DNA replication
hideDNA replication, the basis for biological inheritance, is a fundamental process occurring in all living organisms to copy their DNA. This process is "semiconservative" in that each strand of the original double-stranded DNA molecule serves as template for the reproduction of the complementary strand. Hence, following DNA replication, two identical DNA molecules have been produced from a single double-stranded DNA molecule. Cellular proofreading and error-checking mechanisms ensure near perfect fidelity for DNA replication.
In a cell, DNA replication begins at specific locations in the genome, called "origins". Unwinding of DNA at the origin, and synthesis of new strands, forms a replication fork. In addition to DNA polymerase, the enzyme that synthesizes the new DNA by adding nucleotides matched to the template strand, a number of other proteins are associated with the fork and assist in the initiation and continuation of DNA synthesis.
DNA replication can also be performed in vitro (outside a cell). DNA polymerases, isolated from cells, and artificial DNA primers are used to initiate DNA synthesis at known sequences in a template molecule. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a common laboratory technique, employs such artificial synthesis in a cyclic manner to amplify a specific target DNA fragment from a pool of DNA.
For more information about DNA replication, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with dna replication
DNA template could explain evolutionary shifts
Jun 21, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (4) |
0
Rearrangements of all sizes in genomes, genes and exons can result from a glitch in DNA copying that occurs when the process stalls at a critical point and then shifts to a different genetic template, duplicating and even ...
Scientists use math modeling to predict unknown biological mechanism of regulation
Oct 14, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (4) |
0
A team of scientists, led by a biomedical engineer at The University of Texas at Austin, have demonstrated - for the first time - that mathematical models created from data obtained by DNA microarrays, can ...
UCSD Engineer Provides Insights to Decades-Old DNA Squabble
Jul 31, 2009 |
3.7 / 5 (3) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- A group of nanoengineers, biologists and physicists have used innovative approaches to deduce the internal structure of chromatin, a key player in DNA regulation, to reconcile a longstanding ...
Biologists discover link between CGG repeats in DNA and neurological disorders
Biology /
Jan 11, 2009 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
Researchers have long known that some repetitive DNA sequences can make human chromosomes "fragile," i.e. appearing constricted or even broken during cell divisions. Scientists at Tufts University have found that one such ...
Secrets revealed about how disease-causing DNA mutations occur
Jul 02, 2009 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
A team of Penn State scientists has shed light on the processes that lead to certain human DNA mutations that are implicated in hundreds of inherited diseases such as tuberous sclerosis and neurofibromatosis ...
Researchers uncover potential mechanisms to protect against genetic alterations, diseases
Aug 06, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (2) |
0
Peering into the DNA of tiny yeast, researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego and the San Diego Branch of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research have pinpointed a large number of ...
Scientists synthesize gold to shed light on cells' inner workings
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Apr 16, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
2
Highly fluorescent gold nanoclusters for sub-cellular imaging have been synthesized by researchers at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), one of the research institutes of Singapore's A*STAR (Agency ...
In a rare disorder, a familiar protein disrupts gene function
May 27, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
As reported this week in the open-access journal PLoS Biology, an international team of scientists studying a rare genetic disease has discovered that a bundle of proteins already known to be important for keeping chromo ...
Cancer cells need normal, nonmutated genes to survive
May 28, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
2
Corrupt lifestyles and vices go hand in hand; each feeds the other. But even the worst miscreant needs customary societal amenities to get by. It's the same with cancer cells. While they rely on vices in the form of genetic ...
Researchers unravel mystery of DNA conformation
Jul 13, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
1
An iconic photograph (http://img.timeinc.net/time/80days/images/530228.jpg) of Nobel laureates Drs. Francis Crick and James Watson show the pair discussing with a rigid model of the famous double helix. ...
Of yeast and men: Unraveling the molecular mechanisms of Friedreich's ataxia
Jul 09, 2009 |
4 / 5 (1) |
0
Researchers in human genetics have long known that expansions of GAA repeats - resulting in this nucleotide triplet repeating hundreds or thousands of times - cause the most common hereditary neurological disorder known as ...
Researchers identify protein -- telomere interactions that could be key in treating cancer
Aug 31, 2009 |
4 / 5 (1) |
0
A team of researchers from The Wistar Institute have shown that a large non-coding RNA in mammals and yeast plays a central role in helping maintain telomeres, the tips of chromosomes that contain important genetic information ...
Researchers illuminate mechanisms that regulate DNA damage control and replication
Biology /
Jan 05, 2009 |
3 / 5 (1) |
0
Scientists at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) have demonstrated important new roles for the protein kinase complex Cdc7/Dbf4 or Cdc7/Drf1 (Ddk) in monitoring damage control during DNA replication and reinitiating ...
Handle with care: Telomeres resemble DNA fragile sites
Jul 10, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- Telomeres, the repetitive sequences of DNA at the ends of linear chromosomes, have an important function: They protect vulnerable chromosome ends from molecular attack. Researchers at Rockefeller ...
A yeast cancer model for mapping cancer genes
Jul 28, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
Researchers have devised a scheme for identifying genes in yeast that could lead to the identification of new cancer genes in humans. The study is published online this week in the open-access journal PLoS Bi ...
