Introductory Microbiology

Microbial Genetics – Basic Concepts

 
• Genetics is the study of what genes are, how they carry information, how their information is expressed, and how they are replicated and passed to subsequent generations or other organisms.
• Deoxy-ribose nucleic acid (DNA) in cells exists as a double stranded helix; the two strands are held together by hydrogen bonds between specific nitrogenous base pairs; Adenine-Thiamine (A-T) and cytosine guanine (C-G).
• A gene is a segment of DNA, a sequence of nucleotides that code for a functional product, usually a protein. When a gene is expressed, DNA is transcribed to produce ribose nucleic acid (RNA); mRNA is then translated into proteins. This is also referred as central Dogma of life. The DNA in a cell is replicated before the cell divides. so each daughter cell receives the same genetic information.