Ch 12 – DNA/RNA Study
Guide
You should know the experiments that led to us realizing DNA was the genetic information for cells.
For each experiment you should be able to explain the experimental design, the researcher, the outcome and the significance of the experiment to our scientific understanding.
Know the structure of DNA and the four DNA bases as well as the pairing rules.
Who were Watson and Crick, and Rosalind Franklin? What were their discoveries and their relationships in research?
How does the structure of DNA suit its function?
How is DNA different from RNA in structure and in function?
How is the huge length of DNA managed (packed into a chromosome)?
Be able to give an overview of DNA replication, transcription, and translation. Be able to explain the roles of DNA polymerase, Helicase, RNA Polymerase, Ribosomes (rRNA included), mRNA, and tRNAs.
Be able to outline the flow of genetic information from DNA to trait (there is a lot of information in this!).
How does DNA store genetic information?
How does our cell know where on the chromosome to start transcription? To end it? How does it know where on the mRNA to start/stop translation?
What is a codon? How many nucleotides are in a codon? How many codons are there? How many amino acids are there?
Know what a polypeptide is.
What is a gene in DNA terms?
What are the different types of mutations and how do they
differ in severity?