The translation of genetic information from the 4-letter alphabet ofpolynucleotides into the 20-letter alphabet of proteins is a complex process.The...
Computers have made us familiar with the concept of information as ameasurable quantity a million bytes (corresponding to about 200 pages oftext) on...
which this information is copied throughout the living world.
To understand the mechanisms that make life possible, one must understandthe structure of...
DNA molecules as a rule are very large, containing the specifications forthousands of proteins. Segments of the entire DNA sequence are thereforetranscribed...
To carry out its information-storage function, DNA must do more than copyitself before each cell division by the mechanism just described. It must alsoexpress...
Protein molecules, like DNA and RNA molecules, are long unbranchedpolymer chains, formed by the stringing together of monomeric buildingblocks drawn...
Because all cells make DNA, RNA, and protein, and these macromolecules arecomposed of the same set of subunits in every case, all cells have to containand...
There is, however, at least one other feature of cells that is universal: each oneis bounded by a membrane the plasma membrane. This container acts as...
The basic principles of biological information transfer are simple enough, buthow complex are real living cells? In particular, what are the minimumrequirements?...