Molecular Genetics
The Structure of DNA
DNA is made up of two chains of individual parts linked together. Each part is called a nucleotide and made up of three things: a phosphate, a deoxyribose sugar, and a base.
The nucleotides run in opposite directions, and the bases link together to form a double helix structure, which looks like a twisted ladder.
The phosphate and the sugar form the sides of the ladder, while the bases form the "rungs."
Bases
The bases are the figurative 1s and 0s of your DNA. They are what encode the information to produce the protiens the cell needs.
There are four bases:
1. Adenine (A)
2. Thymine (T)
3. Cytosine (C)
4. Guanine (G)
A always pairs with T, and C always pairs with G. In this way, the DNA is complimentary, and this pairing process is fundamental to DNA translation, transcription, and protien production.
Phosphate
Deoxyribose sugar
Base
