Once a DNA fragment has been isolated or produced (see the last article), the next step is often to produce many copies of it. One common way to do this is to use the polymerase chain reaction, which is a fairly simple process that can be automated. In this article we will look in detail... Continue Reading →
We've already looked at the monomers that make up a protein: amino acids. But fully functioning 3D proteins are much more complex in structure than a simple polypeptide chain. Today we will look at the different levels of structure in proteins and some specific examples. Levels of protein structure So let's start with a quick... Continue Reading →
Last week we looked at glucose and disaccharides, which are simple carbohydrates. However, many carbohydrate molecules are made up of long chains of monosaccharides joined together to form polysaccharides. Today we will look at polysaccharides made from glucose. We saw in the last article that to form the disaccharide maltose, two glucose molecules are joined... Continue Reading →
Water is extremely important to living organisms. Not only is it needed internally, but also externally as part of the environment - some organisms live in it. It is also a reactant in photosynthesis, so contributes to the oxygen in the atmosphere. In short, water is essential for life as we know it. Structure of... Continue Reading →
