![]() This reading process is multi-step and there are specialized RNAs for each of these steps. RNA functions as the reader that decodes this flash drive. In the long-term, DNA is a storage device, a biological flash drive that allows the blueprint of life to be passed between generations2. What are the key differences between DNA and RNA?ĭNA encodes all genetic information, and is the blueprint from which all biological life is created. The discovery of the protein machinery that permits this reaction led to the development of gene-silencing RNAi technology, which won the 2006 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. dsRNA molecules are potent immunogens – they activate the immune system, which then cuts the dsDNA as a protective mechanism. These include Reoviridae and the rotaviruses, which are responsible for diseases like gastroenteritis. H-DNA is an endogenous, triple-stranded DNA molecule that encourages mutation of the genome.ĭouble-stranded RNA (dsRNA) is most commonly found as the genomic basis of many plant, animal and human viruses. Triplex-forming oligonucleotides (TFOs) can bind conventional two-stranded DNA, which can help guide agents that are used to modify DNA to specific genomic locations. This can happen naturally or as part of intentional DNA-modifying strategies for research purposes. Protection from damage – A-DNA is far less susceptible to ultraviolet ray damage, and spore-forming bacteria have been shown to adopt an A-DNA conformation, which may be a protective change.Ī triple-helix DNA structure can form when certain nucleobases – pyrimidine or purine – occupy the major grooves in conventional B-DNA.Binding to DNA enzymes, such as polymerases – this transition may enable specific atoms to be exposed for enzymatic action. ![]() A-DNA’s biological relevance has been greatly expanded on in recent years, and it is now recognized that A-DNA is involved in many roles, such as: It has a shorter structure, with different numbers of base pairs per turn and tilt than B-DNA. Many crystal structures of DNA are in an A-DNA form. ![]() Identified at the same time as B-DNA by Rosalind Franklin, A-DNA is an alternative DNA structure that often appears when the molecule is dehydrated. Z-DNA is thought to play a role in regulating gene expression and may be produced in the wake of DNA processing enzymes, like DNA polymerase. RNA is more resistant to damage from UV light than DNA. RNA’s larger helical grooves mean it is more easily subject to attack by enzymes.ĭNA is vulnerable to damage by ultraviolet light. RNA, containing a ribose sugar, is more reactive than DNA and is not stable in alkaline conditions. RNA forms in the nucleolus, and then moves to specialised regions of the cytoplasm depending on the type of RNA formed.ĭue to its deoxyribose sugar, which contains one less oxygen-containing hydroxyl group, DNA is a more stable molecule than RNA, which is useful for a molecule which has the task of keeping genetic information safe. RNA shares Adenine (‘A’), Guanine (‘G’) and Cytosine (‘C’) with DNA, but contains Uracil (‘U’) rather than Thymine.Īdenine and Thymine pair (A-T) Cytosine and Guanine pair (C-G)Īdenine and Uracil pair (A-U) Cytosine and Guanine pair (C-G)ĭNA is found in the nucleus, with a small amount of DNA also present in mitochondria. The bases in DNA are Adenine (‘A’), Thymine (‘T’), Guanine (‘G’) and Cytosine (‘C’). RNA contains ribose sugar molecules, without the hydroxyl modifications of deoxyribose. The sugar in DNA is deoxyribose, which contains one less hydroxyl group than RNA’s ribose. A large RNA molecule might only be a few thousand base pairs long. ![]() RNA molecules are variable in length, but much shorter than long DNA polymers. A chromosome, for example, is a single, long DNA molecule, which would be several centimetres in length when unravelled. RNA sometimes forms a secondary double helix structure, but only intermittently.ĭNA is a much longer polymer than RNA. RNA strands are shorter than DNA strands. RNA only has one strand, but like DNA, is made up of nucleotides. Each nucleotide contains a phosphate, a 5-carbon sugar molecule and a nitrogenous base. These strands are made up of subunits called nucleotides. RNA converts the genetic information contained within DNA to a format used to build proteins, and then moves it to ribosomal protein factories.ĭNA consists of two strands, arranged in a double helix. It is a blueprint for all genetic information contained within an organism. DNA replicates and stores genetic information.
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