Life Sciences Grade 12

CAPS

DNA The Code Of Life

 Something For You To Do
Name The Main Controlling Organelle
Of A Cell?

2
 Solution
Nucleus
• It Contains Chromatin Network Which Contains
A Special Chemical Called Deoxyribose Nucleic
Acid (DNA).

3
 Solution
• DNA Is Made Of Segments Called Genes Which
Carry Genetic Material On The Chromosomes
To Pass On To The Next Generation Of Cells
After Cell Division.

4
 Something For You To Do
What Makes Up The Structure Of The
Nucleus?

5
 Solution
Nucleus Has Four Basic Parts:

• Nucleoplasm/Nuclear Sap Which Contain Free

Nucleotide Bases.

• The Nucleolus Occurs In The Middle Of The

Nucleoplasm. Its Function Is To Manufacture RNA.

• Double Nuclear Membrane Is Double And Has

Nuclear Pores For The Exit Of mRNA During
Formation Of Proteins
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 Solution
Chromatin Network Which Consists Of DNA,
Coiled When Cell Is Not Dividing.

Unwinds To Form Chromosomes During Cell

Division To Prevent Entangling.

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Summary Of Presentation
Brief Structure Of The Nucleus

Structure Of Nucleic Acids

DNA

DNA Replication

DNA Profiling

RNA
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 Structure Of The Nucleus
Nucleoplasm

The Following Are Found

Within The Nucleoplasm.

1. Free Nucleotide Bases

2. The Nucleolus
3. The Chromatin
Network
Diagram Showing The Location Of The
Nucleolus
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 Structure Of The Nucleus
Nucleolus
• The Nucleolus Occurs In
The Middle Of The
Nucleoplasm.

• Its Function Is To
Manufacture And
Contain RNA.

Diagram Showing The Location

Of The Nucleolus
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 Structure Of The Nucleus
Chromatin Network

• The Chromatin Network Is

A Tangled Mass Of Thread-
like Structures.

• Each Thread Like Structure

Is Called A Chromosome.

• Each Chromosome Is
Made Up Of 2 Chromatids
And A Centromere. Structure Of Chromosome 11
 Structure Of The Nucleus
• The 2 Chromatids Are
Held Together By The
Centromere.

• Each Chromosome
Contains Small Portions
Of DNA Called The
Genes.

Structure Of Chromosome
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 Structure Of The Nucleus
Function Of The Nucleus:
1. Control All Activities Of The Cell, Because The DNA Which Is
Found In The Nucleus Is Responsible For The Formation Of
Proteins, Since Hormones And Enzymes Are Proteins In
Nature And They Control All Metabolic Reactions, We Can Say
That The Nucleus Controls All Activities Of The Cell.

2. It Transmits Hereditary Characteristics From Parent To

Offspring.

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 Nucleic Acids
• Nucleic Acids Are Organic Molecules That
Control The Synthesis Of Proteins In Living
Cells By Storing And Transfering Genetic
Information.

• Two Types Of Nucleic Acids Occur In Living Cells.

o DNA
o RNA 14
 Structure Of Nucleic Acids
• These Nucleic Acids Are Made Up Of Building
Blocks.

• Another Word For Building Blocks Is

Monomers.

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 Structure Of Nucleic Acids
• Therefore We Can Say That Nucleic Acids Are
Made Up Of Monomers.

• The Monomers Of Nucleic Acids Are Called

Nucleotides.

• Therefore Both RNA And DNA Are Made Up

Of Nucleotides.

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 Structure Of Nucleic Acids
• Each Nucleotide Is
Made Up Of 3 Parts.

o Phosphate (P)
o Sugar (S) , and
o Nitrogen base (NB)

You Should Be Able To

Draw And Label This
Diagram!!! Nucleotide
 Something For You To Do

Draw A Diagram Of A Nucleotide

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 Solution

Phosphate

Nitrogenous
Base

Pentose
Sugar
 DNA
Types Of DNA

• DNA Stands For Deoxyribonucleic Acid

• Three Types Of DNA. These Are…

o Nuclear DNA
o Mitochondrial DNA
o Chloroplastic DNA

Location Of DNA…

• The DNA Found Within The Nucleus Is Called Nuclear

DNA.
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 Location Of DNA
• DNA That Is Found Outside The Nucleus Is Called
Extra-nuclear DNA.

• One Type Of Extra-nuclear DNA Is Found In The

Chloroplast And Is Called Chloroplastic DNA.

• The Other Type Of Extra-nuclear DNA Is Found In

The Mitochondrion And Is Called Mitochondrial
DNA (mtDNA).

• Mitochondrial DNA Is Important Because It Can

Be Used To Trace Our Ancestors.
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 Discovery Of DNA
• 25 April 1953, James Watson and Francis Crick, who were at
Cambridge University reported the discovery of the structure
of DNA in a magazine called Nature.
• Their model was based on a set of X-ray diffraction pictures
taken by another scientist Rosalind Franklin and her assistant
Maurice Wilkins at King’s College London.
• In fact it was Rosalind that discovered the double helix shape
of the DNA molecule.
X-ray Diffraction Picture Of The DNA Molecule Is Shown On The
Next Slide.
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X-ray diffraction of DNA 23
 Discovery DNA
• Unfortunately Wilkins disliked Rosalind and showed her
picture to Watson .
• Watson then used these pictures in his study.
• Watson and Crick continued the research.

They Made The Following Discoveries…

o DNA is made up of Similar Amounts Of Cytosine And

Guanine And Similar Amounts Of Adenine And
Thymine.
o This led them to the idea of Complementary Base
Pairs.
o This lead to the idea that DNA Can Make Exact Copies Of
Itself.
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 Discovery of DNA
• In 1958 Rosalind died of cancer.
• In 1962 Watson ,Crick and Wilkins received a
Nobel Prize for their work.

Rosalind Franklin
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 DNA Structure
• DNA Is A Molecule
Consisting Of Two
Strands That Are
Twisted To Form A
Double Helix.

• When Unwound, It
Looks Like A Ladder.

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 DNA: Structure
• DNA is Made Up Of Monomers called
Nucleotides.
• Each Nucleotide is made of the Phosphate,
Sugar And Nitrogen Base.
• In the case of DNA the Sugar Molecule is

called Deoxyribose.

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Each Nucleotide Has A Different
Nitrogen Base.

A T

Adenine Thymine

C G

Cytosine Guanine
DNA Structure

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 DNA: Structure
• There are 2 Types Of Nitrogen Bases.

• They are the…

o Purines which are large molecules

(Adenine And Guanine)

o Pyrimidines which are smaller molecules

(Cytosine And Thymine)
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 DNA: Structure
• The Phosphate And Sugar form the
Backbone of the DNA molecule, whereas the
Bases form the “Rungs”.
 DNA: Structure
• The Phosphate And Sugar form the Backbone Of
The DNA Molecule, whereas the Bases Form The
“Rungs”.
 DNA: Structure
• Each Rung Of The DNA
Ladder Is Formed By The
Linking Of Two
A
Nitrogenous Bases,
Large Purine
And A Small
Pyrimidine
Base.
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 DNA: Structure
• The Sugar Of One
Nucleotide Is Attached To
The Phosphate Of
Another By A Sugar-
phosphate Bond.

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 DNA: Structure
• The Two Bases Together
Are Known As Base
Pairs.

• The Nitrogenous Bases Are

Joined By Weak
Hydrogen Bonds,
Which Are Easily Broken
Down By Enzyme
Action.
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 DNA: Structure
• Two Hydrogen
Bonds Form Between
Adenine And
Thymine .

• Three Hydrogen
Bonds Form Between
Cytosine And
Guanine.
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 Nucleotides
 Nitrogenous Bases Always Combine As Follows:

 Adenine (A)
 Thymine (T) Form A Base Pair.

 Cytosine (C)
 Guanine (G) Form A Base Pair.
 DNA: Structure
• Because Of This
Complementary
Base Pairing, The
Order Of The Bases
In One Strand
Determines The
Order Of The Bases
In The Other
Strand.
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A T

C G

T A

C G

A T

G C

T A
 DNA Structure
• To Crack The Genetic Code Found In DNA
We Need To Look At The Sequence Of
Bases.

• The Sequence Of Bases Is Of Great

Importance, As It Provides The Code That
Gives The Instructions For The Synthesis
Of Proteins (Protein Synthesis).
 DNA Structure
• This Code Is Known As The 'Genetic
Code' Or The 'Code Of Life'.

• The Sequence Of Bases In One

DNA Strand (Template) Always
Determines The Sequence In The
Other Strand.
 DNA Structure
• One DNA Strand Is The Complement
Of The Other Strand.

• The Bases Are Arranged In Triplets .

AGG-CTC-AAG-TCC-TAG
TCC-GAG-TTC-AGG-ATC

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 DNA Carries The Genetic Code
• DNA Carries The Genetic Code (In The Form
Of Genes) For The Synthesis Of
Proteins.

• A gene Is A Short Segment Of DNA

With A Specific
Sequence Of
Nitrogenous Bases.
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 DNA Carries The Genetic Code
• This sequence of nitrogenous bases determines
the sequence and the type of Amino Acids that
will Combine To Form A Particular Protein.

• DNA can Replicate (make an identical

copy/replica of itself) to ensure that the genetic
code is accurately transferred from One
Generation To The Next.
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 Non-coding DNA
• Approximately 2% Of DNA In Living Cells Codes For
Proteins (Coding DNA).

• The rest of the DNA does not carry information to

produce proteins and is known as Non-coding DNA.

• Initially scientists incorrectly thought that non-coding

DNA had no function and referrred to it as 'junk
DNA'.

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 Non-coding DNA
• Although scientists are still researching the importance
of Non-coding DNA, Certain Functions Have Already
Been Confirmed:

 It plays an important role in the regulation and control of

the expression of genes in the coding DNA. It determines
when and where genes are switched 'on' and 'off.

 It also protects the genes from mutations and controls

the process of copying genes during transcription
(protein synthesis).
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 DNA: Functions
Functions Of The Nuclear DNA.

1. It Controls the Synthesis Of Proteins.

2. It Transmits Hereditary Characteristics from

Parent To Offspring.

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 What Is DNA Replication?
• DNA Replication is the process by which DNA makes an
Identical Copy Of Itself.

• In Preparation For Mitosis, DNA needs To Make An

Exact Copy Of Itself.

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 When Does DNA Replication Take
Place In The Cell Cycle?
• DNA replication also occurs
before Meiosis begins.

• In summary then, DNA

replication occurs just before
Cell Division (Mitosis
And Meiosis).

• It occurs during Interphase.

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Why Does DNA Replication Occur?
• This Increases The Number Of
Chromosomes so that They Can Be Shared
Between The Cells Resulting From Cell
Division.

• It enables the nucleus of the cell to split into

two in such a way that each new cell
produced Has The Same Number Of
Chromosomes.

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Why Does DNA Replication Occur?
• In mitosis, it allows for the resulting cells to
Be Identical To Each Other and To That Of
The Parent From Which They Arose because
of the Identical Copies Made Of The
Chromosomes.

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DNA Replication

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How Does DNA Replication Occur?
• Double helix DNA unwinds (1)
• Weak hydrogen bonds between
nitrogenous bases break and the
two DNA strands unzip
(2)/separate
• Each original DNA strand serves
as a template (3) to form a new
strand
• Free-floating nucleotides in the
nucleoplasm build a
complementary strand onto each
of the original DNA strands (4)
(A to T and C to G)
• Each DNA molecule now consists
of 1 original strand and 1 new
strand.
• The result is two genetically
identical DNA molecules (5)
• The entire process is controlled by
enzymes 53
DNA Replication
 DNA Profiling
• Scientists are able to extract DNA
from human body cells.

• DNA is prepared, arranged and a

'Barcode' Pattern is obtained.

• The pattern of the bars coincides

with the sequence of base pairs
that a person inherits from
his/her parents.

• This 'barcode' pattern is known as

a DNA Profile.

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 DNA Profiling
• Different people have
basically the same genetic
material in their cells.

• It is mainly the Non-

coding Parts Of DNA that
differ from person to
person and are used in
DNA Profiling.

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 DNA Profiling
• Each individual has
his/her own unique DNA
profile, except for
identical twins who have
the same DNA profile.

• When Biological Evidence

is collected at a crime
scene and the DNA
evidence is used in a
court of law, it is called
Forensic Evidence.

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 DNA Profiling
• Skin, blood, saliva,
semen or hair is often
collected at a crime
scene.

• These samples can then

be used to extract and
analyse DNA.

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 Uses of DNA Profiling
1. Diagnosis Of Inherited Disorders.

2. Developing cures for inherited disorders.

3. Biological Evidence

4. Identification Of Relatives

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 Uses of DNA Profiling
Diagnosis Of Inherited Disorders.

• DNA profiling is used to diagnose inherited disorders such

as Cyctic Fibrosis, haemophilia and Sickle Cell Anaemia in
new-born and unborn children.

• Early detection of such disorders helps medical staff and

parents to prepare themselves for proper treatment of the
child.

• Also, genetic counsellors can help couples who would like

to have children, understand the risk of having an affected
child.
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 Uses of DNA Profiling
Developing Cures For Inherited Disorders.

• DNA profiling allows researchers to look for

patterns in large groups of people with and
without the disorder.

• This work is a necessary first step in designing

an eventual genetic cure for these disorders.
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 Uses of DNA Profiling
Biological Evidence

• Police laboratories throughout the world are now using

DNA profiles from biological evidence left at the scenes
of crimes, to track down criminals.

• If a DNA profile obtained from Biological Evidence such

as Blood, Semen Stains, Hair, or Items Of Clothing
matches that obtained from a suspect, then we can
safely say that the evidence came from the suspect.
This is called Forensic Science.
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 Uses of DNA Profiling
Identification Of Relatives

• DNA profiles are also useful in establishing relationships

amongst individuals.

• For example, it can be used to:

 Establish whether a particular person is the father of a child or

not.

 Trace siblings (brothers and sisters) who have been separated at

birth.

 Identify people who have died and where their bodies cannot be
recognised 63
Interpretation Of DNA Profiles

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Interpretation Of DNA Profiles

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Interpretation Of DNA Profiles

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 Answer

Remember That Non-identical Twins Inherit Their Base

Pairs From The Same Parents.

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 Some Debates Around DNA Profiling
DNA Profiling Is Generally Accepted As Being Extremely
Reliable. However, DNA Testing Is Sometimes Controversial
Because Of The Following Reasons:

• Since Only A Small Piece Of DNA Is Analysed, A DNA

Profile May Not Be Unique To An Individual.

• DNA Profiling Performed In Private Laboratories May

Not Follow Uniform Testing Standards And Quality
Controls.

• Since Human Beings Must Interpret The Test, Human

Error Could Lead To False Results.
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 Some Debates Around DNA Profiling
• DNA Profiling Is Expensive; Suspects Who Are
Unable To Provide Their Own DNA Experts May
Not Be Able To Adequately Defend Themselves
Against Charges Based On DNA Evidence.

• DNA Analysis Might Reveal Personal

Information Such As The Presence Of HIV/Aids
And This Could Be Used Against The Person
Because Of Prejudice Against Persons With The
Disease.
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Something For You To Do
CASE STUDY - DNA Profiling

Page 13 Of Prescribed Textbook.

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 Solution
The attacker was Suspect C.

His DNA pattern of black bars closely matches

those found at the crime scene. 

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 RNA
• There Are 3 Types Of RNA
• These Are …

o Ribosomal RNA
o Messenger RNA
o Transfer RNA

Location Of RNA

• Ribosomal RNA Is Found In The Cytoplasm Of The

Cell.
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 (Messenger RNA) mRNA
• It Consists Of A Single
Strand With An Unlimited
Number Of Nucleotides.

• It Is Formed In The
Nucleoplasm, Using DNA As
A Template.

• mRNA Carries The Genetic

Code From DNA In The
Nucleus To The Ribosomes
In The Cytoplasm And Thus
Acts As A Messenger
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 Transfer RNA(tRNA)
• It Consists Of A Single Strand
That Folds Back On Itself Like A
Hairpin, Or Forms Loops.

• tRNA Occurs In The Cytoplasm.

• Three Exposed Bases, Called

The Anticodon, Occur On One
Of The Loops.

• The Functions Of tRNA Picks

Up Amino Acids In The
Cytoplasm And Takes Them To
The Ribosomes Where Protein
Synthesis Occurs.

• It Acts As A Transfer Molecule. 74

 Ribosomal RNA(rRNA)
• It Consists Of A Single Strand.

• It Forms Part Of The Structure Of The

Ribosomes In The Cytoplasm And Plays A Role
In The Control Of Protein Synthesis.

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 RNA
• Messenger RNA Is Found
In The Nucleus Of The
Cell But Will Also Be
Found Attached To The
Ribosome In The
Cytoplasm.

• Transfer RNA Is Found In

The Cytoplasm Of The
Cell. Location Of 3 Types Of RNA

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 RNA
• RNA Is Also Made Up Of
Monomers Called
Nucleotides.

• Each Nucleotide Is Also

Made Up Of A Sugar, A
Phosphate And Nitrogen
Base.

• But in RNA the Sugar Is

Ribose.
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 RNA
• There are also 4 Nitrogen
Bases.

• These are Cytosine,

Guanine, Adenine And
Uracil.

• Thymine has been Replaced

By Uracil.

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 RNA
• RNA Is Made Up Of Only

1 Strand.

• Therefore We Say That

RNA Is Single Stranded.

• The Strands Of RNA Are

Also Much Shorter And
They Are Not Coiled.
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 Something For You To Do
1. List 3 Similarities Between RNA And DNA.

2. Tabulate 5 Differences Between DNA And

RNA.

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 Solutions
1. Similarities

a) Both Have A Sugar That Alternates With A

Phosphate.

b) Both Contain Nitrogenous Bases Adenine,

Guanine And Cytosine

c) Both Are Involved In Protein Synthesis.

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 Solutions
2. Differences
DNAbetween RNA andRNA
DNA
1. Occurs only in the nucleus Occurs both in the
nucleus and cytoplasm
2. It is double stranded It is single stranded
3. It is coiled to form double It is not coiled
helix shape
4. Long strands of DNA Strands of RNA are
shorter
5. Has the nitrogen base Has the nitrogen base
Adenine, Cytosine, Adenine, Cytosine,
Guanine and Thymine Guanine and Uracil.

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