New Approach to Assembling Nucleic Acid Dendrons on a Solid Phase

The pentose sugar in DNA is deoxyribose, while in RNA the pentose sugar is ribose. The difference between the sugars is the presence of the hydroxyl group on the ribose's second carbon and a hydrogen on the deoxyribose's second carbon. The phosphate residue attaches to the hydroxyl group of the 5′ carbon of one sugar and the hydroxyl group of the 3′ carbon of the sugar of the next nucleotide, which forms  a 5′ to 3′ phosphodiester linkage.
DNA Structure
DNA...

Overview

DNA sequencing is a fundamental technique that is routinely used in the biological sciences. This method can be applied to a range of questions at different scales - from the sequencing of a cloned DNA fragment or the study of a mutation in a gene up to whole-genome sequencing. However, despite the widespread use of sequencing today, it was not until 1977 that Fredrick Sanger and his collaborators developed the chain-termination method to decode DNA sequences. It relies on the separation of a...

Nucleic acids are the most important macromolecules for the continuity of life. They carry the cell's genetic blueprint and carry instructions for its functioning.
DNA and RNA
The two main types of nucleic acids are deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). DNA is the genetic material in all living organisms, ranging from single-celled bacteria to multicellular mammals. It is in the nucleus of eukaryotes and in the organelles, chloroplasts, and mitochondria. In prokaryotes,...

Nucleic acids are the most important macromolecules for the continuity of life. They carry the cell's genetic blueprint and carry instructions for its functioning.
DNA and RNA
The two main types of nucleic acids are deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). DNA is the genetic material in all living organisms, ranging from single-celled bacteria to multicellular mammals. It is in the nucleus of eukaryotes and in the organelles, chloroplasts, and mitochondria. In prokaryotes,...

In the same year as the discovery of the Sanger sequencing method, another group of scientists, Allan Maxam and Walter Gilbert, demonstrated their chemical-cleavage method for DNA sequencing. The Maxam-Gilbert method relies on using different chemicals that can cleave the DNA sequence at specific sites, the separation of resulting DNA fragments of variable size using electrophoresis, and deciphering the DNA sequence from the resulting gel bands.
Challenges of the Maxam-Gilbert Method
The...