nucleic Acids:
• Both __DNA__ and ___RNA___ are composed of small
units, (____monomers___) called ___nucleotides___
• Each ____nucleotide____ has __3__ parts.
The 3 Parts of a Nucleotide
1) A ___phosphate___ group
2) A _sugar_ (pentose)
- ___Deoxyribose__ (DNA only)
- ___Ribose___ (RNA only)
3)A ___Nitrogeneous___ base
C = ___Cytosine___
G= ____Guanine____
A= ___Adenine___
T= ___Thymine___ (DNA only)
U= ___Uracil____(RNA only)
• Even though both __DNA__and __RNA_ are composed of ___nucleotides__,
the __basic__ ___structure__ of the two molecules is __different__.
DNA’s Structure:
DNA is shaped like a ___spiral staircase___ - this shape is called a ___double helix___
• DNA is composed of ___two__ parallel chains of ____nucleotides____
• The two chains are connected by __hydrogen bonds___ between the
__nitrogen__ __bases__ of each __nucleotide__
• Bases that bond are called ___complimentary___
___bases__
Base Pairing Rules:
• ____Adenine___will only bond with _____Thymine____
• ___Guanine___ will only bond with ____Cytosine___
Example:
DNA Sequence:
Complementary DNA Sequence:
G
C
C
G
“Appalachian trail”
“Grand canyon”
A
T
T
A
C
G
G
C
A
T
A
T
C
G
A
U
T
A
RNA’s Structure:
• RNA consists of a __single__ chain of ___nucleotides___
When RNA pairs to a strand of DNA , each RNA base can bond with only one type of DNA base:
• ___Adenine___ will only bond with ___Uracil__
• ___Cytosine___will only bond with ___Guanine___
Example:
RNA Sequence:
Complementary RNA Sequence:
G
C
C
G
A
U
T
A
A
U
C
G
C
G
• Label the Complementary
Base Pairs
• Label the Hydrogen Bonds
• Label the Phosphates
• Label the Deoxyribose Sugars
• Circle and Label a Nucleotide