Tagged Questions
3
votes
1answer
55 views
How do multiple replication forks function without 'colliding', and what is the benefit of this method?
I'm currently reading a little about DNA replication, and have come accross the following statement;
Replication starts from a fixed point and is bi-directional ... In Eukaryotes, there are ...
4
votes
2answers
193 views
DNA as an acid? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Does DNA react in all of the ways most other acids do?
Even if DNA is made up of nucleotide bases, it is said to be an acid. Why is this?
8
votes
1answer
160 views
Does DNA react in all of the ways most other acids do?
As I understand it from my basic chemistry, there are some fundamental reactions that exist between any acid and other substances for example acid-base reactions that form a salt, and the existence of ...
15
votes
4answers
755 views
Why are there exactly four nucleobases in DNA?
Does someone know why DNA is composed of four nucleobases? In particular, is there an explanation for the number? Why four and not two, or eight?
9
votes
3answers
145 views
Does GFAJ-1 use Adenosine triarsenate as its energy currency?
Regarding the bacteria found in Mono Lake, CA that scientists believe uses or can use arsenic in its DNA backbone where life as we know it uses phosphorus (according to their experiments depriving the ...
6
votes
1answer
351 views
Basic Amino Acid Residue Binding Mechanism to DNA
I understand that many protein DNA binding domains bind to DNA via basic residues such as Arginine and Lysine. But what is the mechanism used to bind to DNA and where on the DNA would these residues ...
7
votes
3answers
101 views
Free Radicals for aging
From my understanding free radicals play a slight role in ageing.
In what ways are they so damaging, and can a restricted diet reduce production of free radicals?
11
votes
1answer
192 views
What are the limitations to current nucleotide sequencing technologies?
Using the Illumina platform, it is cheap and (relatively) easy to sequence huge amounts of DNA or RNA. There are various other platforms out there (Roche/454, SOLiD, PacBio, Ion Torrent) each with ...
6
votes
1answer
116 views
What is the origin of “melting” in molecular genetics?
I'm reading some papers about prokaryotic transcription mechanisms, and I've come across a term I haven't heard before: DNA melting or promoter melting. After reading a bit, it's pretty clear that ...
10
votes
3answers
446 views
What implications has the missing 2'-OH on the capability of DNA to form 3D structures?
The chemical difference between RNA and DNA is the missing 2'-hydroxyl group in the nucleotides that build DNA. The major effect of that change that I know of is the higher stability of DNA compared ...
33
votes
3answers
8k views
Why is uracil used in RNA rather than thymine?
What is the advantage gained by the substitution of thymine with uracil? I have read previously that it is due to thymine being "better protected" and therefore more suited to the storage role of ...
7
votes
3answers
131 views
How can I produce milligram quantities of an isotope-labeled DNA oligomer?
I'd like to produce a specific DNA sequence on a milligram-scale and 13C15N-label it. The sequence is around 35 nucleotides long, so chemical synthesis is out due to the exorbitant costs.
I'm also ...
9
votes
4answers
169 views
How can I avoid digesting protein-bound DNA?
I'm interested in sequencing and analyzing the bound DNA, and minimizing the amount of unbound DNA that gets sequenced through digestion.
When digesting protein-bound DNA, is all of the unbound DNA ...
