Structure and Composition

The History of DNA

Chargaff analyzed the amounts of the four nucleotides found in DNA and noticed a pattern. He discovered that the amounts of adenine always was the same as the amounts of thymine. Guanine and Cytosine was also the same. From this, the base-pair rule was formed.

Rosalind Franklin and Wilkins spent time taking X-ray diffraction pictures of the DNA molecule in an attempt to determine the shape of the DNA molecule.

Watson and Crick are credited with finally piecing together all the information previously gathered on the molecule of DNA. They established the structure as a double helix - like a ladder that is twisted. The two sides of the ladder are held together by hydrogen bonds.

DNA

The sugar and phosphates make up the "backbone" of the DNA molecule.

The phosphate is attached to the 5' carbon (the 5 is a number given to sugar molecules). The DNA strand has a free phosphate on th 5' end, and a free sugar on the 3' end - these numbers will become important later.

Adenine always pairs with Thymine
Guanine always pairs with Cytosine

Memory tip: A T Granite City

Or: Imagine that a C is just a G without the little line in the middle.

DNA is composed of subunits called nucleotides, strung together in a long chain -- Each nucleotide consists of: a phosphate, a sugar (deoxyribose), and a base

Bases come in two types: pyrimidines (cytosine and thymine) and purines (guanine and adenine)

The two sides of the helix are held together by Hydrogen bonds

Here the 5' end and the 3' end are seen again, each side of the ladder has an opposite orientation. One side of the ladder as a free sugar (the 3'end) the other side has a free phosphate (the 5'end). This arrangement is called: ANTI-PARALLEL

Can you tell which is the 5' and the 3' on the image below? Roll your mouse over the image for the answer.

Putting it all together: here are some images of what the DNA double helix looks like: