Deoxyribonucleic acid plays a significant role in living organisms by carrying hereditary material that determines the characteristics of the organism. Cells of the organism contain similar DNA material located in the cell nucleus and the mitochondrion often referred to as nuclear DNA and mitochondrial DNA respectively (RAstogi, 2006). The DNA also contains instruction that will determine the characteristics of a future generation of offspring. Genetic material differs from one specie to another and the DNA is responsible for all the differences. The DNA has a shape of a double helix that appears like a coiled ladder when viewed under the microscope. It contains sugars and phosphates on the outside whereas the inside mainly contains four chemical bases.
The four chemical bases inside the DNA include adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C) and thymine (T). The bases store coded information that determines the characteristics of an organism (Silverstein et al, 2008). Almost all human beings contain the same bases but in a different arrangement. The study of the arrangement of the bases is referred to as genetic sequencing and aids in determining the patterns that determine the traits or behavior of individuals. The sequence of the chemical bases is determined through biochemical processes that are carried in the laboratories. Such processes include dye labeling and detection that generate large numbers of the bases in sequences.
The study of DNA has resulted in discoveries in the field of medicine. Researchers have been able to conduct collaborative researches that have resulted in the discovery of complete DNA sequence of humans, animals and microorganisms. The study of the DNA has revolutionized the field of forensic science by improving the collection of evidence from scenes of crime. Law enforcement agencies use DNA samples in implicating or freeing suspects in a crime case. Fingerprints and blood samples are collected and taken to the laboratory for analysis in order to identify suspects. This has been made possible because each human has a unique DNA (Naeim, Rao & Grody, 2008).
References
Naeim, F, Rao, P & Grody, W. (2008). Hematopathology: Morphology, Immunophenotype,
Cytogenetic, and Molecular Approaches. New York: Academic Press.
Silverstein, A, Silverstein, V, & Silverstein, L. (2008). DNA. Chicago: Twenty-First Century
Books.
RAstogi, S. (2006). Cell and Molecular Biology. New York: New Age International.
