Bathroom-Break Tidbits
Hello! This is the first edition of, what will be, a series of posts entitled "Bathroom-Break Tidbits." Each post will discuss a topic of science, history, language, or some other subject in the amount of time required for the average, er, bathroom break. Thus, I present the first edition of Bathroom-Break Tidbits: DNA.
What Is DNA?
DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the most famous molecule of the century. It's the genetic material of every organism, the biological blueprint that makes you! From your conception to death, your cells use the DNA in them to coordinate their activities—to control metabolism, to grow, divide, communicate, and, in certain circumstances, even commit cellular suicide (called apoptosis).
DNA is a polymer (or chain) of individual monomers (or units) called nucleotides. Each nucleotide contains a "base" that identifies it; there are four bases: cytosine (abbreviated C), adenine (A), thymine (T), and guanine (G). Multiple nucleotides (millions, even) can be strung together into chains, and two chains cling together with hydrogen bonds to form a double helix. This double helix constitutes a molecule of DNA:
DNA is a polymer (or chain) of individual monomers (or units) called nucleotides. Each nucleotide contains a "base" that identifies it; there are four bases: cytosine (abbreviated C), adenine (A), thymine (T), and guanine (G). Multiple nucleotides (millions, even) can be strung together into chains, and two chains cling together with hydrogen bonds to form a double helix. This double helix constitutes a molecule of DNA:
How does DNA control cellular activities? It delegates. Your DNA has regions called genes, which, based on the order of their nucleotides (ATCTGC...), instruct cells to make specific proteins. Proteins then act as the busy-bodies that do almost everything in your cells. One protein, called hemoglobin, for example, uses iron atoms to trap oxygen and distribute it throughout your body. Another, called oxytocin, a hormone, relays messages of bonding, trust, and even pleasure.
Thus, your DNA is responsible for making you (although the exact influence of genes versus environment in your development and behavior is a topic of hot debate).
Thus, your DNA is responsible for making you (although the exact influence of genes versus environment in your development and behavior is a topic of hot debate).
Practical Applications
Genetic engineering is a wildly growing field that edits the genes of organisms for our benefit. For example, pharmaceutical companies transform bacteria to produce human insulin for diabetics. We can also add nutrients to crops to help end hunger and malnourishment in poor countries (these crops are called genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, and are also a hot debate).
Changes in DNA also affect people directly. Mistakes, or mutations, from radiation, errors in copying, and other sources can cause developmental disorders, like Down Syndrome, and cancer. Much research is trying to prevent and fix detrimental mistakes. Most importantly of all, mutations in DNA underlie the process of evolution by natural selection, but that's another story for another day!
And that, my friends, is DNA in a bathroom break.
Changes in DNA also affect people directly. Mistakes, or mutations, from radiation, errors in copying, and other sources can cause developmental disorders, like Down Syndrome, and cancer. Much research is trying to prevent and fix detrimental mistakes. Most importantly of all, mutations in DNA underlie the process of evolution by natural selection, but that's another story for another day!
And that, my friends, is DNA in a bathroom break.
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