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Central dogma
The central dogma of molecular biology was first articulated by Francis Crick in 1958[1] and re-
The central dogma of molecular biology deals with the detailed residue-by-residue transfer of
sequential information. It states that information cannot be transferred back from protein to either
In other words, once information gets into protein, it can't flow back to nucleic acid.
The dogma is a framework for understanding the transfer of sequence information between
organisms. There are 3 major classes of such biopolymers: DNA and RNA (both nucleic acids), and
protein. There are 3×3 = 9 conceivable direct transfers of information that can occur between
these. The dogma classes these into 3 groups of 3: 3 general transfers (believed to occur normally in
most cells), 3 special transfers (known to occur, but only under specific conditions in case of some
viruses or in a laboratory), and 3 unknown transfers (believed never to occur). The general transfers
describe the normal flow of biological information: DNA can be copied to DNA (DNA replication), DNA
information can be copied into mRNA, (transcription), and proteins can be synthesized using the
The biopolymers DNA, RNA and proteins, are linear polymers (i.e.: each monomer is connected to at
most two other monomers). The sequence of their monomers effectively encodes information. The
transfers of information described by the central dogma are faithful, deterministic transfers, wherein
one biopolymer's sequence is used as a template for the construction of another biopolymer with a
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DNA replication
As the final step in the Central Dogma, to transmit the genetic information between parents and
progeny, the DNA must be replicated faithfully. Replication is carried out by a complex group of
proteins that unwind the superhelix, unwind the double-stranded DNA helix, and, using DNA
polymerase and its associated proteins, copy or replicate the master template itself so the cycle can
Transcription
is the process by which the information contained in a section of DNA is transferred to a newly
assembled piece of messenger RNA (mRNA). It is facilitated by RNA polymerase and transcription
factors. In eukaryote cells the primary transcript (pre-mRNA) is often processed further via
alternative splicing. In this process, blocks of mRNA are cut out and rearranged, to produce different
Translation
Eventually, this mature mRNA finds its way to a ribosome, where it is translated. In prokaryotic cells,
which have no nuclear compartment, the process of transcription and translation may be linked
together. In eukaryotic cells, the site of transcription (the cell nucleus) is usually separated from the
site of translation (the cytoplasm), so the mRNA must be transported out of the nucleus into the
cytoplasm, where it can be bound by ribosomes. The mRNA is read by the ribosome as triplet
codons, usually beginning with an AUG, or initiator methionine codon downstream of the ribosome
binding site. Complexes of initiation factors and elongation factors bring aminoacylated transfer
RNAs (tRNAs) into the ribosome-mRNA complex, matching the codon in the mRNA to the anti-codon
in the tRNA, thereby adding the correct amino acid in the sequence encoding the gene. As the
amino acids are linked into the growing peptide chain, they begin folding into the correct
conformation. This folding continues until the nascent polypeptide chains are released from the
ribosome as a mature protein. In some cases the new polypeptide chain requires additional
processing to make a mature protein. The correct folding process is quite complex and may require
other proteins, called chaperone proteins. Occasionally, proteins themselves can be further spliced;
Reverse transcription
Reverse transcription is the transfer of information from RNA to DNA (the reverse of normal
transcription). This is known to occur in the case of retroviruses, such as HIV, as well as in
RNA replication
RNA replication is the copying of one RNA to another. Many viruses replicate this way. The enzymes
that copy RNA to new RNA, called RNA-dependent RNA polymerases, are also found in many
Direct translation from DNA to protein has been demonstrated in a cell-free system (i.e. in a test
tube), using extracts from E. coli that contained ribosomes, but not intact cells. These cell fragments
could express proteins from foreign DNA templates, and neomycin was found to enhance this effect.
[4][5]
Methylation
Variation in methylation states of DNA can alter gene expression levels significantly. Methylation
variation usually occurs through the action of DNA methylases. When the change is heritable, it is
considered epigenetic. When the change in information status is not heritable, it would be a somatic
epitype. The effective information content has been changed by means of the actions of a protein or
Promoter Sequence
a promoter is a region of DNA that facilitates the transcription of a particular gene. Promoters are
typically located near the genes they regulate, on the same strand and upstream (towards the 5'
Overview
In order for the transcription to take place, the enzyme that synthesizes RNA, known as RNA
polymerase, must attach to the DNA near a gene. Promoters contain specific DNA sequences and
response elements which provide a secure initial binding site for RNA polymerase and for proteins
called transcription factors that recruit RNA polymerase. These transcription factors have specific
activator or repressor sequences of corresponding nucleotides that attach to specific promoters and
In bacteria
the promoter is recognized by RNA polymerase and an associated sigma factor, which in turn are
often brought to the promoter DNA by an activator protein binding to its own DNA binding site
nearby.
In eukaryotes
the process is more complicated, and at least seven different factors are necessary for the
Promoters represent critical elements that can work in concert with other regulatory regions
gene.
As promoters are typically immediately adjacent to the gene in question, positions in the promoter
are designated relative to the transcriptional start site, where transcription of RNA begins for a
particular gene (i.e., positions upstream are negative numbers counting back from -1, for example
Promoter elements
* Core promoter - the minimal portion of the promoter required to properly initiate transcription
+ RNA polymerase II: transcribes genes encoding messenger RNA and certain small
nuclear RNAs
+ RNA polymerase III: transcribes genes encoding tRNAs and other small RNAs
* Proximal promoter - the proximal sequence upstream of the gene that tends to contain
* Distal promoter - the distal sequence upstream of the gene that may contain additional
regulatory elements, often with a weaker influence than the proximal promoter
o Anything further upstream (but not an enhancer or other regulatory region whose influence
is positional/orientation independent)
Genes hold the information and help to transfer from one generation to the other. These genes
contain DNA. The DNA transcripts to RNA and then to proteins. This process is known as “Gene
Expression” .
‘Operon’ is a ‘cluster of genes’ that is been operated by a single promoter. An operon is a unit of
genetic material that functions in a co-ordinated manner by the help of an operator, a promoter and
structural genes that are transcribed together. The operons are mostly seen in prokaryotes like
E.coli. A good example is Lactose operon, which helps in utilization of lactose accordingly.
Operator: A specific region of the DNA at the initial end of a gene, where the repressor protein
Promoter: The region of an operon that acts as the initial binding site for RNA polymerase.
Structural genes: A gene that determines the amino acid sequence of a protein
types of operon
Inducible Operon
This is a type of operon which is switched on when a chemical, called inducer, is present. The
Repressible Operon
Another type of operon system is the repressible operon which is regulated by a chemical substance
called co-repressor. It is almost always the end product of a metabolic reaction. The operon is
Summary
* Protein synthesis is a controlled process in which a given protein is synthesised in the cell only
when it is necessary.
* When a particular protein is to be synthesised the specific gene has to express and initiate
transcription.
* The mechanism that stimulates the expression of certain genes and inhibits the others is called
gene regulation.
* The mechanism of gene regulation has been extensively studied in bacterial cells.
* In 1961 two scientists Jacob and Monad proposed the operon concept to explain the mechanism
of gene regulation.
* Inducible operon system consists of structural genes (cistrons), operator gene can either switch
on or switch off the structural genes by allowing or not allowing RNA polymerase molecules found
* The role of the operator gene is decided by a repressor protein synthesised by the regulate
gene.
* The repressor protein binds with the operate gene, RNA polymerase cannot be allowed and
* The repressor protein is kept in an active state by the inducer which is usually the substrate
molecule.
* The repressor is here activated by a chemical substance called co-repressor, which is usually the
end product.
* The genes that code for enzymes of a given metabolic pathway may be even found on different
chromosomes.
* Some genes in eukaryotic genes are always in a state of expression since the products that they
code are constantly required for the survival of the cell. Such genes are called constitutive genes or
housekeeping genes.