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Ch. 3 Cells: The Living Units
Marieb - Human Anatomy & Physiology 7th Edition
Marieb, Hoehn7th EditionHuman Anatomy & PhysiologyISBN: 9780805359091Not the one you use?Change textbook
Chapter 3, Problem 13

If DNA has a sequence of AAA, then a segment of mRNA synthesized on it will have a sequence of:
a. TTT
b. UUU
c. GGG
d. CCC

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1
Understand that during transcription, mRNA is synthesized using the DNA template strand by complementary base pairing, where adenine (A) in DNA pairs with uracil (U) in RNA, thymine (T) pairs with adenine (A), cytosine (C) pairs with guanine (G), and guanine (G) pairs with cytosine (C).
Identify the given DNA sequence: AAA. This means the DNA template strand has three adenine bases in a row.
Apply the base pairing rules to find the complementary mRNA sequence: each adenine (A) in DNA pairs with uracil (U) in mRNA.
Write the mRNA sequence by replacing each A in the DNA with U in the mRNA, resulting in UUU.
Compare the mRNA sequence to the answer choices and select the one that matches the sequence UUU.

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Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

DNA to mRNA Transcription

Transcription is the process where an mRNA strand is synthesized from a DNA template. During this process, RNA polymerase reads the DNA sequence and creates a complementary RNA strand, replacing thymine (T) with uracil (U) in RNA.
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Base Pairing Rules in Transcription

In transcription, adenine (A) in DNA pairs with uracil (U) in mRNA, thymine (T) pairs with adenine (A), cytosine (C) pairs with guanine (G), and guanine (G) pairs with cytosine (C). This ensures the mRNA sequence is complementary to the DNA template.
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Overview of Transcription

Role of Uracil in RNA

RNA contains uracil (U) instead of thymine (T), which is found in DNA. This difference is crucial because during transcription, uracil pairs with adenine, allowing mRNA to carry the genetic code from DNA to the ribosome for protein synthesis.
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