Is RNA a part of genetic material????

Question

I have to create a project on genetic material and I want to know if I shoul include RNA as a chapter or not.

Answer 1

DNA = deriboneucleic acid
RNA = riboneuclic acid
RNA is present in each human cell in the lipoprotein (outside the cell) part.
DNA is present in the neucleus of the cell. to be more specific, in the chromosomes inside the neucleus of the cell. so, it is only the DNA that carries the genetic property to the offsprings.

as for your project, you can surely include it as a chapter.however make it sure that it is not too lengthy to dominate the main subject.
you can also include a chapter related to "clones and cloning". that could help you in showing it more clearly that its only the DNA that helps to transfer the genetic property to the young ones.
if you need any further help in your project, you can contact me at

[e-mail]

good luck.

Answer 2

in the family of genetic material, RNA has long been the poor cousin of DNA. DNA makes up the genes, the master instructions of life, while RNA merely conveys those instructions to other parts of the cell. But surprising new discoveries are showing that cells contain an army of RNA snippets that do much more than act as DNA's messenger. The discoveries are helping to refine the prevailing theories of genetics — or even upend them.

Answer 3

Yes you should. While DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is the most widely used chemical for storing heritable information (genes), RNA (ribonucleic acid) is also used in some circumstances. All of the retroviruses, which include HIV, mouse mammary tumor virus, feline leukemia virus and others, carry their genetic information as RNA. After infection, this RNA is "reverse transcribed" into DNA inside the infected cell and is used to make new virus copies, again containing RNA genomes.

As stated by one of the other answers, the world of RNA biology is getting more exciting as various other activities are associated with RNA that have never been associated with DNA. These include enzymatic activity such as certain RNAses, which degrade other RNA molecules, "hammerhead ribozymes" which cleave complementary molecules of RNA and now we know of small interfering RNAs, that are able to control the expression of certain genes by targeting the destruction of their messenger RNAs (mRNAs).

Answer 4

RNA is also typically is the primary backbone for alot of single stranded viruses, not DNA. While RNA is a cousin of DNA, there is alot more evidence that RNA has alot more autonomy than what was recently thought. RNA is:

* More diverse than DNA (mRNA, rRNA, tRNA, etc)
* DNA can be made from RNA by the enzyme reverse transcriptase found in many viruses.
* RNA has catalytic properties (ribozymes)

Answer 5

Yes RNA is a simplified DNA structure present most often in bacteria and certain viruses but it is exclusively genetic material.

Answer 6

Yes. Viruses' like the influenza virus or HIV genome are RNA. The RNA the others are talking about are messenger RNA which translates into proteins. There are also other kinds of RNA like the tRNA.

Hope that helps. =D

Answer 7

The RNA genomes of viruses may be throwbacks to the first forms of life. Evolutionary biologists believe that the first life forms were probably RNA-based, rather than DNA-based.

Answer 8

no....................lol
well,i've wasted 40 min in 45 mins lecture last year on this issue,,,,,,,and ate my prof.'s brain to a limit

DNA contains all of the genetic information necessary to construct cells, to integrate them into an organism and to maintain them. RNA translates this information into specific instructions for the assembly of proteins, transmits the information outside the cell nucleus and helps to assemble them.

so,obviously dna is the genetic material

Answer 9

It's DNA's beyotch in most organisms, but it does still serve a role in the genetics of some things so, yes

In most living things it's just a messenger molecule for transcribing instructions from DNA, but it plays the central role in the heredity of many viruses, and likely some of the first truly living things. (viruses aren't technically alive by most definitions)

Answer 10

RNA is the genetic material in certain microorganisme, such as HIV virus.