RNA is a nucleic acid found in all life forms, with important functions such as regulating gene expression and assisting in copying genes. It has a backbone of phosphate and ribose groups with four bases attached. RNA plays a role in protein synthesis, duplication of genetic material, gene expression, and gene regulation. It comes in different types such as rRNA, tRNA, and mRNA. DNA contains the blueprints for making RNA, and some viruses can translate RNA into DNA.
Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a chain of nucleotides found in the cells of all life. This chain has a number of important functions for living organisms, ranging from regulating gene expression to assisting in copying genes. Severo Ochoa, Robert Holley, and Carl Woese have all played pivotal roles in the discovery of RNA and understanding how it works, and more research is constantly being done.
Many people are familiar with deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), a nucleic acid that is often referred to as the “building blocks of life” because it contains the genetic material for its parent organism. RNA is equally important, although less well known, because it plays a vital role in helping DNA copy and express genes and transport genetic material around the cell. RNA also has a number of equally important independent functions.
RNA strands have a backbone made up of phosphate and ribose groups, to which four bases can attach. The four bases are adenine, cytosine, guanine and uracil. Unlike DNA, RNA is single-stranded, with strands that bend to pack into the confined space of the cell. Many viruses rely on RNA to carry their genetic material, using it to hijack the DNA of infected cells in order to force those cells to do what the virus wants them to do.
This nucleic acid plays a role in protein synthesis, duplication of genetic material, gene expression, and gene regulation, among other things. There are several types, including ribosomal RNA (rRNA), transfer RNA (tRNA), and messenger RNA (mRNA), all of which have slightly different functions. Studies of these different types sometimes reveal interesting information. For example, rRNA undergoes very little modification over millennia, so it can be used to trace the relationships between different organisms, looking for common or divergent ancestors.
DNA plays a role in RNA synthesis. Essentially, DNA contains the blueprints for making RNA, so when the cell requires more, it gathers the necessary information into the DNA and gets to work. This process is known as ‘transcription’, referring to the fact that information is essentially copied from one molecule to another. Some very sneaky viruses, such as HIV, are capable of reverse transcription, which means they can translate RNA into DNA. Drugs that target such viruses often focus on the reverse transcription capacity of the virus, working to block it from performing this function.
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