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DNA Components and Structure: Biological Sciences Initiative

DNA is composed of nucleotides that each contain a phosphate group, a 5-carbon sugar (deoxyribose in DNA), and a nitrogen base. DNA exists as a double-stranded structure with the bases pairing specifically between the strands - adenine pairs with thymine and cytosine pairs with guanine. This allows the DNA strands to wind around each other and form the characteristic double helix structure. RNA differs in that it contains the sugar ribose instead of deoxyribose and pairs uracil instead of thymine.

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67 views5 pages

DNA Components and Structure: Biological Sciences Initiative

DNA is composed of nucleotides that each contain a phosphate group, a 5-carbon sugar (deoxyribose in DNA), and a nitrogen base. DNA exists as a double-stranded structure with the bases pairing specifically between the strands - adenine pairs with thymine and cytosine pairs with guanine. This allows the DNA strands to wind around each other and form the characteristic double helix structure. RNA differs in that it contains the sugar ribose instead of deoxyribose and pairs uracil instead of thymine.

Uploaded by

Anne 닌 야 Piedad
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Biological

Sciences HHMI

Initiative

DNA Components and Structure


Introduction
Nucleic acids are molecules that are essential to, and characteristic of, life on Earth. There
are two basic types of nucleic acid, DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and RNA (ribonucleic
acid). This exercise will focus on DNA, although ways in which it differs from RNA will
also be presented.

DNA is found in all organisms from the smallest bacteria to humans. DNA has the same
composition and structure in all organisms!

DNA has two important functions.


1 - it is the genetic material that is passed from one generation to the next.
2 - it is the coded information that tells cells how to make proteins.

Some explanations
In this exercise you will see various molecules drawn out in a structural format. The
following letters represent different atoms as indicated below.
C – carbon
O – oxygen
H – hydrogen
N – nitrogen
P – phosphorus

Part I - Components of Nucleic Acids

Nucleic acids have the same basic structure in all organisms. Nucleic acids are polymers
(long chains) of similar subunits (pieces) called nucleotides. A nucleotide is composed of
three different molecules, a phosphate group, a sugar, and a nitrogen base. These three
components are described below.

1 – A Phosphate group is negatively charged and gives DNA molecules a negative charge.
O-

R O P O

O-

University of Colorado • Campus Box 470• Boulder, CO 80309-0470


phone (303) 492-8230 • facsimile (303) 492-4916• http://www.colorado.edu/Outreach/BSI/
2 – A nitrogen base – Four different nitrogen bases are found in DNA. They are adenine
(A), cytosine (C), guanine (G) and thymine (T). In RNA, thymine is replaced by uracil (U).
Structures of the nucloeotides are shown below. There are two different types of nitrogen
base; the pyrimidines that have one ring and the purines that have two rings.

Examine the nitrogen bases below. Below each base note the following by circling the
correct answer
1 – whether it is found in DNA, RNA, or both
2 – whether it is a pyrimidine or a purine

Adenine Guanine
NH2 O

NH2

1) DNA RNA both 1) DNA RNA both

2) pyrimidine purine 2) pyrimidine purine

Cytosine Thymine Uracil

NH2 O O
CH3

1) DNA RNA both 1) DNA RNA both 1) DNA RNA both

2) pyrimidine purine 2) pyrimidine purine 2) pyrimidine purine

2
3 – A 5 carbon sugar

Both DNA and RNA contain a 5 carbon sugar. Sugars are molecules made up of carbon,
hydrogen and oxygen with molecular formulas that are usually some multiple of CH2 O. In
DNA, the sugars are closed to form ring structures. DNA contains the 5 carbon sugar
deoxyribose (hence the name deoxyribonucleic acid) whereas RNA contains ribose
(ribonucleic acid). The deoxy prefix refers to the fact that deoxyribose is missing one of the
oxygens (represented by the letter O) found in ribose.

Examine the two sugars below. Note that the carbons (represented by the letter C) are
numbered. At which carbon is deoxyribose lacking an oxygen?

Deoxyribose Ribose

CH2 OH CH2 OH OH
5 O OH 5 O

C 1 C C4 1 C
4

3 2 3 2
C C C C

OH OH OH

Part II - Building a nucleotide


The basic building block of DNA and RNA is the nucleotide. Above you learned the
components of a nucleotide. In this step, you will put these components together to form a
nucleotide.

The sugar is the central component of the nucleotide.


The phosphate is attached to the number 5 carbon of the sugar.
The nitrogen base is attached to the number 1 carbon of the sugar.

Use the following symbols and the description above in to construct a schematic drawing of
a nucleotide. Use short lines to attach the components to each other.

4 1 P Base
sugar
3 2

3
Part III - Building a polymer
DNA and RNA are polymers. Polymers are long chains of similar units. In both DNA and
RNA the unit is the nucleotide. Nucleotides are joined together into a polymer string by
joining the phosphate group of one nucleotide, to the number 3 carbon of the next sugar.

In this step, you will assemble a polymer using nucleotide monomers. Using the same
symbols you used before, draw a chain that is three nucleotides long.

Examine the chain of bases on the next page. Compare this with the picture you above. Is
there anything different about the two? If so, what?

4
Part IV – Double stranded vs single stranded
RNA is a single strand of nucleotides like what you drew above. DNA, however, is double
stranded (ds), meaning there are two of the above strands together. The two strands are held
together by bonds, called hydrogen bonds, between the nitrogen bases.

Assemble a double stranded DNA molecule with sugar phosphate backbones on the outside,
and nitrogen bases on the inside. Use the chain of bases on the preceding page as one strand
and use the loose bases provided to form the other strand. Observe the following rules when
constructing your DNA molecule.
• Allow no overlap between the nucleotides (pieces of paper).
• The hydrogen bonds, represented by the dotted lines, must line up.
• Form a continuous strand – the sugar/phosphate backbone should have no breaks and
should resemble that of the first strand

Observe your DNA molecule


What bases always pair together? (i.e., what base is always found paired with A?, with C?,
G?, T?)

Experiment with your ds DNA molecule.


Can you form a continuous ds molecule with all the sugars and phosphates linking up if you
mispair the bases? (say an A with an A etc?)

Complete the following table comparing DNA and RNA

DNA RNA

Which nitrogen bases make


up the molecule?
Which sugar makes up the
molecule?
How many strands?

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