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Chapter 11: Problem 19

(Integrates with Chapter \(10 .\) ) Erwin Chargaff did not have any DNA samples from thermoacidophilic bacteria such as those that thrive in the geothermal springs of Yellowstone National Park. (Such bacteria had not been isolated by 1951 when Chargaff reported his results.) If he had obtained such a sample, what do you think its relative \(G: C\) content might have been? Why?

Short Answer

Expert verified
Given the harsh living conditions (high temperature and acidity) of thermoacidophilic bacteria, it is expected that these organisms would have a higher relative \(G: C\) content in their DNA. This can be explained by the fact that Guanine-Cytosine pairs have three hydrogen bonds (as opposed to two in Adenine-Thymine pairs), providing greater stability to the DNA structure in extreme conditions.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding of DNA and Thermoacidophilic Bacteria

Firstly, it is important to understand what DNA and Thermoacidophilic bacteria are. DNA is a molecule that contains an organism's genetic code. Thermoacidophilic bacteria are an extreme type of bacterium that thrive in acidic and high temperature conditions. These bacteria have adapted to survive in such harsh conditions.
02

Understand Guanine and Cytosine Content in DNA

DNA of any organism is composed from a pair of four different nucleotide bases: adenine (A), thymine (T), guanine (G), and cytosine (C). Guanine (G) pairs with Cytosine (C) through three hydrogen bonds, which makes the bond stronger than the bond between adenine and thymine, which only has two hydrogen bonds. Therefore, it is usually observed that organisms living in higher temperatures have a higher \(G: C\) content as the three hydrogen bonds help DNA to resist denaturation at high temperatures.
03

Predicting the \(G: C\) Content in Thermoacidophilic Bacteria

Considering thermoacidophilic bacteria live in high-temperature conditions, it is likely to predict that their DNA would have a higher content of \(G: C\). This is because a higher \(G: C\) will deliver the stability needed for the DNA to withstand high temperatures without denaturing.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

X-ray diffraction studies indicate the existence of a novel doublestranded DNA helical conformation in which \(\Delta Z\) (the rise per base pair \()=0.32 \mathrm{nm}\) and \(P(\text { the pitch })=3.36 \mathrm{nm} .\) What are the other parameters of this novel helix: (a) the number of base pairs per turn, (b) \(\Delta \phi(\text { the mean rotation per base pair }),\) and (c) \(c(\) the true repeat)?

If \(80 \%\) of the base pairs in a duplex DNA molecule \((12.5 \mathrm{kbp})\) are in the B-conformation and \(20 \%\) are in the Z-conformation, what is the length of the molecule?

At \(0.2 M \mathrm{Na}^{+},\) the melting temperature of double-stranded DNA is given by the formula, \(T_{m}=69.3+0.41(\% \mathrm{G}+\mathrm{C}) .\) The DNAs from mice and rats have \((\mathrm{G}+\mathrm{C})\) contents of \(44 \%\) and \(40 \%,\) respectively. Calculate the \(T_{\mathrm{m}}\) s for these DNAs in \(0.2 \mathrm{M}\) NaCl. If samples of these DNAs were inadvertently mixed, how might they be separated from one another?

Think about the structure of DNA in its most common B-form double helical conformation and then list its most important structural features (deciding what is "important" from the biological role of DNA as the material of heredity . Arrange your answer with the most significant features first.

Online resources provide ready access to detailed information about the human genome. Go the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) genome database at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ Genomes/index.html and click on Homo sapiens in the Map Viewer genome annotation updates list to access the chromosome map and organization of the human genome. Next, go to http://www.ncbi .nlm.nih.gov/genome/. In the "Search For" box, type in the following diseases to discover the chromosomal location of the affected gene and, by exploring links highlighted by the search results, discover the name of the protein affected by the disease: a. Sickle cell anemia b. Tay Sachs disease c. Leprechaunism d. Hartnup disorder
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