Question

question 5 of 10
how is mrna related to dna?
a. mrna and dna differ only in the number of their nucleotide strands.
b. mrna is an identical copy of dna.
c. mrna and dna have nucleotides that complement one another.
d. mrna is a mirror image of dna.

Explanation:

During transcription, mRNA is synthesized from a DNA template. The nucleotides of mRNA are complementary to those of the DNA strand used as a template. For example, if the DNA has a nucleotide sequence \(ATG\), the mRNA will have \(UAC\) (since in RNA, uracil \(U\) replaces thymine \(T\) which pairs with adenine \(A\) in DNA, and guanine \(G\) pairs with cytosine \(C\)). mRNA is not an identical copy (B is wrong as DNA has \(T\) and mRNA has \(U\), and also only a specific gene region is transcribed), not just differing in strand number (A is wrong as there are base - composition differences too), and not a mirror image (D is wrong as it's based on complementary base - pairing rules, not mirroring in a non - chemical sense).

Answer:

C. mRNA and DNA have nucleotides that complement one another.