The Chemistry of DNA

Introduction

DNA, short for deoxyribonucleic acid, is the basic genetic material for everything. It is what makes you you and me me. Without DNA, we would all be nothing but clones of each other and there would be no genetic diversity. Therefore, DNA is a very important component of life in general and plays a vital role in all of our lives. Thus, my goal for this site is not only to teach viewers about DNA, but to present the information in a way that makes it easier to understand and maybe even entertaining.

Composition of ...

DNA is mainly composed of polynucleotides. Polynucleotides contain the even smaller nucleotides, which are the building blocks of each strand of DNA. There are four different bases that make up each nucleotide: Adenine(C5H5N5), Guanine(C5H5N5O), Cytosine(C4H5N3O), and Thymine(C5H5N2O2). Also, each nucleotide contains a phosphate(PO4) and two deoxyribose(sugar, C5H9O4).

Chemistry's Role

DNA is naturally occurring. Every living thing, from a prokaryotic cell of bacteria to a komodo dragon, has different DNA. DNA strands are held together by hydrogen bonds. It’s backbone consists of two parts: a phosphate group (PO4+) attached to a carbon atom and a hydroxyl ion (OH-) attached to another carbon atom. Because the two have opposite charges, the strands arrange themselves in a double helix shape and always face opposite of each other.

Resources

http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/handbook/basics/dna

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dna

General description of DNA and it’s functions

http://www.genome.gov/25520880

http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/cellular-microscopic/dna.htm

http://www.worldofmolecules.com/life/dna.htm

http://www.madsci.org

Chemical formula for nucleotides and bases

http://www.phschool.com/science/biology_place/biocoach/bioprop/chemdna.html

How chemistry relates to DNA