Molecular Biology Terms

Supercoiling refers to the higher-level coiling of DNA that is already a complementary strand.

Catenanes are linear molecules of DNA that become interlocked during transcription.

An enhancer is a regulatory sequence located close to the promoter region.

A primary transcript is the modified RNA molecule obtained after the initial transcription from a DNA template.

Housekeeping genes are switched on all of the time because they are needed for essential life functions.

The Pribnow box is a region of bacterial promoter located 10 bases upstream from the start of transcription.

Supercoiling: Higher level coiling of DNA that is already a complementary strand.
Catenanes: Circular molecules of DNA may become interlocked during transcription or recombination.
Open Reading Frame: Sequence of bases (either in DNA or RNA) that can be translated to give a protein.
Constitutive Gene: Often have both their -10 and -35 region promoter sequences very close to consensus, which are repressed under rare conditions.
Enhancer: Regulatory sequence inside, and often far away from, the promoter region that binds transcription factors.
5'-UTR: Region of an mRNA between the 5' end and the translation start site.
Primary Transcript: The original RNA molecule obtained by transcription from a DNA template, before any processing or modification has occurred.
Housekeeping Genes: Genes that are switched on some of the time because they are needed for essential life functions.
Pribnow Box: Region of bacterial promoter 10 bases back from the start of transcription that is recognized by RNA polymerase.