Answer:
Watson and Crick's realization that adenine forms hydrogen bonds with thymine, and cytosine with guanine in DNA, prompted their understanding of the sequencing of nitrogenous bases.
Step-by-step explanation:
The breakthrough came when Watson and Crick analyzed the X-ray diffraction data collected by Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins, revealing the double-helix structure of DNA. They deduced that adenine and thymine, as well as cytosine and guanine, consistently paired through hydrogen bonds. Adenine forms two hydrogen bonds with thymine, and cytosine forms three hydrogen bonds with guanine. This discovery not only explained the complementary pairing of these bases but also provided a crucial insight into the precise and complementary sequencing of nucleotides along the DNA strands.
Understanding the hydrogen bonding relationships between these base pairs allowed Watson and Crick to propose the now-famous double-helix model for DNA, where the sequence of one strand dictates the sequence of the other. This breakthrough laid the foundation for comprehending the genetic code and the information storage and transmission mechanisms within DNA.
Complete Question:What realization prompted Watson and Crick to understand the hydrogen bonding relationships between adenine and thymine, as well as cytosine and guanine in DNA, leading to insights into the sequencing of nitrogenous bases in DNA?