Molecular testing lies in the genetic material of a cell. Understanding how the transmission of DNA to mRNA to the final product called proteins, is imperative to study genetic structure, evolution, and diseases. DNA can lead us to target a sequence unique to a disease.
A gene (the hereditary unit) holds all the DNA information for the codification of proteins or polypeptide chains. A gene occupies a fixed location or locus on the chromosome. Each gene codes for one protein. The genetic code translates a nucleotide sequence to an amino acid sequence using building blocks called nucleotides.
Each nucleotide consists of:
- 5-carbon base sugar (deoxyribose)
- Nitrogen Base
- Phosphate group
There are four types of nucleotides:
- Adenine
- Guanine
- Cytosine
- Thymine in DNA / Uracil in RNA
