DNA

DNAA. adenineT. thymineC. cytosineG. guanine

DNA

D0311200 (dē′ĕn-ā′)n. A nucleic acid that carries the genetic information in cells and some viruses, consisting of two long chains of nucleotides twisted into a double helix and joined by hydrogen bonds between the complementary bases adenine and thymine or cytosine and guanine. DNA sequences are replicated by the cell prior to cell division and may include genes, intergenic spacers, and regions that bind to regulatory proteins.

[d(eoxyribo)n(ucleic) a(cid).]

DNA

n (Biochemistry) deoxyribonucleic acid; a nucleic acid that is the main constituent of the chromosomes of all organisms (except some viruses). The DNA molecule consists of two polynucleotide chains in the form of a double helix, containing phosphate and the sugar deoxyribose and linked by hydrogen bonds between the complementary bases adenine and thymine or cytosine and guanine. DNA is self-replicating, plays a central role in protein synthesis, and is responsible for the transmission of hereditary characteristics from parents to offspring. See also genetic code abbreviation for did not attend

DNA

deoxyribonucleic acid: an extremely long, double-stranded nucleic acid molecule arranged as a double helix that is the main constituent of the chromosome and that carries the genes as segments along its strands: found chiefly in the chromatin of cells and in many viruses. [1930–35]

DNA

(dē′ĕn-ā′) Short for deoxyribonucleic acid. The nucleic acid that is the genetic material determining the makeup of all living cells and many viruses. It consists of two strands of nucleotides linked together in a structure resembling a ladder twisted into a spiral. In eukaryotic cells, the DNA is contained mainly in the nucleus and mitochondria. DNA can replicate itself and synthesize RNA. Compare RNA. See Note at gene.Did You Know? One of the wonders of nature is that the complexity and diversity of life can be contained in a molecule with a relatively simple structure. Deoxyribonucleic acid, commonly called DNA, exists mainly in the nucleus and mitochondria of each cell in an organism. It consists of two long strands linked together in a structure resembling a ladder twisted into a spiral, called a double helix. Each rung is made up of two chemical bases, called nucleotides, that are joined together by hydrogen bonds. There are four kinds of nucleotides in a DNA molecule: cytosine, guanine, adenine, and thymine—C, G, A, and T, for short. Specific sequences of these bases, known as genes, form codes that contain all of an organism's genetic information. When other components of a cell "read" this code, they produce proteins, the building blocks of life.

DNA

deoxyribonucleic acid.See also: Heredity

Thesaurus

Noun

DNA - (biochemistry) a long linear polymer found in the nucleus of a cell and formed from nucleotides and shaped like a double helix; associated with the transmission of genetic information; "DNA is the king of molecules"deoxyribonucleic acid, desoxyribonucleic acidcistron, gene, factor - (genetics) a segment of DNA that is involved in producing a polypeptide chain; it can include regions preceding and following the coding DNA as well as introns between the exons; it is considered a unit of heredity; "genes were formerly called factors"operon - a segment of DNA containing adjacent genes including structural genes and an operator gene and a regulatory genebiochemistry - the organic chemistry of compounds and processes occurring in organisms; the effort to understand biology within the context of chemistrybase pair - one of the pairs of chemical bases joined by hydrogen bonds that connect the complementary strands of a DNA molecule or of an RNA molecule that has two strands; the base pairs are adenine with thymine and guanine with cytosine in DNA and adenine with uracil and guanine with cytosine in RNAadenine, A - (biochemistry) purine base found in DNA and RNA; pairs with thymine in DNA and with uracil in RNAcDNA, complementary DNA - single-stranded DNA that is complementary to messenger RNA or DNA that has been synthesized from messenger RNA by reverse transcriptaseepisome - DNA that is not incorporated into the genome but is replicated together with the genome (especially in bacterial cells)cytosine, C - a base found in DNA and RNA and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with guaninecoding DNA, exon - sequence of a gene's DNA that transcribes into protein structures; "exons are interspersed with introns"intron, noncoding DNA - sequence of a eukaryotic gene's DNA that is not translated into a proteinjunk DNA - stretches of DNA that do not code for genes; "most of the genome consists of junk DNA"recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid, recombinant DNA - genetically engineered DNA made by recombining fragments of DNA from different organismssticky end - an end of DNA in which one strand of the double helix extends a few units beyond the otherjumping gene, transposon - a segment of DNA that can become integrated at many different sites along a chromosome (especially a segment of bacterial DNA that can be translocated as a whole)guanine, G - a purine base found in DNA and RNA; pairs with cytosinenucleic acid - (biochemistry) any of various macromolecules composed of nucleotide chains that are vital constituents of all living cellspolymer - a naturally occurring or synthetic compound consisting of large molecules made up of a linked series of repeated simple monomersT, thymine - a base found in DNA (but not in RNA) and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with adenine

Translations

脱氧核糖核酸

DNA

→ 脱氧核糖核酸zhCN

DNA

deoxyribonucleic acid.complementary DNA (cDNA) (copy DNA (cDNA)) synthetic DNA transcribed from a specific RNA through the reaction of the enzyme reverse transcriptase.

DNA

Abbreviation for deoxyribonucleic acid. For terms bearing this abbreviation, see subentries under deoxyribonucleic acid.

DNA

(dē′ĕn-ā′)n. A nucleic acid that carries the genetic information in cells and some viruses, consisting of two long chains of nucleotides twisted into a double helix and joined by hydrogen bonds between the complementary bases adenine and thymine or cytosine and guanine. DNA sequences are replicated by the cell prior to cell division and may include genes, intergenic spacers, and regions that bind to regulatory proteins.

DNA

Abbreviation for:
deoxyribonucleic acid
did not arrive
did not attend, see there

DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid Molecular biology A double-stranded linear macromolecule which encodes an organism's genetic information

DNA

Abbreviation for deoxyribonucleic acid.

DNA

Abbrev. for deoxyribonucleic acid. The very long molecule that winds up to form a CHROMOSOME and that contains the complete code for the automatic construction of the body. The molecule has a double helix skeleton of alternating sugars (deoxyribose) and phosphates. Between the two helices, lying like rungs in a ladder, are a succession of linked pairs of the four bases adenine, thymine, guanine and cytosine. The molecules of adenine and guanine are larger than thymine and cytosine and so, to keep the rungs of equal length, adenine links only with thymine and guanine only with cytosine. This arrangement allows automatic replication of the molecule. The sequence of bases along the molecule, taken in groups of three (codons), is the genetic code. Each CODON specifies a particular amino acid to be selected, and the sequence of these, in the polypeptides formed, determines the nature of the protein (usually an ENZYME) synthesized. Polypeptide formation occurs indirectly by way of MESSENGER RNA and TRANSFER RNA. Periodicity of DNA is defined as the number of base pairs per turn of the double helix.

Fig. 137 DNA. Replication. DNA

Fig. 136 DNA. The ‘double helix’ shape produced by coiling. DNA

Fig. 135 DNA. Complementary base pairing.

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)

a complex NUCLEIC ACID molecule found in the chromosomes of almost all organisms, which acts as the primary genetical material, controlling the structure of proteins and hence influencing all enzyme-driven reactions.

structure. DNA is a polymer of deoxyribonucleotides. The model proposed by WATSON and CRICK in 1953 has now become universally accepted for double-stranded DNA. The DNA is considered to consist of two POLYNUCLEOTIDE CHAINS joined together by hydrogen bonds between NUCLEOTIDE BASES, with COMPLEMENTARY BASE PAIRING between specific bases ensuring a parallel-sided, stable structure: ADENINE pairing with THYMINE (2H bonds) and CYTOSINE with GUANINE (3H bonds).
The two polynucleotide chains each have an opposite polarity due to the way the phosphates are attached to the sugar groups by 3'- 5' PHOSPHODIESTER BONDS. DNA can exist in a number of configurations, of which B-DNA is the predominant form. In this form the molecule is twisted into a right-handed double helix, with a complete turn every tenth base.

See also A-DNA, Z-DNA.
replication (see SEMICONSERVATIVE REPLICATION MODEL). Replication is initiated at the ORIGIN OF REPLICATION. DNA HELICASE enzymes unwind the double-stranded DNA and each parental strand acts as a TEMPLATE for new DNA synthesis. The anti-parallel nature of the double-stranded DNA molecule affects the replication process. The DNA POLYMERASES involved in replication can only add NUCLEOTIDES to the 3'- OH group of a polynucleotide chain, that is, a DNA strand can only be synthesized in the 5'- 3' direction requiring a template running 3'-" 5'. Thus the two newly synthesized strands must grow in different directions. One daughter strand (the leading strand) is synthesized continuously in the 5'- 3' direction. The other daughter strand (the lagging strand) is synthesized discontinuously in fragments (called Okazaki fragments) that have been synthesized in the normal 5'- 3' direction, but the strand grows overall in the 3'-" 5' direction. These fragments are afterwards joined to make a continuous strand. The region in which replication occurs is called the replication fork. In E. coli, replication occurs as follows: the DNA unwinds, SSB protein is laid down on the single strands to stabilize them and to prevent rewinding. An RNA PRIMER initiates DNA synthesis on the leading strand. RNA primers initiate synthesis of each fragment on the lagging strand. These primers are later removed and the gaps left are filled in by the activity of a DNA polymerase. DNA LIGASE then joins the fragments together to form a complete strand.
In eukaryotes, DNA replication occurs in the ‘S’ phase of the CELL CYCLE prior to nuclear division.
location. DNA is found in all chromosomes except those of certain viruses (such as tobacco mosaic virus, TMV), where the heritable material is RNA. In PROKARYOTES, DNA is generally in the form of a single coiled molecule in a continuous loop (see NUCLEOID and may also occur as extrachromosomal material in the cytoplasm. In EUKARYOTES the DNA is also highly coiled but is complexed with basic and acidic proteins. There is probably only one very long DNA molecule per chromosome. DNA is also found in CHLOROPLASTS and MITOCHONDRIA of eukaryote cytoplasm (see CYTOPLASMIC INHERITANCE).
DNA as a genetic material. There are several pieces of evidence to suggest the role of DNA in inheritance: (i) TRANSFORMATION experiments with Streptococcus (Diplococcus) pneumoniae in 1928, by F. GRIFFITH; (ii) the identification of the ‘transforming principle’ as DNA by AVERY MacLeod and McCarty in 1944; (iii) the fact that the wavelength of ultraviolet light which causes most mutations in various prokaryotes and eukaryotes matches the ABSORPTION SPECTRUM of nucleic acids (260 nm); (iv) HERSHEY and Chase's experiment with labelled BACTERIOPHAGE. DNA has several features which make it an ideal genetic material: great stability (see structure above); accurate replication so that all cells contain an identical copy of information; four nucleotide bases to provide storage of coded information (see GENETIC CODE); it is capable of mutation by altering the base sequence; it may be broken and rejoined to form new genetic combinations (see RECOMBINATION); stored information can be accurately ‘read’ by other cell molecules (see TRANSCRIPTION).

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)

The abbreviation for "deoxyribonucleic acid," the primary carrier of genetic information found in the chromosomes of almost all organisms. The entwined double structure allows the chromosomes to be copied exactly during cell division.Mentioned in: Albinism, Cancer Therapy, Definitive, Prader-Willi Syndrome, Radiation Injuries, Retinoblastoma

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)

A type of nucleic acid that constitutes the molecular basis of heredity. It is found principally in the nucleus of all cells where it forms part of the chromosome, or in the cytoplasm of cells lacking a nucleus, such as bacteria. It acts as the carrier of genetic information containing the instructions (code) to make proteins. It consists of two single chains of nucleotides, which are twisted round each other to form a double helix or spiral. The nucleotides contain sugar (deoxyribose), phosphate and the bases (adenine, cytosine, guanine and thymine). The two strands of DNA are held together by hydrogen bonds located between specific pairs of bases (adenine to thymine and cytosine to guanine). The sequence of bases and consequently gene sequence is sometimes altered, causing mutation. Assessment of DNA has found many applications, including forensic science to help identify a perpetrator (a process called genetic fingerprinting), to establish family relationships or the history of a particular population (phylogenetics). See chromosome; gene; inheritance; mutation.

DNA

Abbreviation for deoxyribonucleic acid.

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Synonyms for DNA

noun (biochemistry) a long linear polymer found in the nucleus of a cell and formed from nucleotides and shaped like a double helix

Synonyms

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