Question

each strand of a dna molecule contains nitrogenous bases that pair with other nitrogenous bases in very specific ways. a diagram of a section of dna is shown.
dna strand
complete the complementary strand to the one shown above.

Explanation:

Step1: Recall base - pairing rules

In DNA, adenine (A) pairs with thymine (T), and cytosine (C) pairs with guanine (G). Also, the complementary strand has the opposite orientation. The given strand is \(3'\) to \(5'\), so the complementary strand will be \(5'\) to \(3'\).

Step2: Pair each base

For the given sequence \(3'\text{-T G T A G C T G C C G C G T -}5'\):

• \(T\) pairs with \(A\), \(G\) pairs with \(C\), \(A\) pairs with \(T\), \(C\) pairs with \(G\), \(T\) pairs with \(A\), \(G\) pairs with \(C\), \(C\) pairs with \(G\), \(G\) pairs with \(C\), \(C\) pairs with \(G\), \(G\) pairs with \(C\), \(T\) pairs with \(A\).

Answer:

\(5'\text{-A C A T C G A C G G C G C A -}3'\)