{"id":168339,"date":"2024-11-17T09:21:50","date_gmt":"2024-11-17T09:21:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learnexams.com\/blog\/?p=168339"},"modified":"2024-11-17T09:21:52","modified_gmt":"2024-11-17T09:21:52","slug":"which-best-describes-the-structure-of-a-dna-molecule","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/2024\/11\/17\/which-best-describes-the-structure-of-a-dna-molecule\/","title":{"rendered":"Which best describes the structure of a dna molecule"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Which best describes the structure of a dna molecule<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-ast-global-color-6-color\">The Correct Answer and Explanation is:<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The structure of a DNA molecule is best described as a <strong>double helix<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Explanation:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is the molecule that carries genetic information in living organisms. Its structure was first described by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953, with the help of X-ray diffraction data from Rosalind Franklin. The DNA molecule has a unique and intricate structure, often described as a <strong>double helix<\/strong>, which resembles a twisted ladder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The DNA molecule is made up of two strands that run in opposite directions and are twisted around each other. These strands are composed of repeating subunits called <strong>nucleotides<\/strong>, each consisting of three components:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>A phosphate group<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>A deoxyribose sugar molecule<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>A nitrogenous base<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>The nitrogenous bases are the key to the genetic code and come in four varieties:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Adenine (A)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Thymine (T)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Cytosine (C)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Guanine (G)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The two strands of DNA are held together by <strong>hydrogen bonds<\/strong> between complementary nitrogenous bases: adenine pairs with thymine, and cytosine pairs with guanine. This complementary base pairing ensures the accurate transmission of genetic information during cell division.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The strands of DNA run in opposite directions, which is referred to as <strong>antiparallel orientation<\/strong>. One strand runs from the 5&#8242; (5-prime) end to the 3&#8242; (3-prime) end, while the other strand runs in the opposite direction, from 3&#8242; to 5&#8242;. This orientation is crucial for the proper functioning of enzymes that replicate and transcribe DNA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The two intertwined strands of DNA form a right-handed double helix, giving the molecule its characteristic twisted structure. This helical shape is stabilized by <strong>hydrophobic interactions<\/strong> between the stacked nitrogenous bases inside the helix and <strong>hydrogen bonds<\/strong> between the complementary base pairs. The double helix structure of DNA is vital for its ability to store and transmit genetic information in cells.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Which best describes the structure of a dna molecule The Correct Answer and Explanation is: The structure of a DNA molecule is best described as a double helix. Explanation: DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is the molecule that carries genetic information in living organisms. Its structure was first described by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-168339","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-exams-certification"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=168339"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168339\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=168339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=168339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=168339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}