Biochemistry: Chapter 8 Exam
1. What is the primary function of nucleic acids?
A) Energy storage
B) Storage and transmission of genetic information
C) Catalysis of biochemical reactions
D) Structural support
2. Who identified DNA in 1869?
A) Richard Altman
B) Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty
C) Friedrich Miescher
D) Watson and Crick
3. What term did Richard Altman use to rename nuclein?
A) Nucleic acid
B) Nucleosome
C) Ribosomal RNA
D) Deoxyribonucleic acid
4. What is the "transforming principle" discovered by Griffith in 1928?
A) DNA can be synthesized in vitro
B) Genetic information can be passed between bacteria
C) DNA is a double helix
D) Nucleic acids are essential for protein synthesis
5. What is the significance of the findings by Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty in 1944?
A) They identified the structure of DNA
B) They demonstrated that the transforming material was pure DNA
C) They discovered ribozymes
D) They proved that proteins are genetic material
6. What structural form does DNA take according to Watson and Crick?
A) Linear strand
B) Triple helix
C) Double helix
D) Circular molecule
7. Nucleotides are composed of:
A) Base, sugar, and multiple phosphates
B) Sugar, phosphate, and a nucleoside
C) Base, sugar, and phosphate
D) Phosphate, lipid, and carbohydrate
8. What type of bond links nucleotides in a DNA chain?
A) Hydrogen bond
B) Ionic bond
C) Peptide bond
D) Phosphodiester bond
9. What is the structure of nitrogenous bases in nucleotides?
A) Linear chain
B) Ring structure
C) Spiral structure
D) Open chain
10. What type of sugar is found in RNA?
A) Ribose
B) Deoxyribose
C) Glucose
D) Fructose
11. What is the primary role of ribozymes?
A) Storage of genetic information
B) Catalyzing biochemical reactions
C) Transmitting genetic information
D) Protein synthesis
12. The X-ray diffraction picture of DNA fibers contributed to the discovery of DNA’s
structure by which scientists?
A) Watson and Crick
B) Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins
C) Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty
D) Friedrich Miescher
13. In DNA, what type of interaction contributes to the stability of the double helix?
A) Ionic interactions
B) Covalent bonds
C) Van der Waals interactions
D) Hydrogen bonds
14. What is the distance between two adjacent base pairs in DNA?
A) 2.5 Å
B) 3.4 Å
C) 5.0 Å
D) 10 Å
15. How are the two strands of DNA oriented in relation to each other?
A) Parallel
B) Antiparallel
C) Perpendicular
D) Random
16. What type of nitrogenous base pairs with adenine in DNA?
A) Cytosine
B) Thymine
C) Guanine
D) Uracil
17. What is the role of the sugar-phosphate backbone in DNA?
A) Provides structural stability
B) Encodes genetic information
C) Catalyzes biochemical reactions
D) Facilitates base pairing
18. Which nitrogenous base is not found in DNA?
A) Thymine
B) Cytosine
C) Uracil
D) Adenine
19. How many base pairs are in one complete turn of the DNA helix?
A) 5
B) 10
C) 15
D) 20
20. What is the conformation of the deoxyribose sugar in DNA?
A) Linear
B) Closed, 5C ring (furanose)
C) Open chain
D) Circular
21. What are the two types of grooves formed in the Watson-Crick model of DNA?
A) Major and minor grooves
B) Alpha and beta grooves
C) Internal and external grooves
D) Right and left grooves
22. How many hydrogen bonds are present between guanine and cytosine pairs?
A) 1
B) 2
C) 3
D) 4
23. What is the typical base pairing rule in DNA according to Chargaff’s rules?
A) A = G; T = C
B) A = C; T = G
C) A = T; G = C
D) A + T = G + C
24. What is the primary structure of DNA predominantly found in cells?
A) A-DNA
B) Z-DNA
C) B-DNA
D) C-DNA
25. Which type of interactions primarily stabilize the DNA double helix?
A) Hydrogen bonding
B) Covalent bonding
C) Hydrophobic interactions
D) Ionic interactions
26. What does the term "hyperchromicity" refer to in the context of DNA?
A) Increased absorbance of UV light when DNA is denatured
B) Decreased absorbance of UV light in double-stranded DNA
C) A decrease in temperature during DNA renaturation
D) An increase in the number of hydrogen bonds
27. What structural feature allows for the formation of hairpin loops in DNA?
A) Palindromic sequences
B) Mirror repeats
C) Triple helices
D) Quadruplex structures
28. Which type of RNA is primarily responsible for carrying genetic information from DNA
to the ribosome?
A) rRNA
B) tRNA
C) mRNA
D) siRNA
29. What occurs first during the denaturation of DNA?
A) G-C rich regions melt
B) A-T rich regions melt
C) DNA renaturation
D) DNA forms hairpin structures
30. How many base pairs per turn does B-DNA typically have?
A) 10
B) 10.5
C) 11
D) 12
31. What type of base pairing is characteristic of guanosine tetraplex structures?
A) Watson-Crick base pairing
B) Hoogsteen base pairing
C) A-form base pairing
D) Z-form base pairing
32. Which of the following statements is true about DNA base composition?
A) It changes with age.
B) It varies among different tissues in the same species.
C) It is consistent across species.
D) It remains constant regardless of environmental changes.
33. Which type of RNA is involved in catalyzing biochemical reactions?
A) mRNA
B) tRNA
C) rRNA
D) Ribozymes
34. What is the role of stacking interactions in DNA stability?
A) They destabilize the double helix.
B) They provide covalent bonds.
C) They are primarily van der Waals forces that stabilize the double helix.
D) They prevent DNA from unwinding.
35. What is the consequence of extreme pH or high temperature on DNA?
A) It enhances hydrogen bonding.
B) It leads to cooperative unwinding of DNA strands.
C) It causes DNA to form triple helices.
D) It has no effect on DNA stability.
36. What type of structure does RNA-DNA hybrids and double-stranded RNA (ds RNA)
exhibit?
A) B-form structure
B) A-type structure
C) Z-type structure
D) C-type structure
37. What is a key feature of the sugar-phosphate backbone of nucleic acids?
A) It is hydrophobic.
B) It is composed of alternating phosphate and pentose residues.
C) It contains nitrogenous bases.
D) It has no polarity.
38. In the context of DNA, what does "cooperative unwinding" refer to?
A) The simultaneous melting of A-T and G-C rich regions
B) The gradual unwinding of double-stranded DNA
C) The preferential unwinding of G-C rich regions
D) The binding of proteins to stabilize the DNA
39. What can cause thymine dimers to form in DNA?
A) Hydrolysis
B) High temperatures
C) UV light exposure
D) Chemical interactions
40. What role do positive ions, such as Na+, play in stabilizing DNA?
A) They destabilize the structure.
B) They neutralize negative charge repulsion from phosphates.
C) They facilitate base pairing.
D) They promote hairpin formation.
ANSWER KEY
B) Storage and transmission of genetic information
C) Friedrich Miescher
A) Nucleic acid
B) Genetic information can be passed between bacteria
B) They demonstrated that the transforming material was pure DNA
C) Double helix
C) Base, sugar, and phosphate
D) Phosphodiester bond
B) Ring structure
A) Ribose
B) Catalyzing biochemical reactions
B) Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins
C) Van der Waals interactions
B) 3.4 Å
B) Antiparallel
B) Thymine
A) Provides structural stability
C) Uracil
B) 10
B) Closed, 5C ring (furanose)
A) Major and minor grooves
C) 3
C) A = T; G = C
C) B-DNA
C) Hydrophobic interactions
A) Increased absorbance of UV light when DNA is denatured
A) Palindromic sequences
C) mRNA
B) A-T rich regions melt
B) 10.5
B) Hoogsteen base pairing
D) It remains constant regardless of environmental changes
D) Ribozymes
C) They are primarily van der Waals forces that stabilize the double helix
B) It leads to cooperative unwinding of DNA strands
B) A-type structure
B) It is composed of alternating phosphate and pentose residues
A) The simultaneous melting of A-T and G-C rich regions
C) UV light exposure
B) They neutralize negative charge repulsion from phosphates
