TRANSCRIPTION TRANSLATION

DNA molecules: is an enormously long,

unbranched, linear polymer that can contain
many millions of nucleotides arranged in
human irregular but nonrandom sequence
and that the genetic information of a cell is
contained in the linear order of the
nucleotides.
 Cellular Organization

organ cell
tissue
nucleus
DNA
chromosome
 Structural organization of the
nucleosome. A nucleosome
contains a protein core made of
eight histone molecules. As
indicated, the nucleosome core
particle is released from
chromatin by digestion of the
linker DNA with a nuclease, an
enzyme that breaks down DNA.
(The nuclease can degrade the
exposed linker DNA but cannot
attack the DNA wound tightly
around the nucleosome core.)
After dissociation of the isolated
nucleosome into its protein core
and DNA, the length of the DNA
that was wound around the core
can be determined. This length
of 146 nucleotide pairs is
sufficient to wrap 1.65 times
around the histone core.
 Chromatin packing. This model
shows some of the many levels
of chromatin packing postulated
to give rise to the highly
condensed mitotic chromosome.
 The bending of DNA in a
nucleosome. The DNA helix
makes 1.65 tight turns around
the histone octamer. This
diagram is drawn approximately
to scale, illustrating how the
minor groove is compressed on
the inside of the turn. Owing to
certain structural features of the
DNA molecule, A-T base pairs
are preferentially accommodated
in such a narrow minor groove
 Glycosidic Bond
Ester Bond
 Components of DNA
Sugar (deoxyribose)
Base (A,G,C,T)
Phosphate group
Components of RNA
Sugar (ribose)
Base (A,G,C,Uracil)
RNA does not contain thymine
Phosphate group
 Structural Characteristics of DNA
Double stranded
Base-pairing rules apply (A:T & G:C)
Structural Characteristics of RNA
Primarily single stranded
Limited base-pairing (G:C & A:U)
RNA has the same primary structure as DNA. It consists of a sugar-phosphate
backbone, with nucleotides attached to the 1' carbon of the sugar. The differences
between DNA and RNA are that:

1. RNA has a hydroxyl group on the 2' carbon of the sugar (thus, the difference
between deoxyribonucleic acid and ribonucleic acid.
2. Instead of using the nucleotide thymine, RNA uses another nucleotide called
uracil:
3. Because of the extra hydroxyl group on the
sugar, RNA is too bulky to form a stable
double helix. RNA exists as a single-
stranded molecule. However, regions of
double helix can form where there is some
base pair complementation (U and A , G and
C), resulting in hairpin loops. The RNA
molecule with its hairpin loops is said to
have a secondary structure.
4. Because the RNA molecule is not restricted to
a rigid double helix, it can form many
different stable three-dimensional tertiary
structures.
TRANSCRIPTION TRANSLATION
Helicase
Replication Fork
RNAse H
 Leading Strand

Lagging Strand
Okazaki Fragments

RNAse H
DNA Ligase
 Mismatch repair:
DNA polymerase
Excision repair:
Nuclease
Telomere ends:
telomerase
TRANSCRIPTION TRANSLATION
5 3

3 5

5 3
RNA Polymerase I Encodes for ribosomal RNA (rRNA)

RNA Polymerase II Encodes for messenger RNA (mRNA)

RNA Polymerase III Encodes for transfer RNA (tRNA)

TRANSCRIPTION TRANSLATION
 TATA Inr
Enhancer
Promoter

or

Inr DPE
Enhancer
Promoter
 In a eukaryotic cell, almost all transcription
occurs in the nucleus and translation occurs
mainly at ribosomes in the cytoplasm.
In addition, before the
primary transcript
can leave the nucleus
it is modified in
various ways during
RNA processing
before the finished
mRNA is exported
to the cytoplasm.
Introns are removed

Fig. 17.2b
 Introns are removed (only exons contain
genetic info)
Addition of a 5 cap on mRNA (for orientation
purposes)
Addition of a 3 tail on mRNA (allows it to last
longer)
1. The 5 end of the RNA molecule (which is the
end first synthesized during transcription) is
first capped by the addition of methylated G
nucleotide (consisting of 7 methylguanosine
residue).
Capping occurs almost immediately, after
about 30 nucleotides of RNA have been
synthesized and it involves condensation of
the triphosphate group of a molecule of GTP
with diphosphate left at the 5 end of the
initial transcript.
a. This 5 cap will later play an important
role in the initiation of protein synthesis;

b. It protects the growing RNA transcript

from degradation.
1. It aids in the export of mature mRNA from
the nucleus
2. It contributes to the stability of at least some
mRNAs in the cytoplasm
3. It serves as a recognition signal for the
ribosome that is required for efficient
translation of mRNA. This feature, in
combination with the 5 cap would enable a
ribosome to determine whether the mRNA was
intact before expending energy and precursors
to begin its translation.
 The recognition of a poly A tail addition
signal in the growing RNA transcript causes
the chain to be cleaved and then is
polyadenylated. In yeast, the polymerase
terminates its RNA synthesis almost
immediately thereafter, but in higher
eukaryotes, transcription continues for
thousands of nucleotides.
TRANSCRIPTION TRANSLATION
Transfer RNA (tRNA)
Each tRNA molecule has 2 important
sites of attachment.
One site, called the anticodon, binds to
the codon on the mRNA molecule.
The other site attaches to a particular
amino acid.
During protein synthesis, the anticodon
of a tRNA molecule base pairs with the
appropriate mRNA codon.
 Methionine
A
C
C
73
1 72
2 71
3 70
4 69
5 68
6 67
U* 7 66 Py 59A*
16 Pu 65 64 63 62 C
17 A 9 Pu
17:1
13 12 Py 10 49 50 51 52 G T C
G* Py
y
G 22 23 Pu 25 47:16

2020:120:2A 26 47:15
27
1 43 44
28 42 45
29 41 46
30 40 47
47:1
31 39
Py* 38
U Pu*
34
U 35
A 36
C
Anticodon
 DNA

TRANSCRIPTION
MRNA

TRANSLATION

PEPTIDE
 fMet

Large P A
subunit E
UAC
5GAG...CU-AUG--UUC--CUU--AGU--GGU--AGA--GCU--GUA--UGA-AT GCA...TAAAAAA 3
Small mRNA
subunit
 Polypeptide
Met Arg
Phe
Leu Ser
Gly
Aminoacyl tRNA

Ribosome P A
E
CCA
5GAG...CU-AUG--UUC--CUU--AGU--GGU--AGA--GCU--GUA--UGA-AT GCA...TAAAAAA 3
mRNA
 Polypeptide
Met
Phe
Leu Ser
Gly
Arg

Ribosome P A
E
CCA UCU
5GAG...CU-AUG--UUC--CUU--AGU--GGU--AGA--GCU--GUA--UGA-AT GCA...TAAAAAA 3
mRNA
 Polypeptide
Met
Phe Ala
Leu Ser
Gly
Arg Aminoacyl tRNA

Ribosome P A
E
CCA
UCU
5GAG...CU-AUG--UUC--CUU--AGU--GGU--AGA--GCU--GUA--UGA-AT GCA...TAAAAAA 3
mRNA
 Polypeptide
Met
Phe
Leu Ser
Gly
Arg Ala

Ribosome P A
E
UCU CGA
5GAG...CU-AUG--UUC--CUU--AGU--GGU--AGA--GCU--GUA--UGA-AT GCA...TAAAAAA 3
mRNA
5 3

3 5
RNA
Pol.

Ribosome

mRNA
Ribosome
5