Final answer:
To find the corresponding amino acid sequence for a given DNA sequence, one must use the complementary base pairing rule for replication, transcribe DNA to mRNA while substituting uracil for thymine, and then translate the mRNA sequence to amino acids using a codon chart.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student's question pertains to the replication of a DNA sequence and the identification of the corresponding amino acids. To replicate a DNA sequence, the complementary base pairing rule is applied where adenine (A) pairs with thymine (T), and cytosine (C) pairs with guanine (G). When transcribing DNA to mRNA, adenine (A) pairs with uracil (U) in RNA.
For the DNA sequence GCA, which corresponds to the amino acid arginine, and the sequence TCG, which yields the amino acid serine, it's clear that certain DNA triplets code for specific amino acids, with some amino acids being represented by more than one codon. However, each codon specifies only one amino acid.
When translating mRNA to amino acids, we begin with a start codon, typically AUG which codes for methionine, and proceed until a stop codon is encountered. With the provided example mRNA sequence 5'-AUGCUGAAUUGCGUAGGA-3', one would use a codon chart to determine the corresponding amino acid sequence.
Given the example complementary DNA sequence 3'-TACGGACTGACGATC-5', the mRNA sequence transcribed would be 5'-AUGCCUGACGCUAG-3', which can then be translated into an amino acid sequence using a codon chart.