RNA

Learning Objectives
▪ Describe how RNA differs from DNA.
▪ Explain how the cell makes RNA.
Comparing RNA and DNA
▪DNA and RNA are both
made up of nucleotides
▪The sugar in RNA is
ribose instead of
deoxyribose.
▪RNA is generally single-
stranded, not
double-stranded.
▪RNA contains uracil in
place of thymine. This
means if forming a
complimentary code,
where there is an “A” in
DNA, RNA would pair it
with a “U”.
Types of RNA
There are several types of RNA and most of them are
involved in protein synthesis.
RNA controls the assembly of amino acids into proteins
Each type of RNA molecule specializes in a different aspect
of this job.

DNA is the inherited genetic material, but RNA is the genetic

material that carries out the insturctions encoded in DNA.
Without RNA, the instructions in DNA could not be used by
cells.

The three main types of RNA are:

•Messenger RNA
•Ribosomal RNA
• Transfer RNA
Messenger RNA (mRNA)
Many DNA genes contain instructions for assembling amino
acids into proteins.
▪ An ________molecule
mRNA is a copy of the portion of DNA that will
be used to make a protein.
▪ After being made in the nucleus, mRNA travels through the
cytoplasm to ribosomes, the site of protein synthesis.
Ribosomal RNA (rRNA)
▪ Protein synthesis occurs on ribosomes, which are made up of
two subunits.
▪ These subunits consist of several molecules of ribosomal RNA
(rRNA) and as many as 80 different proteins-.
Transfer RNA (tRNA)
During protein synthesis, a third type of RNA molecule
transfers each amino acid to the ribosome as it is specified
by the coded messages in mRNA. These molecules are
known as transfer RNA molecules (tRNA).
RNA Synthesis: Transcription
In transcription, segments of DNA serve as templates to
produce complementary mRNA molecules.
Process of Transcription
In prokaryotes, RNA synthesis and protein synthesis take place in the
cytoplasm.
In eukaryotes, RNA is produced in the nuvleus, as shown in this illustration,
and then moves to ribosomes in the cytoplasm for the purpose of protein
synthesis.

Transcription requires an enzyme, known as RNA polymerase, that is

similar to DNA polymerase.

RNA polymerase then uses one strand of DNA as a template from which to
assemble nucleotides into a complementary strand of mRNA.

The ability to copy a single DNA sequence into RNA makes it possible for a
single gene to produce hundreds or even thousands of RNA molecules.
RNA Synthesis: Promoters
How does RNA polymerase know where to start and stop
making a strand of RNA?
RNA polymerase doesn’t bind to DNA just anywhere. The
enzyme binds only to promoters.

Promoters, which have specific base sequences, tell the

enzyme where to start transcribing DNA.

Transcription is just the first stage of RNA synthesis. The next

stage is RNA processing or editing.
RNA Synthesis: RNA Editing/processing
New RNA molecules sometimes require a bit of editing
before they are ready to be read.

Introns Exons

Cap Tail
RNA Editing/Processing
What happens to the newly made mRNA before it leaves the nucleus?
RNA editing/processing
The pieces of pre-mRNA molecules that are cut out, or “edited out,” and
discarded are called introns.
The remaining pieces are known as exons. The remaining exons are
spliced together.
Then, an RNA cap and tail are added to form the final mRNA molecule.
What is the purpose of making a large RNA molecule and then throwing
parts of that molecule away? That’s a good question, and biologists still
don’t have a complete answer.
•Some pre-mRNA molecules may be cut and spliced in different ways in
different tissues, so a single gene can actually produce several different
mRNA molecules.
•Introns and exons may also play a role in evolution, making it possible for
very small changes in DNA sequences to have dramatic effects on how
genes affect cellular function.
Ribosomes and Protein Synthesis
Learning Objectives
▪ Explain how the genetic code works.
▪ Describe the role of the ribosome in assembling proteins.
▪ Understand how molecular biology relates to genetics.
The Genetic Code: Codons
▪ The genetic code is read in three-letter groupings called a
Condon.
▪ A codon is group of three nucleotide bases. All living
organisms read the genetic code in this way, three bases
at a time.

AUG AAC UCU

Genetic Code Table
There are 64 possible three-base codons in the genetic
code.

Most amino acids can be

specified by more than one
codon.
For example, six different
codons—UUA, UUG, CUU,
CUC, CUA, and
CUG—specify leucine.

Only one
codon—UGG—specifies the
amino acid tryptophan.
Reading Codons
Start at the middle of the circle with the first letter of the codon and
move outward.

How many
amino acids
does each
codon
represent?
One

How many
codons can
code for a
single amino
acid?
From one to six

CAC = Histidine
Start and Stop Codons
The methionine codon AUG serves as the “start” codon for
protein synthesis. There are three “stop” codons.
• mRNA is
read, three
bases at a UAA, UAG,
time, until it and UGA
are “stop”
reaches codons
one of
three
different
stop
codons,
which end
translation. AUG =
methionine =
“start” codon
Translation
▪ Transcribed mRNA directs the translation process.
▪ Translation is the process that produces proteins by decoding the
sequence of mRNA codons.
▪ In a eukaryotic cell, transcription goes on in the cell’s nucleus.
Translation is carried out by ribosomes after the transcribed mRNA
enters the cell’s cytoplasm.
Translation: Transfer RNA
Translation starts when ribosomes attaches to mRNA
molecules. Then, tRNA molecules, carrying amino acids with
them, bind to mRNA codons.

anticodon
Translation Process
Translation initiates at AUG, the start codon.

tRNA molecules carry in the amino acids coded for by the

codon.
Since AUG always codes for methionine, the first amino acid
brought in for every round of translation is methionine.

As each codon passes through the ribosome, more tRNAs

bring the proper amino acids into the ribosome.

Each transfer RNA has an anticodon whose bases are

complementary to the bases of a codon on the mRNA strand.
The tRNA attaches its anticodon to the appropriate codon of
the mRNA.
Translation Process
What is the anticodon for methionine codon, the start codon?
UAC

What amino acid does the mRNA codon UUC bring to the
polypeptide chain?
phenylalanine

If an mRNA codon has the bases CUA, what bases will the
corresponding transfer RNA anticodon have?
GAU
Translation: The Polypeptide Assembly
The ribosome helps form a peptide bond between the first and second
amino acids —methionine and phenylalanine. It breaks the bond holding
the first tRNA molecule to its amino acid. That tRNA then moves into a
third binding site, from which it exits the ribosome.
Translation Process
The ribosome then moves to the third codon, where tRNA
brings in the amino acid specified by the Third condon.

Explain that the ribosome moves along the mRNA from

Right to Lerft, binding new tRNA molecules and amino
acids.

Keep in mind the overall picture and relationship between

transcription and translation.
Translation Process
What is the product of transcription?
mRNA

What is the product of translation?

A protein

Where do the amino acids come from that make up the

protein?
They are available in the cell and are picked up by the tRNA
molecules.

The tRNA molecules then bring them into ribosome to be

used to build the protein.
Translation: Completing the Polypeptide
The ribosome reaches a stop codon, releasing the newly synthesized
polypeptide and the mRNA molecule, completing the process of
translation.
What would happen
if the stop codon
mistakenly had
been made into a
regular codon?
Translation would
not stop; another
amino acid would
be attached and the
protein product
would have an error
in its structure.
The Roles of RNA in Translation
All three major forms of RNA—mRNA, tRNA, and rRNA—are
involved in the process of translation.
Molecular Genetics
The central dogma of molecular biology is that information is
transferred from DNA to RNA to protein.

What does the central

dogma imply about the
role of RNA?
It’s the step between
DNA and proteins.
There are exceptions
to this dogma,
including viruses that
transfer information in
the opposite direction,
from RNA to DNA.
Gene Expression
When a gene (segment) of DNA code is used to build a protein,
scientists say that gene has been expressed
Summary
DNA carries information for specifying the traits of an organism.
The cell uses the sequence of bases in DNA as a template for making
mRNA.
The codons of mRNA specify the sequence of amino acids in a protein.
Proteins, in turn, play a key role in producing an organism’s traits.

Many RNA molecules are not translated into proteins but still play
important roles in gene expression.

One of the most interesting discoveries of molecular biology is the

near-universal nature of the genetic code. Although some organisms
show slight variations in the amino acids assigned to particular codons,
the code is always read three bases at a time and in the same direction.
Despite their enormous diversity in form and function, living organisms
display remarkable unity at life’s most basic level, the molecular biology
of the gene.
Mutations
Learning Objectives
▪ Describe how mutations change genetic information.
▪ Explain how mutations affect genes.
Types of Mutations
Mutations are heritable changes in genetic information.
Mutations fall into two basic categories:
▪ ____________
▪ ____________
Point out that a genetic condition
called leucism leaves the lion
shown without pigments in its hair,
skin, and eyes.

Which type of mutation is likely to

be more harmful?
Gene Mutations: Point Mutations
Changes in a single nucleotide can affect the amino acid sequence of
proteins. A _____________ is a change in a single nucleotide. Point
mutations generally occur during replication.
If a gene in one cell is altered, the alteration can be passed on to
_________________.
There are three types of point
mutations: _____________.
Gene Mutations – point mutations
What can a mutation do to the outcome of transcription and
translation?
____________________________
Point Mutations: Substitutions
In a substitution, __________________________ Substitutions usually
affect no more than a single amino acid, and sometimes they have no
effect at all.
Point Mutations: Substitutions
Not all mutations result in a change to the amino acid.
For example, if a mutation changed one codon of mRNA
from CCC to CCA, the codon would still specify the amino
acid proline.
Point Mutations: Insertions and Deletions
Insertions or deletions can be
dramatic. ________: when a single
extra base is added into the code
___________: when a single base
is removed from the code
Point Mutations: Insertions and Deletions
Insertions and deletions are also called _________ for this
reason.
These mutations can alter a protein so much that it is unable
to perform its normal functions.

Activity: Theboysawthetandogrun.

Read the sentence three letters at a time.

Add an “x” after the first “The” and read the sentence three
letters at a time.

Discuss how this example relates to frameshift mutations.

Chromosomal Mutations
Sometimes a mutation affects
an entire chromosome.
Chromosomal mutations can
change the location of genes
on chromosomes and can
even change the number of
copies of some genes. There
are four types of chromosomal
mutations.
▪ ________
▪ _________
▪ _________
▪ _________
Chromosomal Mutations
Deletion :___________

Duplication :____________

Inversion :________________
Translocation :_______________

What is the difference between inversion and translocation?

_________________________
Effects of Mutations
Mutations can harm, help, or have no effect on an organism.
Some mutations arise from __________—chemical or
physical agents in the environment. Chemical mutagens
include certain pesticides, a few natural plant alkaloids,
tobacco smoke, and environmental pollutants.
Physical mutagens include some forms of electromagnetic
radiation, such as X-rays and ultraviolet light.
Effect of Mutations
If these agents interact with DNA, they can produce
mutations at high rates.
Cells can sometimes repair the damage, but when they
cannot, the DNA base sequence changes permanently.

What would be the effect of a compound that interferes with

base pairing?
______________

Other compounds can actually weaken the DNA strand,

causing breaks and inversions that produce chromosomal
mutations
Effects of Mutations: Harmful
Some of the most harmful mutations are those that dramatically change
protein structure or gene activity. The defective proteins produced by
these mutations can _____________and result in ____________. Some
cancers, for example, are the product of mutations that cause the
uncontrolled growth of cells.
Example: Sickle cell disease affects the shape of red blood cells.
This disease is caused
by a substitution
mutation in one of the
polypeptides found in
hemoglobin, the blood’s Normal red blood cell
principal oxygen-carrying
protein. Among the
symptoms of the disease
are anemia, severe pain,
frequent infections, and
stunted growth.
Sickle cell
Effects of Mutations: Beneficial
Mutations often produce proteins with new or altered functions that can
be useful to organisms in different or changing environments.
Mutations have helped many insects become resistant to chemical
pesticides and have enabled microorganisms to adapt to new chemicals in
the environment.

Also explain that plant and animal breeders often make use of “good”
mutations. For example, when a complete set of chromosomes fails to
separate during meiosis, the gametes that result may produce triploid (3N)
or tetraploid (4N) organisms. The condition in which an organism has extra
sets of chromosomes is called polyploidy.

Based on this information, why might plant breeders want to encourage

these “good” mutations?
Changes to the ploidy number of citrus plants can affect the size and
strength of the trees as well as the quality and seediness of their fruit.
Polyploid plants are often larger and stronger than diploid plants. Important
crop plants—including bananas and limes—have been produced this way.