Re: Communal stirring stick

Jeremy Tue Apr 15, 2008 12:56 pm

well, DNA surely isnt infinite...but I dont know why they had the mirrors there. possibly to portray that the individual segments go on for quite a ways (assuming the DNA is stretched out, usually it is 'supercoiled', like when you take an old fashioned telephone cord and keep twisting it around and around)

Divya Jyoti Tue Apr 15, 2008 11:54 pm

that makes MUCH more sense.. but then in a cell can one actually point out say like "ok this is where one end starts and the other end is here"?

Jeremy Wed Apr 16, 2008 12:47 am

Divya Jyoti wrote:that makes MUCH more sense.. but then in a cell can one actually point out say like "ok this is where one end starts and the other end is here"?

well, not with a gene, not even close. basically its like this. there are thousands of genes, broken up into different 'chromosomes'. DNA comes in 4 forms, when it is all stretched out, genes are end to end in a straight line, that is 'primary'. Then they sort of...twist over themselves once, that is 'secondary', they twist up again, 'tertiary', then they twist one more time 'quaternary' (the act of going through these four coils or twists is called "super coiling"), and then they are in the chromosome form, you can see chromosomes inside a nucleus. They would be way too big to be all stretched out all the time, and they would be vulnerable to breaking. They supercoil for most of their time in the cell, but have to stretch out when it is time for mitosis or meiosis (where they replicate).

hope that was clear

Divya Jyoti Wed Apr 16, 2008 3:54 am

yeah thanks man..

Jen Wed Apr 16, 2008 12:42 pm

My brain died, each time.
Wow.

SO. Dirty Stirring Sticks.

Divya Jyoti Wed Apr 16, 2008 1:34 pm

hehe mine woke up from biology dread and forget land!

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