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Four nitrogenous base pairs form the chemical alphabet of living organisms. The figure is taken from Nobel Prize, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

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DNA stores genetic instruction in a double helix structure

Four nitrogenous base pairs form the chemical alphabet of living organisms

Deoxyribonucleic acid consists of two long nucleotide strands coiled around a central axis in a right-handed double helix. The sequence of four chemical bases—adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine—encodes instructions for assembling all proteins needed by an organism. Complementary hydrogen bonding between base pairs enables faithful genetic replication during cell division.

Nucleosome model DNA quaternary structure — Glwright1 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · licence · source

Where this comes from

Nobel Prize

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Stretched DNA from a single cell measures about two metres longTightly packed chromosomes coil double-stranded DNA into tiny cell nuclei All human DNA combined would reach across the solar systemTrillions of cells containing two metres of DNA each span billions of kilometres CRISPR originated as a bacterial defense against viral infectionsBacteria store fragments of viral DNA to recognise and slice invading viruses Epigenetics alters gene activity without changing DNA codeChemical tags on DNA control whether specific genes are switched on or off Telomeres cap chromosome ends and shorten as cells divideRepetitive nucleotide sequences protect genetic data during cell replication cycles The human genome contains over three billion base pairsGenetic code packaged across 23 chromosome pairs directs human biological development

Tags: biology, dna, genetics

DNA stores genetic instruction in a double helix structure: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Four nitrogenous base pairs form the chemical alphabet of living organisms. The figure is taken from Nobel Prize, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a science fact?: Yes. It sits on the Science shelf, one of 1,090 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.