Reimagining the Power of Nucleic Acids as Therapeutic and Diagnostic Agents

SUMMARYRNA editing challenges the central dogma of molecular biology, by modifying the genetic information at the transcription level. Recent reports, suggesting increased levels of RNA editing in plants, raised questions on the nature and dynamics of such events during development. We here report the occurrence of distinct RNA editing patterns in wild Vitis flowers during development, with twelve possible RNA editing modifications observed for the first time in plants. RNA editing events are gender and developmental stage specific, identical in subsequent years of this perennial species and with distinct nucleotide frequencies neighboring editing sites on the 5’ and 3’ flanks. The transcriptome dynamics unveils a new regulatory layer responsible for gender plasticity enhancement or underling dioecy evolution in Vitis.

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DNA → RNA: What Do Students Think the Arrow Means?

CBE—Life Sciences Education ◽

10.1187/cbe.cbe-13-09-0188 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

pp. 338-348 ◽

Cited By ~ 28

Author(s):

L. Kate Wright ◽

J. Nick Fisk ◽

Dina L. Newman

Keyword(s):

Molecular Biology ◽

Recent Work ◽

Conceptual Understanding ◽

Information Flow ◽

Genetic Information ◽

Chemical Conversion ◽

Canonical Representation ◽

Central Dogma ◽

The Relationship ◽

Student Interpretation

The central dogma of molecular biology, a model that has remained intact for decades, describes the transfer of genetic information from DNA to protein though an RNA intermediate. While recent work has illustrated many exceptions to the central dogma, it is still a common model used to describe and study the relationship between genes and protein products. We investigated understanding of central dogma concepts and found that students are not primed to think about information when presented with the canonical figure of the central dogma. We also uncovered conceptual errors in student interpretation of the meaning of the transcription arrow in the central dogma representation; 36% of students (n = 128; all undergraduate levels) described transcription as a chemical conversion of DNA into RNA or suggested that RNA existed before the process of transcription began. Interviews confirm that students with weak conceptual understanding of information flow find inappropriate meaning in the canonical representation of central dogma. Therefore, we suggest that use of this representation during instruction can be counterproductive unless educators are explicit about the underlying meaning.

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Crick's notion of genetic information and the ‘central dogma’ of molecular biology

The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science ◽

10.1093/bjps/axl018 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 58 (1) ◽

pp. 13-24 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Predrag Šustar

Keyword(s):

Molecular Biology ◽

Genetic Information ◽

Central Dogma

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Machines on Genes: Enzymes that Make, Break and Move DNA and RNA

Biochemical Society Transactions ◽

10.1042/bst0380381 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 38 (2) ◽

pp. 381-383 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

W. Marshall Stark ◽

Ben F. Luisi ◽

Richard P. Bowater

Keyword(s):

Gene Expression ◽

Molecular Biology ◽

Nucleic Acids ◽

Present Article ◽

Genetic Information ◽

Clear View ◽

Dna And Rna ◽

Repair Enzymes ◽

University Of Cambridge ◽

Enzyme Substrates

As the vital information repositories of the cell, the nucleic acids DNA and RNA pose many challenges as enzyme substrates. To produce, maintain and repair DNA and RNA, and to extract the genetic information that they encode, a battery of remarkable enzymes has evolved, which includes translocases, polymerases/replicases, helicases, nucleases, topoisomerases, transposases, recombinases, repair enzymes and ribosomes. An understanding of how these enzymes function is essential if we are to have a clear view of the molecular biology of the cell and aspire to manipulate genomes and gene expression to our advantage. To bring together scientists working in this fast-developing field, the Biochemical Society held a Focused Meeting, ‘Machines on Genes: Enzymes that Make, Break and Move DNA and RNA’, at Robinson College, University of Cambridge, U.K., in August 2009. The present article summarizes the research presented at this meeting and the reviews associated with the talks which are published in this issue of Biochemical Society Transactions.

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Nucleic Acids Chemistry and Engineering: Special Issue on Nucleic Acid Conjugates for Biotechnological Applications

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11083594 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. 3594

Author(s):

Tamaki Endoh ◽

Eriks Rozners ◽

Takashi Ohtsuki

Keyword(s):

Nucleic Acid ◽

Nucleic Acids ◽

Genetic Information ◽

Biotechnological Applications ◽

Biological Functions ◽

Primary Sequence ◽

Special Issue

Nucleic acids not only store genetic information in their primary sequence but also exhibit biological functions through the formation of their unique structures [...]

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Biotin

Cold Spring Harbor Protocols ◽

10.1101/pdb.top100776 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 (10) ◽

pp. pdb.top100776

Author(s):

Michael R. Green ◽

Joseph Sambrook

Keyword(s):

Molecular Biology ◽

Nucleic Acids ◽

Water Soluble ◽

Water Soluble Vitamin

Biotin is a water-soluble vitamin that can be attached to a variety of proteins and nucleic acids, often without altering their properties. Its use in molecular biology is introduced here.

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