Nucleic Acids

Question 1

What does the grouping ‘nucleic acids’ consist of?

Answer 1

Nucleotides, polymers, polynucleotides DNA & RNA

Question 2

What are the main functions of nucleic acids? (4)

Answer 2

Info storage and retrieval, linear sequence of nucleotides dictate primary structure of proteins (expression and encodes many nonprotein products), carriers of chemical energy, cell signaling

Question 3

What direction does the DNA to protein system function? Is it a reversible system?

Answer 3

One way system

Question 4

Give three examples of nucleic acid carriers of chemical energy

Answer 4

ATP, CoA, NADH, NADPH

Question 5

Give two examples of common cytosolic second messengers in signal transduction cascades

Answer 5

cAMP & cGMP

Question 6

What are nucleotides (nucleic acids) made of? (3 parts)

Answer 6

Nitrogenous base, pentose, phosphate group

Question 7

An individual nucleotide is a…?

Answer 7

Nucleic acid molecule

Question 8

Nucleotide vs nucleoside?

Answer 8

Nucleotides are nucleic acids, nucleoside are not - they lack the acidic phosphate group, they are simply the 5 carbon sugar and nitrogenous base

Question 9

How many phosphate groups are there in nucleotides

Answer 9

One or more

Question 10

In the pentose, what is the 1’ carbon attached to?

Answer 10

Nitrogenous base

Question 11

In the pentose, what is the 2’ carbon attached to?

Answer 11

(OH) Ribose in RNA, (H)deoxyribose in DNA

Question 12

Two types of 5 carbon sugar?

Answer 12

Ribose (RNA) and deoxyribose (DNA)

Question 13

In the pentose, what is the 3’ carbon attached to?

Answer 13

OH

Question 14

In the pentose, what is the 4’ carbon attached to?

Answer 14

H and 5’

Question 15

In the pentose, what is the 5’ carbon attached to?

Answer 15

Phosphate group

Question 16

How is the first phosphate group attached to the 5’ carbon on pentose (ribose or deoxyribose depending on DNA/RNA)?

Answer 16

By phosphoester bond (covalent bond)

Question 17

What is a ribonucleotide

Answer 17

Structure of ATP

Question 18

How many phosphate groups in ATP

Answer 18

3

Question 19

What is the general name of a nitrogenous base + pentose?

Answer 19

Nucleoside

Question 20

What is the general name of a nitrogenous base + pentose + 1 phosphate group?

Answer 20

Nucleoside(mono)phosphate

Question 21

What is the general name of a nitrogenous base + pentose + 2 phosphate groups?

Answer 21

Nucleosidediphosphate

Question 22

What is the general name of a nitrogenous base + pentose + 3 phosphate groups in a line>

Answer 22

Nucleosidetriphosphate

Question 23

What is the general name of a nitrogenous base + pentose + 3 surrounding phosphate groups?

Answer 23

Nucleosidetrisphosphate

Question 24

What is the problem with calling nitrogenous base, pentose and phosphate group a nucleotide

Answer 24

Not descriptive enough

Question 25

What are phosphoanhydride bonds?

Answer 25

Bonds between phosphate groups in nucleotides

Question 26

What do phosphoanhydride bonds release upon breaking

Answer 26

Energy = ATP

Question 27

What are the similarities and differences between phosphoanhydride, phosphoester, and phosphodiester bonds

Answer 27

Phosphoester bonds are between 5' carbon on pentose and phosphate group, phosphoanhydride between phosphate groups and breaking them releases energy. Phosphodiester bonds are between nucleotides. All are covalent bonds

Question 28

What is the nitrogenous base on ATP

Answer 28

Adenine

Question 29

What is the pentose on ATP

Answer 29

Ribose

Question 30

How many phosphate groups on ATP

Answer 30

3

Question 31

What are polynucleotides made up of

Answer 31

Nucleotides covalently linked by phosphodiester bonds

Question 32

What do polynucleotides make?

Answer 32

DNA and RNA

Question 33

How many strands of polynucleotides can be connected?

Answer 33

One, two, three or even four

Question 34

What end/direction are polynucleotides build

Answer 34

5' --> 3'

Question 35

What are the two types of nitrogenous bases?

Answer 35

Purines and pyrimidines

Question 36

What are the two purines?

Answer 36

Adenine (A) and Guanine (G)

Question 37

What are the three pyrimidines?

Answer 37

Thymine (T, in DNA), Uracil (U, in RNA) and Cytosine (C)

Question 38

What are the Watson crick parings?

Answer 38

A-T(U), G-C

Question 39

Are purines the larger nitrogenous bases or the smaller ones

Answer 39

Larger

Question 40

Are pyrimidines the larger nitrogenous bases or the smaller ones

Answer 40

Smaller

Question 41

What is the central dogma of biology?

Answer 41

The process of DNA transcription and translation stores information and is not reversible.

Question 42

What is the phosphodiester bridge?

Answer 42

Links nucleotides together

Question 43

What are the three main types of DNA strucutre

Answer 43

B-DNA, A-DNA, Z-DNA

Question 44

What does B-DNA look like?

Answer 44

Main, most common structure of DNA; helical, with nitrogenous bases on inside. Repeating structure of planar bases (lying flat).

Question 45

How are DNA strands held together?

Answer 45

H-bonds

Question 46

How many H-bonds are formed between C & G

Answer 46

3

Question 47

How many H-bonds are formed between A-T (U)?

Answer 47

2

Question 48

Which is stronger, C-G, or A-T(U)

Answer 48

C-G (3 H bonds vs 2)

Question 49

What type of interactions are occuring between the nitrogenous bases in DNA?

Answer 49

Van der waals 'stacking' interactions.

Question 50

What are the two grooves in B-DNA

Answer 50

Wide and narrow, major and minor

Question 51

What is the significance of grooves in DNA?

Answer 51

Where molecules can interact with bases.

Question 52

Where/how can proteins/polypeptides bind to DNA?

Answer 52

In the major groove

Question 53

What is the structure of A-DNA?

Answer 53

Compressed B-Strand

Question 54

Is A DNA left or right handed

Answer 54

right

Question 55

When does A DNA occur

Answer 55

RNA can sometimes look like it when folding into a secondary strand, when DNA is dehydrated

Question 56

Is Z-DNA left or right handed

Answer 56

Left handed

Question 57

Is B-DNA left or right handed

Answer 57

Right handed

Question 58

DNA strands are 'anti-parallel', what does this mean?

Answer 58

5' --> 3', opposite directions.