scholarly journals Understanding biochemistry: structure and function of nucleic acids

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 433-456 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steve Minchin ◽  
Julia Lodge
Keyword(s):  
Nucleic Acids ◽  
Genetic Information ◽  
Deoxyribonucleic Acid ◽  
Double Helix ◽  
Protein Translation ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
Dna Molecule ◽  
Living Things ◽  
Dna Double Helix ◽  
And Function

Abstract Nucleic acids, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA), carry genetic information which is read in cells to make the RNA and proteins by which living things function. The well-known structure of the DNA double helix allows this information to be copied and passed on to the next generation. In this article we summarise the structure and function of nucleic acids. The article includes a historical perspective and summarises some of the early work which led to our understanding of this important molecule and how it functions; many of these pioneering scientists were awarded Nobel Prizes for their work. We explain the structure of the DNA molecule, how it is packaged into chromosomes and how it is replicated prior to cell division. We look at how the concept of the gene has developed since the term was first coined and how DNA is copied into RNA (transcription) and translated into protein (translation).

III. Functions of short lifetime structures at large 9: case of nucleic acids

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 205-210
Author(s):  
Koichi Nishigaki
Keyword(s):  
Nucleic Acids ◽  
Deoxyribonucleic Acid ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Methodological Difficulty ◽  
Short Lifetime ◽  
Transient Structures ◽  
And Function ◽  
Functional Rnas

Abstract The short lifetime structures of nucleic acids are not well studied because of the poor recognition of their importance and the methodological difficulty. In case of proteins, which are a type of single-stranded biopolymers, the essential roles of their transient structures are well established. Therefore, the role of transient structures of nucleic acids is, naturally, of great interest. There have been multiple reports on the function-related unstable (transient) structures of single-stranded nucleotides, though not as many as at present. Recent methodological advances are now enabling us to observe structures with ultra-short lifetime (less than a nanosecond). On the other hand, the biological importance of transient structures of ribonucleicacid (RNA) is increasingly recognized because of the findings of novel functional RNAs such as microRNA. Therefore, the time has come to tackle the structure and function dynamic of RNA/deoxyribonucleic acid in relation to their transient, unstable structures. The specific properties of rapidity and diversity are hypothesized to be involved in unexplored phenomena in neuroscience.

scholarly journals Micro-analysis of pure deoxyribonucleic acid-dependent ribonucleic acid polymerase from Escherichia coli. Action of heparin and rifampicin on structure and function

1970 ◽  
Vol 117 (3) ◽  
pp. 623-631 ◽  
Author(s):  
Volker Neuhoff ◽  
Wolf-Bernhard Schill ◽  
Hans Sternbach
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Rna Polymerase ◽  
Rna Synthesis ◽  
Deoxyribonucleic Acid ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
Disc Electrophoresis ◽  
Inhibitory Mechanism ◽  
And Function ◽  
Micro Analysis ◽  
Template Complex

By using micro disc electrophoresis and micro-diffusion techniques, the interaction of pure DNA-dependent RNA polymerase (EC 2.7.7.6) from Escherichia coli with the template, the substrates and the inhibitors heparin and rifampicin was investigated. The following findings were obtained: (1) heparin converts the 24S and 18S particles of the polymerase into the 13S form; (2) heparin inhibits RNA synthesis by dissociating the enzyme–template complex; (3) rifampicin does not affect the attachment of heparin to the enzyme; (4) the substrates ATP and UTP are bound by enzyme loaded with rifampicin; (5) rifampicin is bound by an enzyme–template complex to the same extent as by an RNA-synthesizing enzyme–template complex. From this it is concluded that the mechanism of the inhibition of RNA synthesis by rifampicin is radically different from that by heparin. As a working hypothesis to explain the inhibitory mechanism of rifampicin, it is assumed that it becomes very firmly attached to a position close to the synthesizing site and only blocks this when no synthesis is in progress.

Mercury Electrodes in Nucleic Acid Electrochemistry: Sensitive Analytical Tools and Probes of DNA Structure. A Review

2004 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 715-747 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miroslav Fojta
Keyword(s):  
Nucleic Acid ◽  
Nucleic Acids ◽  
Double Helix ◽  
Dna Structure ◽  
Electrochemical Analysis ◽  
Label Free ◽  
Helix Formation ◽  
Mercury Electrodes ◽  
Dna Strand ◽  
Dna Double Helix

This review is devoted to applications of mercury electrodes in the electrochemical analysis of nucleic acids and in studies of DNA structure and interactions. At the mercury electrodes, nucleic acids yield faradaic signals due to redox processes involving adenine, cytosine and guanine residues, and tensammetric signals due to adsorption/desorption of polynucleotide chains at the electrode surface. Some of these signals are highly sensitive to DNA structure, providing information about conformation changes of the DNA double helix, formation of DNA strand breaks as well as covalent or non-covalent DNA interactions with small molecules (including genotoxic agents, drugs, etc.). Measurements at mercury electrodes allow for determination of small quantities of unmodified or electrochemically labeled nucleic acids. DNA-modified mercury electrodes have been used as biodetectors for DNA damaging agents or as detection electrodes in DNA hybridization assays. Mercury film and solid amalgam electrodes possess similar features in the nucleic acid analysis to mercury drop electrodes. On the contrary, intrinsic (label-free) DNA electrochemical responses at other (non-mercury) solid electrodes cannot provide information about small changes of the DNA structure. A review with 188 references.

Structure and Function in Nucleic Acids: Mutagenesis

1987 ◽  
pp. 92-111
Author(s):  
Ignacio Tinoco ◽  
Steven Wolk ◽  
Frances Arnold ◽  
Fareed Aboul-Ela
Keyword(s):  
Nucleic Acids ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
And Function

Pharmacology and Drug Therapy in Critically Ill Elderly Patients

1992 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary K. Walker
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Critical Care ◽  
Drug Therapy ◽  
Drug Metabolism ◽  
Elderly Patients ◽  
Treatment Modality ◽  
Drug Disposition ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
Living Things ◽  
And Function

Aging is a complex, normal, and inevitable process affecting all living things. The physiologic changes of aging, by definition, are postmaturational, occurring after adult maturity is achieved. Changes with aging are primary, irreversible, and progressive. While the processes of aging are neither pathology nor disease, they present important changes in structure and function that alter drug disposition, metabolic rate, and excretion. These changes present special challenges to clinicians in critical care settings for whom pharmacotherapy is a common treatment modality. This article explores the physiologic changes associated with aging and the implications of these changes for management of critically compromised elders. Drug metabolism, distribution, utilization, and excretion in older adults are examined

Cellular structure and function

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-104
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Nucleic Acids ◽  
Cellular Structure ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
The Body ◽  
Signalling Pathways ◽  
Cellular Functions ◽  
Pharmacological Agents ◽  
Intracellular Organelles ◽  
And Function

‘Cellular structure and function’ covers the roles, structures, and functions of the main four types of macromolecules of the human body, namely proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and nucleic acids. For these macromolecules, the roles and types of each class are discussed (for proteins this includes their roles as structural proteins and enzymes and their kinetics; for lipids, the roles and types of lipid found in the body are considered; for carbohydrates, their roles including structural and metabolic are discussed; and the structure of nucleic acids is described). Then follows a description of the organization of the cell, including the plasma membrane and its components, and the intracellular organelles. Cell growth, division, and apoptosis are covered, as are the formation of gametes, and finally the principles of how cellular functions can be modulated by pharmacological agents through receptors and signalling pathways are discussed.

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