DNA pictured for the first time by scientists. They captured the structure that encodes the genetic instructions of all living organisms. Image credit: Enzo di Fabrizio/University of Genoa
DNA is pictured by a team of researchers from the University of Genoa, Italy, lead by Enzo di Fabrizio. They developed a new technique to capture the double helix of DNA using a scanning electron microscope.
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) molecules are informational molecules encoding the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and many viruses. Along with RNA and proteins, DNA is one of the three major macromolecules that are essential for all known forms of life. Genetic information is encoded as a sequence of nucleotides (guanine, adenine, thymine, and cytosine) recorded using the letters G, A, T, and C. Most DNA molecules are double-stranded helices, consisting of two long polymers of simple units called nucleotides, molecules with backbones made of alternating sugars (deoxyribose) and phosphate groups, with the nucleobases (G, A, T, C) attached to the sugars. DNA is well-suited for biological information storage, since the DNA backbone is resistant to cleavage and the double-stranded structure provides the molecule with a built-in duplicate of the encoded information.