Almost everyone has heard of DNA, but still very few people can tell you what DNA is. DNA is an abbreviation for Deoxyribonucleic Acid. A DNA molecule consists of a twisted spiral or the scientific term double helix. DNA is a chemical type substance with a complex structure. The chemical make up of genes is DNA. It is found inside genes, inside chromosomes, inside the nucleus of a cell. Each chromosome is made up of a tightly coiled strand, a molecule of DNA. Only 99% of DNA is found inside the chromosomes. Both of the egg and sperm hold DNA. Each child receives 23 chromosomes from its mother and 23 from its father. You get a total of 46 chromosomes which reproduce rapidly. Every cell except for the red blood cell carries a blueprint of DNA. A molecule of DNA holds coded plans for thousands of proteins, the length of the strand is called a gene.
Each strand of DNA is formed by units of phosphate (P) joined with units of deoxyribose (D).These units alternate to make the bases of a strand of DNA.
P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P-D-P
The two side strands are connected by the two bases. The four possible pairs are A,T or T,A G,C or C,G.
In RNA the Thymine (T) is replaced with Uracil (U) when it is attached to Adenine (A). The way strands of DNA separate and rejoin illustrates the types of chemical bonds that hold DNA together. The DNA strand becomes protein by this process. First, the DNA strand splits and is meet with another half a strand. That is RNA, which is then transferred to the cytoplasm, which makes proteins. Ameno acids are the building blocks of proteins. The 20 different amino acids from the DNA code makes protein. There are about 20 amino acids that establish the character of proteins. Three of those amino acids are phenylalanine, valine and isolencine.