Key Difference – DNA vs DNAse
DNA is a nucleic acid found mainly in the nucleus of cells. It carries genetic information of the cells which are essential for growth, development, metabolism and reproduction of organisms. DNA molecule is composed of deoxyribonucleotides arranged in long chains. DNAse is an enzyme that is able to cleave phosphodiester bonds between nucleotides of DNA and cause degradation of DNA. It is composed of amino acids.. The key difference between DNA and DNAse is that DNA is a nucleic acid which bears the genetic information of the organisms while the DNAse is an enzyme which degrades DNA in the cell.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is DNA
3. What is DNAse
4. Side by Side Comparison – DNA vs DNAse
5. Summary
What is DNA?
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is one type of a nucleic acid found mainly in the nucleus of cells. DNA is the genetic material of most organisms. It is composed of deoxyribonucleotide monomers. A deoxyribonucleotide is built from three main components: a nitrogenous base, a deoxyribose sugar, and a phosphate group. There are four types of nitrogenous bases present in DNA. They are adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), and thymine (T). Deoxyribonucleotides are linked with each other by phosphodiester bonds formed between 5’ phosphate group and 3’ OH group of adjacent nucleotides. The order of the base sequence bears the genetic information which passes to the next generation by DNA replication.
DNA exist in the double helix. Two strands of polynucleotides are attached to each other by hydrogen bonds between complementary bases (A with T and C with G). Sugar molecule and phosphate groups are the backbone of the DNA molecule while nitrogenous bases are formed in the middle of the helix. DNA molecule (double helix) resembles a ladder to some extent as shown in figure 01.
Figure 01: DNA Double Helix
What is DNAse?
Deoxyribonuclease (DNAse) is a nuclease enzyme responsible for degradation of DNA. It hydrolyzes 3’-5’ phosphodiester bonds between the nucleotides and separate nucleotides. This is a useful enzyme for recombinant DNA technology to cleave specific fragments or genes to sequencing and cloning.
DNAse are mainly two types: DNAse I and DNAse II. Some are endonucleases which hydrolyze chemical bonds within the DNA molecule while some DNAses are exonucleases which remove nucleotides from the ends of the DNA molecule.
DNAse is used during the purification of RNA to remove contaminant DNA by degradation. DNAse is also used to yield small molecular weighted fragments of genomic DNA for footprinting, DNA nick translation, removal of DNA template after in vitro transcription etc.
Figure 02: DNAse I Structure
What is the difference between DNA and DNAse?
DNA vs DNAse |
|
| DNA is a nucleic acid. | DNAse is a protein. |
| Major Functions | |
| DNA is the repository of the heredity information of almost all organisms. | DNAse is an enzyme capable of hydrolyzing phosphodiester bonds between nucleotides in DNA. |
| Composition | |
| It is composed of deoxyribonucleotides. Hence, it is a polynucleotide. | It is composed of amino acids. Hence, it is a polypeptide. |
| Location | |
| DNA is present in the nucleus, mitochondria, and chloroplasts of the cells. | DNA is present in the cytoplasm of cells. |
| Transmission to Succeeding Generations | |
| It is able to pass information from one generation to the next generation. | It is not involved with heredity. |
| Replicating Ability | |
| DNA can replicate to make an identical copy. | DNAse cannot replicate. |
| Synthesis | |
| DNA is synthesized by DNA replication during cell division. | DNAse is produced by ribosomes |
| Use in Recombinant DNA Technology | |
| DNA itself is being subjected to recombination with vector DNA in recombinant DNA technology. | This is used in recombinant technology to cut DNA. It is a powerful molecular tool. |
Summary – DNA vs DNAse
DNA is a nucleic acid composed of deoxyribonucleotides. It contains genetic information of the organism and found in the nucleus. DNA exists in double helix form and has a specific nucleotide sequence. DNA is arranged into small subsets called genes. Genes are encoded for proteins and other materials essential for organisms. DNAse is an enzyme responsible for cleaving phosphodiester bonds between nucleotides of DNA. It is composed of amino acids and found in the cytoplasm of the cell. This is the difference between DNA and DNAse.
Reference:
1. Evans, Cory, and Renato Aguilera. “DNase II: genes, enzymes and function.” DNase II: genes, enzymes and function. N.p., 2003. Web. 13 Mar. 2017.
2. Brenowitz M., Senear DF, and Kingston RE. “DNase I footprint analysis of protein-DNA binding.” Current protocols in molecular biology. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2001. Web. 13 Mar. 2017
Image Courtesy:
1. “Dnase1” By Jazzlw – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “DNA double helix (13081113544)” By Genomics Education Programme – DNA double helix (CC BY 2.0) via Commons Wikimedia