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WHAT IS YOUR DNA ALIAS?
There are four nucleotide base molecules in DNA: Adenine, Cytosine, Guanine and Thymine. Three nucleotide
bases together in a sequence on a DNA strand are called a ‘codon’. Because there are so many possible base
sequences (i.e., codons), geneticists have developed a short-hand using our 26 letter alphabet.
Remember that 3 bases together define a specific amino acid. And two or more amino acids make a protein.
And proteins are involved in all cell processes (what a cell does). So these simple little nucleotide base
molecules arranged in specific order code for life! (of course there are about 3 million nucleotide bases arranged
in sequence along the 6 ft of DNA tucked into the nucleus of every cell…).
There are 20 known amino acids and 26 letters in our alphabet, so a few letters define a base sequence but not
an amino acid (and there are some possible combinations of 3 bases that are not listed, but that’s another story).
Using this short-hand to represent amino acids in a protein is a way of describing or ‘spelling’ this part of a
protein. Written in shorthand, the code is called the DNA Alias, each letter in the DNA Alias actually represents
a group of three nucleotide bases, or a ‘codon’.
On the back of this paper and using this table, you will complete these 5 steps:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
write your first and last name
make your DNA alias
construct your complimentary DNA alias (the other strand of the helix)
add a mutation to your DNA alias
decode your mutated DNA alias to unveil your mutant name
 You’ll use your DNA alias and complimentary DNA alias to construct your DNA bead bracelet.
 You’ll use your mutated DNA alias to compose your genetic mutant for Mutation Nation.
Alias Letter
Amino Acid
Codon
Bases
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Alanine
GCT
GCA
TGC
GAT
GAG
TTT
GGG
CAT
ATA
ATC
AAG
CTC
ATG
GAC
GAT
CCC
GAG
CGT
TCA
ACT
ACG
GTC
TGG
GTA
TAC
TAT
A - adenine
C - cytosine
G - guanine
T - thymine
Cysteine
Aspartic acid
Glutamic acid
Phenylalanine
Glycine
Histidine
Isoleucine
Lysine
Leucine
Methionine
Asparagine
Proline
Glutamine
Arginine
Serine
Threonine
Valine
Tryptophan
Tyrosine
Step 1: Write each letter of your first and last name:
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Step 2: Write your name in DNA using the three-letter codons assigned to each individual letter of your name:
This makes one of the 2 sides of the DNA ladder or helix.
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Step 3: Now write the complimentary DNA strand (i.e., the other side of the DNA ladder). Since Guanine
pairs with Cytosine and Thymine pairs with Adenine, just substitute G for C, C for G, A for T, and T
for A from your DNA alias in Step 2.
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Step 4: Now lets insert a mutation. Using your DNA alias (step 2) (not the compliment, step 3), remove the 1st
base from the first codon and move all bases left to fill in the missing base. For example, Joe ‘s DNA
alias (ATC GAT GAG) becomes _TC GAT GAG which after shifting base letters left becomes TCG
ATG AG_. Then complete the last base sequence by inserting the first base letter you removed into the
last missing base (TCG ATG AG_ becomes TCG ATG AGA).
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Step 5: Let’s decode your mutated DNA alias. This will be your new mutant name! Using the table, find the
letter that corresponds to each codon or three-base sequence above. If you can’t find the three baseletters in the right order from the table, find the three base-letters out of order (i.e., substitute TCG with
TGC corresponding to the letter C in the alphabet). There may also be some new base sequences that
are not found on the table (e.g., GGC is not on the table) and therefore do not have a corresponding
letter from the alphabet). In these cases, you can leave it blank or you will have to choose a letter of
your liking…). In our example, mutant Joe’s new name from his mutated DNA alias (TCG ATG AGA)
becomes Cmk. Just a single mutation can make a big change!
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