Replication | genetics | Britannica (original) (raw)
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major reference
In heredity: DNA replication The Watson-Crick model of the structure of DNA suggested at least three different ways that DNA might self-replicate. The experiments of Matthew Meselson and Franklin Stahl on the bacterium Escherichia coli in 1958 suggested that DNA replicates semiconservatively. Meselson and Read More
cell structures and functions
In cell: The molecules of cells …for cell growth and the replication of genetic material. Once the genetic material has been copied and there are sufficient molecules to support cell division, the cell divides to create two daughter cells. Through many such cycles of cell growth and division, each parent cell can give rise to millions… Read More
Crick’s research
In Francis Crick This copying process explained replication of the gene and, eventually, the chromosome, known to occur in dividing cells. Their model also indicated that the sequence of bases along the DNA molecule spells some kind of code “read” by a cellular mechanism that translates it into the specific proteins responsible… Read More
DNA
In DNA DNA replicates by separating into two single strands, each of which serves as a template for a new strand. The new strands are copied by the same principle of hydrogen-bond pairing between bases that exists in the double helix. Two new double-stranded molecules of DNA are… Read More
life origins and processes
In life: Genetic imperfections, called mutations, in gene replication. A mutation alters the instructions for one or more particular characteristics. The mutation also breeds true, in the sense that its capability for determining a given characteristic of the organism remains unimpaired for generations until the mutated gene is itself mutated. Some mutations, when… Read More
In life: Genetic …emphasis on the importance of replication. Replication refers to the capacity of molecules such as deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) to precisely copy themselves, whereas reproduction refers to the increase in number of organisms by acts that make a new individual from its parent or parents. In any organism, enormous biological effort… Read More
In life: Thermodynamic …processes in the absence of replication lead to the sorts of complexity that characterize biological systems; replication, however, may be interpreted as an especially efficient thermodynamic means of gradient breakdown—a kind of special, slow-burning “fire.” In any case, it is clear that much of the complexity of life on Earth… Read More
In life: DNA, RNA, and protein …a key role in the replication of the DNA molecule. Each helix makes an identical copy of the other from molecular building blocks in the cell. These nucleic acid replication events are mediated by enzymes called DNA polymerases. With the aid of enzymes, DNA can be produced in the laboratory. Read More
In life: Chemistry in common …origin of life, this complex replication and transcription apparatus could not have been in operation. A fundamental problem in the origin of life is the question of the origin and early evolution of the genetic code. Read More
nucleic acids
In nucleic acid: Replication DNA replication is a semiconservative process in which the two strands are separated and new complementary strands are generated independently, resulting in two exact copies of the original DNA molecule. Each copy thus contains one strand that is derived from the parent… Read More
reproduction level
In reproduction: Molecular replication The characteristics that an organism inherits are largely stored in cells as genetic information in very long molecules of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). In 1953 it was established that DNA molecules consist of two complementary strands, each of which can make copies of the other.… Read More
viruses
In antiviral drug: Viruses and host cells …basic steps in the viral replication cycle in order to inhibit the virus: (1) attachment and penetration of the virus into the host cell, (2) uncoating of virus (e.g., removal of the protein surface and release of the viral DNA or RNA), (3) synthesis of new viral components by the… Read More
In virus: The cycle of infection …the cycle of infection is replication (reproduction of the parental genome to make progeny genomes). The sixth step is the assembly of the newly replicated progeny genomes with structural proteins to make fully formed progeny virions. The seventh and last step is the release of progeny virions by lysis of… Read More
