Download Unit 6 Vocab Log – DNA Structure Term: DNA Definition: The

Unit 6 Vocab Log – DNA Structure
Term:
Definition:
DNA
The hereditary material in humans and almost all other
organisms; found in the cell’s nucleus.
Genes
Chromosomes
The basic physical and functional unit of heredity; a
small segment of DNA.
Thread-like structures; each chromosome is made up
of DNA tightly coiled many times around proteins that
support its structure.
Double Helix
The structure formed by double-stranded molecules
of nucleic acids such as DNA.
Nucleotides
Building blocks of nucleic acids, nucleotides are
subunits of DNA composed of a nitrogenous base, a
five-carbon sugar, and at least one phosphate group.
Nitrogen Bases
One of the nitrogen-containing purines (adenine or
guanine) or pyrimidines (cytosine, thymine) found in
DNA. The bases may be attached to a sugar and
phosphate to make a nucleotide.
Codon
A codon is a sequence of three DNA nucleotides that
corresponds with a specific amino acid or stop signal
during protein synthesis.
Illustration: