Ogbonnaya Akpara

Bio 365- Online Class

Dr. Withers

9/26/14

Central Dogma

The central dogma is the concept that cells are governed by a cellular chain of command: DNA

to RNA to Protein. Central Dogma of molecular genetics is a genetic flow of information from DNA to

RNA to Protein. From DNA to RNA, it is transcription and from RNA to proteins, it is translation.

Transcription is when the information safeguards in a section of DNA is replicated in the form of mRNA.

Moreover, transcription is the synthesis of RNA under the direction of DNA. Translation is the synthesis

of a polypeptide, using information in the mRNA. In prokaryotes, translation of mRNA can begin before

transcription has finished. In a eukaryotic cell, the nuclear envelope separates transcription from

translation.

The structure and function of DNA: DNA manages the formation of cells in your body; the

products they let out and everything they do as well as protein synthesis. DNA is found in the cell

nucleus (the control center of the cell) and in the chromosome (which are composed of DNA strands).

The structure and function of DNA are as follows: cell, nucleus, chromosome mitochondria, adenine,

thymine, guanine, cytosine, base pairs, hydrogen bonds, sugar-phosphate backbone, allele, gene, intons,

exons and repeat sequences. The function of a cell is to combine with other cells to make a larger being.

The function of a nucleus is to store information. It is the information center. The function of

chromosome mitochondria is to produce ATP, the cellular energy source. The function of Adenine is to

form ATP. The function of Thymine is to create the nucleoside deoxythymidine when combined with

thymine. The function of Guanine is to provide luster to eye shadow and nail polish. The function of

Cytosine is to transfer a phosphate to convert ADP to ATP. The function of Base pairs is to connect the
molecules of DNA together. The function of sugar-phosphate backbone is to form the structural

framework of nucleic acids like DNA and RNA, and is composed of alternating sugar and phosphate. The

function of hydrogen bonds within the DNA causes the DNA to twist when hydrogen bonds between

phosphates. The function of alleles is gene detection. The function of gene is to encode instructions to

make specific protein. The function of exons contains part of the open reading frame that codes for a

specific portion of the complete protein. The function of introns is to turn the gene on or off. The

functions of repeated sequences are patterns of nucleic acids that occur in multiple copies throughout

the genome.

The basic structure of DNA is the nucleotide. DNA is made up of nucleotides. There are three

things that make up a nucleotide: deoxyribose, phosphate group and nitrogenous base. DNA contains A,

C,T and G. Nucleotides are the building blocks of DNA. They consist of a nitrogenous base, pentose sugar

and a phosphate group. DNA is found only where the primary genetic function occurs. This supply

indirect evidence for DNA as the genetic material. The structure of DNA holds the key to understanding

its function because Chargaff showed that the amount of A is proportional to T and the amount of C is

proportional to G, but the percentage of C+G does not necessarily equal the percentage of A+T. X-ray

diffraction of DNA showed a 3.4 angstrom periodicity, characteristic of a helical structure. Watson and

Crick proposed DNA is a right-handed double helix in which the two strands are antiparallel and the

bases are stacked on another. DNA replicates by unzipping the parental molecule as the hydrogen bonds

between the base pairs that is broken. Once exposed, the sequence of bases on each of the separated

strands serves as a template to guide the insertion of a complementary set of bases on the strands being

synthesized. The new strands are collected from deoxynucleoside triphosphates. Each nucleotide is

covalently linked to the free 3’ carbon atom on the pentose as the second and third phosphates are

removed together as a molecule of pyrophosphate (PPi). The nucleotides are collected in the order

that complements the order of bases on the strand serving as the template. Thus each C on the

template guides the insertion of a G on the new strand, each G a C, and so on. When the process is
complete, two DNA molecules have been formed identical to each other and to the parent molecule.

A gene at the molecular level is made up of DNA and has the capability to transfer the character

of one generation to the next. Molecularity is made up of DNA which is a basic heredity material. A cell

converts an mRNA message into protein with the help of transfer RNA (tRNA). tRNA transfer amino

acids to the growing polypeptide in a ribosome. Genetic information flows from mRNA to protein

through the process of translation. The substitution that may effect the translation of cells is by the

frameshift mutation. Frameshift mutation is caused by the insertion or deletion that can disrupt the

reading frame, or the grouping of the codons, resulting in a completely different translation from the

original. The role of RNA is to carry a message from a gene on the DNA and code for a specific protein.

The central dogma of molecular genetics deals with the detailed transfer of sequential

information. It states that such information cannot be transferred back from protein to either protein or

nucleic acid. The concept of central dogma of molecular genetics puts emphasis on proteins as the

mediator of biological functions. 80 percent of the human genome is transcribed even though only 1

percent codes for proteins.