A New Dogma Of Molecular Biology: A Paradigm Shift

 


This is precisely the nature of our new understanding of biology, which has occurred over the past twenty years and is now sufficiently advanced to offer a new paradigm.

DNA—> RNA—> Protein—> Phenotype

The dogma was enshrined in Jim Watson’s 1965 epic textbook The Molecular Biology of the Gene.

The theory holds that Gregor Mendel's concept of a gene (a discrete heritable trait or phenotype) is the consequence of a change in the text of DNA that alters the function of a protein and, therefore, the phenotype. Sickle cell anemia is a prime example. A single-letter change in the DNA that encodes the hemoglobin protein changes the structure of the protein so that it aggregates to create sickle-shaped red blood cells, leading to the blood clots that define the disease. While true, we now view this paradigm as a special case of a broader reality. 

A New Paradigm

We are now in the midst of a very exciting revolution defining what role this new view of DNA and the plethora of RNAs play in defining our biology. A consensus is now emerging as a new biological theory. Whereas our twenty thousand proteins perform the necessary functions for life, it is the RNA, made mostly from the "junk DNA," that controls when and where proteins are made.

I describe this new paradigm as the DNA/RNA Dogma, a description that assigns equal importance to both DNA and RNA, a focus on the control of protein expression as a key to understanding Mendelian inheritance. The DNA/RNA Dogma offers a more comprehensive and accurate picture of Mendel’s genes and our complexity.

DNA <—> RNA—> Control—> Protein—> Phenotype

The insertion of the word "control" denotes our rapidly expanding knowledge of the role RNA plays in controlling when, where, how many, and in what form proteins are made.

The new double arrow between DNA and RNA describes both the RNA-directed modification of DNA that affects RNA production and the reverse flow of genetic information from RNA not accounted for by the original central dogma. Like all diagrams, this one is oversimplified. For example, some non-coding RNAs affect phenotype.

Analogy may help. I now have extensive experience with Lego in building entire cities for my grandchildren. Lego sets come with a set of colored plastic parts and a set of instructions to assemble them. In this analogy, the plastic parts are the proteins, limited in number, each with a defined form. The instructions are the regulatory RNAs. With the same parts, you can build either a simple or complex structure. Change the instructions, and you change the structure. A single error in the instructions (or much less frequently in a building block) results in a fault in the final structure. There are many more words in the instructions than there are in the different types of building blocks. Most organisms produce very similar sets of proteins but differ markedly in the way those proteins are used. Kits for complex structures, like Ninjago sets, also include a minority of customized blocks analogous to specialized proteins.

Event Name : International Molecular Biologist Awards

Website Link: molecularbiologist.org/

Contact Mail ID : contact@molecularbiologist.org

Nomination Link  : https://molecularbiologist.org/award-nomination/?ecategory=Awards&rcategory=Awardee


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