Welcome Each of You to My Molecular Biology Class

Molecular Biology of the Gene, 5/E --- Watson et al. (2004) Part I: Chemistry and Genetics Part II: Maintenance of the Genome Part III: Expression of the Genome Part IV: Regulation Part V: Methods 3/01/05

Question: Why Watson et al. want to tell us some stories about genetics and chemistry before we start the molecular biology? 3/01/05

Chemistry and Genetics Ch 1: The Mendelian View of the World Ch 2: Nucleic Acids convey genetic information Ch 3: The importance of weak chemical interactions Ch 4: The importance of high-energy bonds Ch 5: Weak and strong bonds determine macromolecular structure 3/01/05

Chapter 1: The Mendelian View of the World To explain how the genetic traits are transferred from the parents to the offsprings Two + one person tell us one big story 3/01/05

Two important lessons to learn from Mendel’s discovery 1.The attitude to science: interested in discovering the wonders of the nature (laws, mechanisms) 2.The principle to conduct science: using simple models to understand the complicate or unknown story 3/01/05

Discussion Why Mendelianism and Darwinism conflicted initially, how the conflict was resolved? (P15-16) 3/01/05

Chapter 2: Nucleic Acids convey genetic information The stories/efforts led to the fundamental knowledge of life, which open a new era of modern biology 3/04/05

Ch 2 Nucleic Acids convey genetic information Avery’s Bombshell (1944): DNA can carry genetic specificity 3/04/05 The Double Helix (1953) The genetic information within DNA is conveyed by the sequence of its four nucleotide building blocks Establishing the direction of protein synthesis The Central Dogma (1956) The Era of Genomics (2000)

Avery’s Bombshell (1944): DNA can carry genetic specificity A story written for 26 years Thinking 1: what do you learn from the efforts of George W. Beadle and Edward Tatum (1940s), Frederick Griffith (1928), Osward T. Avery (1940s)

1928 by Frederick Griffith

1944 by Osward T. Avery

Thinking 2: Why Avery made more recognizable contribution to the field than did Griffith?

The Double Helix (1953) The foundation of molecular biology Francis H. Crick James D. Watson

Thinking 3: what led to the success of Watson and Crick?

The Central Dogma ( ) Setting the platform for molecular biology only takes 0.5 year or 3.5 years Exciting days of biologists DNA RNAProtein Replication Transcription Translation

The revised central dogma

Gene Expression

The purpose of Molecular Biology of the genes is to provide a firm foundation for understanding how DNA functions as the template for biological complexity. 3/04/05 Ch 2 Nucleic Acids convey genetic information Remember: this book is living in the age of the Central Dogma in understanding life, post-genomic era will certainly tell us a more exciting and different story of life

Part 2, Maintenance of the Genome, describes the structure of the genetic material and its faithful duplication. Part 3, Expression of the Genome, shows how the genetic instructions contained in DNA is converted into proteins Part 4, Regulation, describes strategies for differential gene activity that are used to generate complexity within the organisms and diversity among organisms 3/04/05

Part 5, Methods, describes various laboratory techniques, bioinformatics approaches, and model systems that are commonly used to investigate biological problem. 3/04/05

Chapter 3: The importance of weak chemical interactions Weak bonds indeed are vital for life, partly because they can form and break under the physiological conditions present with cells. (Dynamics is important) 3/04/05

Pages are important to read 3/04/05 List the reasons making weak bond vital for life

Chapter 5: Weak and strong bonds determine macromolecular structure 3/04/05

Ch 5: Weak and strong bonds determine macromolecular structure  Higher-order structures are determined by intra- and intermolecular interactions  The specific conformation of a protein results from its pattern of hydrogen bonds  Most proteins are modular, containing two or three domains  Weak bonds correctly position proteins along DNA and RNA molecules  Allostery: Regulation of a protein’s function by changing its shape 3/04/05