Emäspäättelyt
Emäspäättelyt, or base pairing, is a fundamental concept in molecular biology describing the specific way nucleotide bases in nucleic acids, DNA and RNA, associate with each other. This association is driven by hydrogen bonds formed between complementary bases. In DNA, adenine (A) always pairs with thymine (T) via two hydrogen bonds, forming an A-T base pair. Guanine (G) always pairs with cytosine (C) through three hydrogen bonds, forming a G-C base pair. This strict complementarity is crucial for the structure and function of DNA.
In RNA, uracil (U) replaces thymine, so adenine (A) pairs with uracil (U) via two hydrogen bonds
The stability of a DNA double helix is influenced by the number of G-C pairs, as they