History of DNA structure and its importance

How did we learn that DNA is the key to coding for all characteristics of living things?

A timeline
1928: *British scientist -- Frederick Griffith studies bacteria looking for cause of pneumonia *found two specific strains or cultures of bacteria that looked different when growing on petri dishes: -one grew in smooth-edged groups -other one produced colonies that were rough and ragged around the edges

Why important?
Visual differences made it easy to recognize and distinguish between the strains of bacteria Also, Griffith found that: *smooth-edged colonies of bacteria caused disease *rough-edged colonies were harmless

Section 12-1

Griffiths Experiment
Heat-killed, disease-causing bacteria (smooth colonies) Harmless bacteria Heat-killed, disease(rough colonies) causing bacteria (smooth colonies) Control (no growth)

Disease-causing bacteria (smooth colonies)

Harmless bacteria (rough colonies)

Dies of pneumonia

Lives

Lives

Dies of pneumonia Live, disease-causing bacteria (smooth colonies)

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Results of Griffiths 1928 experiment:

Discovery of process of Transformation

Somehow the heat-killed bacteria had passed their disease-causing ability to the harmless strain The harmless strain had been transformed into a disease-causing strain Hypothesized that some factor was responsible for this change

Timeline cont
1944: -American, Oswald Avery, continued bacteria research of Griffith -Knew were 4 types of organic compounds that make up all life - used enzymes to destroy lipids, carbohydrates, proteins, and RNA in an extract from the disease causing bacteria.

 Transformation still occurred, so obviously the molecules they had destroyed were not responsible for transformation. Only organic molecule left that had not been destroyed was DNA When repeated experiment with DNAdestroying enzymes, no transformation occurred.DNA was the key to heredity

Timeline cont
1952: -Americans Alfred Hershey and Martha Chase -worked with viruses called bacteriophages -viruses are simple DNA or RNA core and a protein coat around them -when infect, bacteriophages inject DNA or RNA into cell and protein coat is left outside -used radioactive markers to trace phosphorus-32 (32P) for DNA sulfur-35 (35S) for protein coat

Figure 16.2a The Hershey-Chase experiment: phages

Section 12-1

Hershey-Chase Experiment

Bacteriophage with phosphorus-32 in DNA

Phage infects bacterium

Radioactivity inside bacterium

Bacteriophage with sulfur-35 in protein coat

Phage infects bacterium

No radioactivity inside bacterium

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Results of Hershey-Chase
When viruses were separated from the bacteria and tested for radioactivity, all of the radioactivity from the bacteria was found to be 32P Conclusion: genetic material of the bacteriophage that was transferred was DNA

Race for the structure of DNA

~1940: -Erwin Chargaff discovers that percentages of A and T are equal in any sample of DNA; same is true for C and G 1944: - Linus Pauling discovers that proteins can have a helical shape 1952:
- Rosalind Franklin takes pictures of DNA molecule using technique called X-ray diffraction, shows that DNA has helical shape

Figure 16.4 Rosalind Franklin and her X-ray diffraction photo of DNA

 1951-1952: -Maurice Wilkins works with Xdiffraction and sees same pattern as Franklin, shares info with James Watson April, 1953: -James Watson and Francis Crick build first model of DNA (are awarded Nobel Prize in 1960s)

ray

Figure 5.x3 James Watson and Francis Crick

Basic DNA structure

Exists as a double helix Uprights made up of alternating deoxyribose (sugar) and phosphate groups Bases are attached to the sugars Bases in DNA are adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine A pairs with T, C pairs with G and vice-versa A and G are purines larger, double rings T and C are pyrimidines smaller, single rings

Figure 16.6 Base pairing in DNA

Base Pairings

Erwin Chargaff (discovered base pairings)

Discovered that A and T nucleotides were found in equal amounts and C and G nucleotides were found in equal amounts. Because of this we now know about the base pairings between the purines (A and G) and the pyrimidines (T and C)

Unnumbered Figure (page 292) Purine and pyridimine

Why does A always pair with T (or U), and G with C?

Distance between uprights is 2 nm (nanometers)

Section 12-2

Chromosome Structure of Eukaryotes

Nucleosome DNA double helix Coils Supercoils

Chromosome

Histones

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3 Important Gene Functions

1. Carry information from one generation to the next. 2. Put that information to work by determining the heritable characteristics of organisms. 3. Have to be easily copied each time a cell divides.

 DNA contains the information that a cell needs to carry out all of its functions. In a way, DNA is like the cells encyclopedia. Suppose that you go to the media center to do research for a science project. You find the information in an encyclopedia. You go to the desk to sign out the book, but the media specialist informs you that this book is for reference only and may not be taken out.

CW/HW Assignment
1. Why do you think the media center holds some books for reference only? 2. If you cant borrow a book, how can you take home the information in it? 3. All of the parts of a cell are controlled by the information in DNA, yet DNA does not leave the nucleus. How do you think the information in DNA might get from the nucleus to the rest of the cell?