Medical Microbiology BIOL 2161

Chapter Outline
Ch. 10 – Biochemistry of the Genome

I. 10.1 Using Microbiology to Discover the Secrets of Life

A. Discovery and Characterization of DNA.
1. Modern understanding of DNA has evolved from the discovery of nucleic acid to the development of the
double-helix model.
2. In the 1860s, Friedrich Miescher (1844–1895), a physician by profession, was the first person to isolate
phosphorus-rich chemicals from leukocytes (white blood cells) from the pus on used bandages from a
local surgical clinic. He named these chemicals (which would eventually be known as RNA and DNA)
“nuclein” because they were isolated from the nuclei of the cells.
3. His student Richard Altmann (1852–1900) subsequently termed it “nucleic acid” 20 years later when he
discovered the acidic nature of nuclein.
4. In the last two decades of the 19th century, German biochemist Albrecht Kossel (1853–1927) isolated
and characterized the five different nucleotide bases composing nucleic acid. These are adenine,
guanine, cytosine, thymine (in DNA), and uracil (in RNA). Kossell received the Nobel Prize in Physiology
or Medicine in 1910 for his work on nucleic acids and for his considerable work on proteins, including
the discovery of histidine.
B. Foundations of Genetics
1. Mendel’s Pea Plants
a. Johann Mendel’s model system was garden peas, which naturally self-fertilize (“true breeders”)
and grow to maturity in one season meaning multiple generations can be created in a short
time.
b. Mendel performed hybridization, which involved mating two self-fertilizing plants with different
characteristics. He took the pollen from one plant and used it to fertilize the stigma of a plant
with different characteristics.
c. The two plants that were cross fertilized were called the parents or the P generation. The
immediate offspring from the P generation is called the filial (son or daughter) or the F1
generation. Allowing the F1 generation to crossbreed produced a second generation called the F2
generation.
2. Chromosomal Theory of Inheritance identified chromosomes as the genetic material responsible for
Mendelian inheritance courtesy of scientists Walter Sutton and Theodor Boveri in 1902. This was
supported by the following observations:
a. During meiosis, homologous chromosome pairs migrate as discrete structures that are
independent of other chromosome pairs.
b. The sorting of chromosomes from each homologous pair into pre-gametes appears to be
random.
c. Each parent synthesizes gametes that contain only half of their chromosomal complement.
d. Even though male and female gametes (sperm and egg) differ in size and morphology, they have
the same number of chromosomes, suggesting equal genetic contributions from each parent.
e. The gametic chromosomes combine during fertilization to produce offspring with the same
chromosome number as their parents.
f. Other scientists such as Thomas Hunt Morgan and Barbara McClintock produced evidence in
support of this theory.
i. Thomas Hunt Morgan and his colleagues spent several years carrying out crosses with
the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. They performed meticulous microscopic
observations of fly chromosomes and correlated these observations with resulting fly
characteristics.
ii. Barbara McClintock developed chromosomal staining techniques to visualize and
differentiate between the different chromosomes of maize (corn)
3. Microbes and Viruses in Genetic Research
a. Microbes and viruses were (and still are) excellent model systems for the study of genetics
because, unlike peas, fruit flies, and corn, they are propagated more easily in the laboratory,
growing to high population densities in a small amount of space and in a short time. In addition,
because of their structural simplicity, microbes and viruses are more readily manipulated
genetically.
b. German scientist Joachim Hämmerling using the single-celled alga Acetabularia as a microbial
model, established that the genetic information in a eukaryotic cell is housed within the nucleus.
i. Acetabularia spp. are unusually large algal cells that grow asymmetrically, forming a
“foot” containing the nucleus, which is used for substrate attachment; a stalk; and an
umbrella-like cap—structures that can all be easily seen with the naked eye. In an early
set of experiments, Hämmerling removed either the cap or the foot of the cells and
observed whether new caps or feet were regenerated. He found that when the foot of
these cells was removed, new feet did not grow; however, when caps were removed
from the cells, new caps were regenerated. This suggested that the hereditary
information was located in the nucleus-containing foot of each cell.
ii. Hämmerling used two species of Acetabularia that have different cap morphologies, A.
crenulata and A. mediterranea. He cut the caps from both types of cells and then
grafted the stalk from an A. crenulata onto an A. mediterranea foot, and vice versa. Over
time, he observed that the grafted cell with the A. crenulata foot and A. mediterranea
stalk developed a cap with the A. crenulata morphology. Conversely, the grafted cell
with the A. mediterranea foot and A. crenulata stalk developed a cap with the A.
mediterranea morphology. He microscopically confirmed the presence of nuclei in the
feet of these cells and attributed the development of these cap morphologies to the
nucleus of each grafted cell. Thus, he showed experimentally that the nucleus was the
location of genetic material that dictated a cell’s properties.
c. Another microbial model, the red bread mold Neurospora crassa, was used by George Beadle
and Edward Tatum to demonstrate the relationship between genes and the proteins they
encode. N. crassa is a simpler organism and has the ability to grow on a minimal medium
because it contains enzymatic pathways that allow it to use the medium to produce its own
vitamins and amino acids.
i. Beadle and Tatum irradiated the mold with X-rays to induce changes to a sequence of
nucleic acids, called mutations.
ii. They mated the irradiated mold spores and attempted to grow them on both a
complete medium and a minimal medium.
iii. They looked for mutants that grew on a complete medium, supplemented with vitamins
and amino acids, but did not grow on the minimal medium lacking these supplements.
Such molds theoretically contained mutations in the genes that encoded biosynthetic
pathways.
iv. Upon finding such mutants, they systematically tested each to determine which vitamin
or amino acid it was unable to produce and published this work in 1941.
v. Subsequent work by Beadle, Tatum, and colleagues showed that they could isolate
different classes of mutants that required a particular supplement, like the amino acid
arginine. With some knowledge of the arginine biosynthesis pathway, they identified
three classes of arginine mutants by supplementing the minimal medium with
intermediates (citrulline or ornithine) in the pathway. The three mutants differed in
their abilities to grow in each of the media, which led the group of scientists to propose,
in 1945, that each type of mutant had a defect in a different gene in the arginine
biosynthesis pathway. This led to the so-called “one gene–one enzyme” hypothesis,
which suggested that each gene encodes one enzyme. Although there are some genes
that do not encode polypeptides (but rather encode for transfer RNAs [tRNAs] or
ribosomal RNAs [rRNAs], which we will discuss later), the one gene–one enzyme
hypothesis is true in many cases, especially in microbes. Beadle and Tatum’s discovery
of the link between genes and corresponding characteristics earned them the 1958
 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine and has since become the basis for modern
molecular genetics.
C. DNA as the Molecule Responsible for Heredity
1. Griffith’s Transformation Experiments. British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith was the first person to
show that hereditary information could be transferred from one cell to another “horizontally,” rather
than by descent. In 1928, he reported the first demonstration of bacterial transformation, a process in
which external DNA is taken up by a cell, thereby changing morphology and physiology.
a. Griffith worked with two strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae the bacterium that causes
pneumonia, rough (R) and smooth (S).
i. The R strain is non-pathogenic (does not cause disease) and is called rough because its
outer surface is a cell wall and lacks a capsule; as a result, the cell surface appears
uneven under the microscope.
ii. The S strain is pathogenic (disease-causing) and has a capsule outside its cell wall
causing it to appear smooth under the microscope.
b. Griffith performed 3 sets of experiments:
i. Griffith injected the live R strain into mice, and they survived.
ii. In another experiment, when he injected mice with the heat-killed S strain, they also
survived.
iii. In a third set of experiments, a mixture of live R strain and heat-killed S strain were
injected into mice, and—to his surprise—the mice died.
c. Upon isolating the live bacteria from the dead mouse, only the S strain of bacteria was
recovered.
d. When this isolated S strain was injected into fresh mice, the mice died. Griffith concluded that
something had passed from the heat-killed S strain into the live R strain and transformed it into
the pathogenic S strain, and he called this the “transforming principle” aka Griffith's
transformation experiments.
e. Scientists Oswald Avery, Colin MacLeod, and Maclyn McCarty (1944) were interested in
exploring this transforming principle further. They isolated the S strain from the dead mice and
isolated the proteins and nucleic acids, namely RNA and DNA, as these were possible candidates
for the molecule of heredity. They conducted a systematic elimination study using enzymes that
specifically degraded each component to transform the R strain. They found that when DNA was
degraded, the resulting mixture was no longer able to transform the bacteria, whereas all of the
other combinations were able to transform the bacteria. This led them to conclude that DNA
was the transforming principle.
2. Hershey and Chase’s Proof of DNA as Genetic Material. In 1952 Martha Chase and Alfred Hershey
provided confirmatory evidence that DNA was the genetic material and not proteins.
a. Hershey and Chase were studying a bacteriophage, which is a virus that infects bacteria.
i. Viruses typically have a simple structure: a protein coat, called the capsid, and a nucleic
acid core that contains the genetic material, either DNA or RNA.
ii. The bacteriophage infects the host bacterial cell by attaching to its surface, and then it
injects its nucleic acids inside the cell.
iii. The phage DNA makes multiple copies of itself using the host machinery, and eventually
the host cell bursts, releasing a large number of bacteriophages.
b. Hershey and Chase labeled one batch of phage with radioactive sulfur, 35S, to label the protein
coat. Another batch of phage were labeled with radioactive phosphorus, 32P. Because
phosphorous is found in DNA, but not protein, the DNA and not the protein would be tagged
with radioactive phosphorus. Each batch of phage was allowed to infect the cells separately.
c. After infection, the phage bacterial suspension was put in a blender, which caused the phage
coat to be detached from the host cell.
d. The phage and bacterial suspension was spun down in a centrifuge. The heavier bacterial cells
settled down and formed a pellet, whereas the lighter phage particles stayed in the supernatant.
e. In the tube that contained phage labeled with 35S, the supernatant contained the radioactively
labeled phage, whereas no radioactivity was detected in the pellet. In the tube that contained
 the phage labeled with 32P, the radioactivity was detected in the pellet that contained the
heavier bacterial cells, and no radioactivity was detected in the supernatant.
f. Hershey and Chase concluded that it was the phage DNA that was injected into the cell and
carried information to produce more phage particles, thus providing evidence once again that
DNA was the genetic material and not proteins

II. 10.2 Structure and Function of DNA. Like other macromolecules, nucleic acids are composed of monomers, called
nucleotides, which are polymerized to form large strands. Each nucleic acid strand contains certain nucleotides that
appear in a certain order within the strand, called its base sequence. The base sequence of deoxyribonucleic acid
(DNA) is responsible for carrying and retaining the hereditary information in a cell.
A. DNA Nucleotides. DNA has a simple design, it is made up of nucleotides each containing: a deoxyribose, a
phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base
1. There are four types of nitrogenous bases in DNA:
a. Adenine (A) and Guanine (G) are double ringed molecules known as purines.
b. Cytosine (C) and Thymine (T) are smaller single ringed molecules known as pyrimidines.
2. DNA is a double-stranded molecule bound together by hydrogen bonds between a complementary
purine-pyrimidine binding
a. Adenine always binds with Thymine (A to T)
b. Guanine always binds to Cytosine (G to C)
3. The phosphate group of one nucleotide bonds covalently with the sugar molecule of the next nucleotide
and so on forming a long polymer of nucleotide monomers. This linkage or phosphodiester bond is
sometimes described as the “sugar-phosphate backbone” of the strand of DNA.
4. The purines have a double ring structure with a six-membered ring fused to a five-membered ring.
Pyrimidines are smaller in size; they have a single six-membered ring structure. The carbon atoms of the
five-carbon sugar (deoxyribose/DNA and ribose/RNA) are numbered 1', 2', 3', 4', and 5' (1' is read as
“one prime”). The phosphate residue is attached to the hydroxyl group of the 5' carbon of one sugar of
one nucleotide and the hydroxyl group of the 3' carbon of the sugar of the next nucleotide, thereby
forming a 5'-3' phosphodiester bond.
B. Discovering the Double Helix
1. Austrian biochemist Erwin Chargaff examined the content of DNA in different species and found that
the amounts of adenine, thymine, guanine, and cytosine were not found in equal quantities, and that it
varied from species to species, but not between individuals of the same species. He found that the
amount of adenine equals the amount of thymine, and the amount of cytosine equals the amount of
guanine, or A = T and G = C. This is also known as Chargaff’s rules. This finding proved immensely useful
when Watson and Crick were getting ready to propose their DNA double helix model.
2. In the 1950’s many scientists used a specialized technique called X-ray Crystallography (a method of
passing x-rays through a substance then a crystal and looking at the pattern that develops). Rosalind
Franklin (working in Maurice Wilkin’s lab) discovered the X-ray diffraction pattern of DNA, which helped
two English Scientist (Francis Crick and James Watson) determine the structure of DNA. In 1962, James
Watson, Francis Crick, and Maurice Wilkins were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine. Unfortunately,
by then Franklin had died, and Nobel prizes are not awarded posthumously.
C. DNA Structure.
1. Watson and Crick proposed that DNA is made up of two strands that are twisted around each other to
form a right-handed helix.
a. Complementary base pairing takes place between a purine and pyrimidine; (A pairs with T and
G pairs with C). Ten base pairs are present per turn of the helix.
b. The base pairs are stabilized by hydrogen bonds; adenine and thymine form two hydrogen
bonds and cytosine and guanine form three hydrogen bonds.
c. The two strands are anti-parallel in nature; that is, the 3' end of one strand faces the 5' end of
the other strand.
d. The diameter of the DNA double helix is 2 nm, and it is uniform throughout. Only the pairing
between a purine and pyrimidine can explain the uniform diameter. The twisting of the two
 strands around each other results in the formation of uniformly spaced major and minor
grooves.
2. In the laboratory, exposing the two DNA strands of the double helix to high temperatures or to certain
chemicals can break the hydrogen bonds between complementary bases, thus separating the strands
into two separate single strands of DNA (single-stranded DNA [ssDNA]). This process is called DNA
denaturation and is analogous to protein denaturation, as described in Proteins. The ssDNA strands can
also be put back together as double-stranded DNA (dsDNA), through reannealing or renaturing by
cooling or removing the chemical denaturants, allowing these hydrogen bonds to reform. The ability to
artificially manipulate DNA in this way is the basis for several important techniques in biotechnology.
Because of the additional hydrogen bonding between the C = G base pair, DNA with a high GC content is
more difficult to denature than DNA with a lower GC content.
D. DNA Function. DNA stores the information needed to build and control the cell. The transmission of this
information from mother to daughter cells is called vertical gene transfer and it occurs through the process of
DNA replication. DNA is replicated when a cell makes a duplicate copy of its DNA, then the cell divides, resulting
in the correct distribution of one DNA copy to each resulting cell. DNA can also be enzymatically degraded and
used as a source of nucleosides and nucleotides for the cell. Unlike other macromolecules, DNA does not serve a
structural role in cells.
E. Paving the Way for Women in Science and Health Professions
1. Historically, women have been underrepresented in the sciences and in medicine, and often their
pioneering contributions have gone relatively unnoticed. For example, although Rosalind Franklin
performed the X-ray diffraction studies demonstrating the double helical structure of DNA, it is Watson
and Crick who became famous for this discovery, building on her data. There still remains great
controversy over whether their acquisition of her data was appropriate and whether personality
conflicts and gender bias contributed to the delayed recognition of her significant contributions.
Similarly, Barbara McClintock did pioneering work in maize (corn) genetics from the 1930s through
1950s, discovering transposons (jumping genes), but she was not recognized until much later, receiving
a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1983.
2. Today, women still remain underrepresented in many fields of science and medicine. While more than
half of the undergraduate degrees in science are awarded to women, only 46% of doctoral degrees in
science are awarded to women. In academia, the number of women at each level of career
advancement continues to decrease, with women holding less than one-third of the positions of Ph.D.-
level scientists in tenure-track positions, and less than one-quarter of the full professorships at 4-year
colleges and universities. Even in the health professions, like nearly all other fields, women are often
underrepresented in many medical careers and earn significantly less than their male counterparts, as
shown in a 2013 study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association.
3. Why do such disparities continue to exist and how do we break these cycles?
III. 10.3 Structure and Function of RNA
A. RNA Structure.
1. RNA is single-stranded and functions in translating the code to build proteins. It is composed of
ribonucleotides that are linked by phosphodiester bonds. A ribonucleotide in the RNA chain contains
ribose (the pentose sugar), one of the four nitrogenous bases (A, U, G, and C), and a phosphate group
2. Differences between DNA and RNA:
a. Sugar group – DNA contains deoxyribose sugar while RNA contains ribose sugar.
b. Nitrogen bases – DNA contains a combination of A, C, G, and T while RNA contains a
combination of A, C, G, and U.
c. Number of nucleotides – DNA contains more than 45 million nucleotides while RNA contains no
more than 50,000 nucleotides.
d. Shape – DNA is a double-stranded helix while RNA is a single-stranded straight chain. DNA
strands are arranged anti-parallel.
e. Function – DNA stores genetic information that controls protein synthesis while RNA performs
protein synthesis.
B. Functions of RNA in Protein Synthesis.
 1. The three main types of RNA directly involved in protein synthesis are messenger RNA (mRNA),
ribosomal RNA (rRNA), and transfer RNA (tRNA).
a. messenger RNA (mRNA) is the message transcribed from DNA that will code for the protein at
the ribosome.
b. ribosomal RNA (rRNA) is found inside the nucleus and is used to build ribosomes which are then
used in protein synthesis. Ribosomes are approximately 60% rRNA and 40% protein by weight.
The rRNA ensures the proper alignment of the mRNA, tRNA, and the ribosomes; the rRNA of the
ribosome also has an enzymatic activity (peptidyl transferase) and catalyzes the formation of the
peptide bonds between two aligned amino acids during protein synthesis.
c. transfer RNA (tRNA) binds to the mRNA and ribosome at a specific codon. Each tRNA carries
one amino acid to build proteins. tRNA is one of the smallest, usually only 70–90 nucleotides
long.
2. Central Dogma: DNA encodes RNA, RNA encodes protein. DNA  mRNA  Protein
a. Transcription – production of mRNA from a DNA template. Transcription is relatively
straightforward, with one nucleotide being added to the mRNA strand for every nucleotide read
in the DNA template strand.
b. Translation – production of a protein from a mRNA template. Translation to protein is a bit
more complex because three mRNA nucleotides correspond to one amino acid in the
polypeptide sequence that is attached to a transfer RNA (tRNA).
c. The translation to protein is still systematic and colinear, such that nucleotides 1 to 3
correspond to amino acid 1, nucleotides 4 to 6 correspond to amino acid 2, and so on.
C. RNA as Hereditary Information. Although RNA does not serve as the hereditary information in most cells, RNA
does hold this function for many viruses that do not contain DNA. Thus, RNA clearly does have the additional
capacity to serve as genetic information. Although RNA is typically single stranded within cells, there is
significant diversity in viruses. Rhinoviruses, which cause the common cold; influenza viruses; and the Ebola
virus are single-stranded RNA viruses. Rotaviruses, which cause severe gastroenteritis in children and other
immunocompromised individuals, are examples of double-stranded RNA viruses. Because double-stranded RNA
is uncommon in eukaryotic cells, its presence serves as an indicator of viral infection.

IV. 10.4 Structure and Function of Cellular Genomes. all of an organism’s genetic material—collectively referred to as
its genome—is organized inside of the cell.
A. Genotype versus Phenotype. Segments of DNA molecules are called genes, and individual genes contain the
instructional code necessary for synthesizing various proteins, enzymes, or stable RNA molecules.
1. The full collection of genes that a cell contains within its genome is called its genotype. However, a cell
does not express all of its genes simultaneously. Instead, it turns on (expresses) or turns off certain
genes when necessary.
2. The set of genes being expressed at any given point in time determines the cell’s activities and its
observable characteristics, referred to as its phenotype.
3. Genes that are always expressed are known as constitutive genes; some constitutive genes are known as
housekeeping genes because they are necessary for the basic functions of the cell.
4. While the genotype of a cell remains constant, the phenotype may change in response to environmental
signals (e.g., changes in temperature or nutrient availability) that affect which nonconstitutive genes are
expressed.
a. For example, the oral bacterium Streptococcus mutans produces a sticky slime layer that allows
it to adhere to teeth, forming dental plaque; however, the genes that control the production of
the slime layer are only expressed in the presence of sucrose (table sugar). Thus, while the
genotype of S. mutans is constant, its phenotype changes depending on the presence and
absence of sugar in its environment.
b. Temperature can also regulate gene expression. For example, the gram-negative bacterium
Serratia marcescens, a pathogen frequently associated with hospital-acquired infections,
produces a red pigment at 28 °C but not at 37 °C, the normal internal temperature of the human
body
B. Organization of Genetic Material. The vast majority of an organism’s genome is organized into the cell’s
chromosomes, which are discrete DNA structures within cells that control cellular activity. Recall that while
eukaryotic chromosomes are housed in the membrane-bound nucleus, most prokaryotes contain a single,
circular chromosome that is found in an area of the cytoplasm called the nucleoid
1. Organization of Eukaryotic Chromosomes
a. Eukaryotic chromosomes are typically linear, and eukaryotic cells contain multiple distinct
chromosomes. Many eukaryotic cells contain two copies of each chromosome and, therefore,
are diploid.
b. The combined length of all of the 3 billion base pairs found in the DNA of the human genome
would measure approximately 2 meters if completely stretched out, and some eukaryotic
genomes are many times larger than the human genome. DNA supercoiling refers to the
process by which DNA is twisted to fit inside the cell.
c. Proteins known to be involved in supercoiling include topoisomerases; these enzymes help
maintain the structure of supercoiled chromosomes, preventing over winding of DNA during
certain cellular processes like DNA replication.
d. During DNA packaging, DNA-binding proteins called histones perform various levels of DNA
wrapping and attachment to scaffolding proteins. The combination of DNA with these attached
proteins is referred to as chromatin. In eukaryotes, the packaging of DNA by histones may be
influenced by environmental factors that affect the presence of methyl groups on certain
cytosine nucleotides of DNA. The influence of environmental factors on DNA packaging is called
epigenetics. Epigenetics is another mechanism for regulating gene expression without altering
the sequence of nucleotides. Epigenetic changes can be maintained through multiple rounds of
cell division and, therefore, can be heritable.
2. Organization of Prokaryotic Chromosomes.
a. Chromosomes in bacteria and archaea are usually circular, and a prokaryotic cell typically
contains only a single chromosome within the nucleoid. Because the chromosome contains only
one copy of each gene, prokaryotes are haploid.
b. As in eukaryotic cells, DNA supercoiling is necessary for the genome to fit within the prokaryotic
cell. The DNA in the bacterial chromosome is arranged in several supercoiled domains. As with
eukaryotes, topoisomerases are involved in supercoiling DNA. DNA gyrase is a type of
topoisomerase, found in bacteria and some archaea, that helps prevent the over winding of
DNA. (Some antibiotics kill bacteria by targeting DNA gyrase.)
c. In addition, histone-like proteins bind DNA and aid in DNA packaging.
d. Other proteins bind to the origin of replication, the location in the chromosome where DNA
replication initiates.
e. Because different regions of DNA are packaged differently, some regions of chromosomal DNA
are more accessible to enzymes and thus may be used more readily as templates for gene
expression. Interestingly, several bacteria, including Helicobacter pylori and Shigella flexneri,
have been shown to induce epigenetic changes in their hosts upon infection, leading to
chromatin remodeling that may cause long-term effects on host immunity.
C. Noncoding DNA.
1. In addition to genes, a genome also contains many regions of noncoding DNA that do not encode
proteins or stable RNA products. Noncoding DNA is commonly found in areas prior to the start of coding
sequences of genes as well as in intergenic regions (i.e., DNA sequences located between genes).
2. Prokaryotes appear to use their genomes very efficiently, with only an average of 12% of the genome
being taken up by noncoding sequences. In contrast, noncoding DNA can represent about 98% of the
genome in eukaryotes, as seen in humans, but the percentage of noncoding DNA varies between
species.
3. These noncoding DNA regions were once referred to as “junk DNA”; however, this terminology is no
longer widely accepted because scientists have since found roles for some of these regions, many of
which contribute to the regulation of transcription or translation through the production of small
noncoding RNA molecules, DNA packaging, and chromosomal stability. Although scientists may not fully
 understand the roles of all noncoding regions of DNA, it is generally believed that they do have purposes
within the cell.
D. Extrachromosomal DNA
1. Although most DNA is contained within a cell’s chromosomes, many cells have additional molecules of
DNA outside the chromosomes, called extrachromosomal DNA, that are also part of its genome.
2. The genomes of eukaryotic cells would also include the chromosomes from any organelles such as
mitochondria and/or chloroplasts that these cells maintain. The maintenance of circular chromosomes
in these organelles is a vestige of their prokaryotic origins and supports the endosymbiotic theory. In
some cases, genomes of certain DNA viruses can also be maintained independently in host cells during
latent viral infection. In these cases, these viruses are another form of extrachromosomal DNA. For
example, the human papillomavirus (HPV) may be maintained in infected cells in this way.
3. Besides chromosomes, some prokaryotes also have smaller loops of DNA called plasmids that may
contain one or a few genes not essential for normal growth. Bacteria can exchange these plasmids with
other bacteria in a process known as horizontal gene transfer (HGT). The exchange of genetic material
on plasmids sometimes provides microbes with new genes beneficial for growth and survival under
special conditions. In some cases, genes obtained from plasmids may have clinical implications, encoding
virulence factors that give a microbe the ability to cause disease or make a microbe resistant to certain
antibiotics. Plasmids are also used heavily in genetic engineering and biotechnology as a way to move
genes from one cell to another.
E. Viral Genomes exhibit significant diversity in structure. Some viruses have genomes that consist of DNA as their
genetic material. This DNA may be single stranded, as exemplified by human parvoviruses, or double stranded,
as seen in the herpesviruses and poxviruses. Additionally, although all cellular life uses DNA as its genetic
material, some viral genomes are made of either single-stranded or double-stranded RNA molecules, as we have
discussed. Viral genomes are typically smaller than most bacterial genomes, encoding only a few genes, because
they rely on their hosts to carry out many of the functions required for their replication.