Question

If a segment of RNA reads 5′ GCCUUAA 3′, then the corresponding DNA template strand reads

1) 5′ TTAAGGC 3′
2) 5′ GCCUUAA 3′
3) 5′ CGGAATT 3′
4) 5′ GCCTTAA 3′

Answer 1

The correct DNA template strand corresponding to the RNA segment 5′ GCCUUAA 3′ is 3) 5′ CGGAATT 3′, as RNA uracil (U) pairs with DNA adenine (A) and RNA adenine (A) pairs with DNA thymine (T).

Step-by-step explanation:

If a segment of RNA reads 5′ GCCUUAA 3′, the corresponding DNA template strand would read 3′ CGG AATT-5′. This is because, during transcription, RNA polymerase constructs an RNA strand complementary to the DNA template strand by following base pairing rules, where adenine (A) pairs with uracil (U) in RNA and thymine (T) in DNA, and cytosine (C) pairs with guanine (G). Therefore, the RNA sequence 5′ GCCUUAA 3′ would be transcribed from a DNA template strand that reads 3′ CGGAATT 5′, making the correct answer option 3) 5′ CGGAATT 3′.