title: Template properties of complementary fractions of denatured microbial deoxyribonucleic acids.
abstract: DNA preparations from seven bacterial species and from E. coli phage T4, and also the complementary L and H fractions into which these DNA specimens, after denaturation, were separated by chromatography on methylated albumin-kieselguhr columns, were studied as templates in the RNA polymerase system, and the nucleotide composition of the RNA products was determined. The RNA transcripts of the separated L and H fractions were found to be faithful copies of the respective DNA fractions. This suggests "transcription analysis" as a sensitive and reliable analytical technique for the determination of the base composition of denatured DNA. The L and H fractions of T4 DNA were shown, both by temperature-absorbance profiles and by transcription analysis, to be mutually complementary. The RNA products formed with intact DNA as the template were not exact copies of the latter; their composition indicated that under our experimental conditions the "heavy" DNA strand is transcribed preferentially.
mesh_terms: D000225:Adenine / Q000032:analysis*; D001407:Bacillus; D001410:Bacillus megaterium; D001412:Bacillus subtilis; D003090:Coliphages; D003596:Cytosine / Q000032:analysis*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis*; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis*; D004926:Escherichia coli; D005815:Genetic Code; D006147:Guanine / Q000032:analysis*; D009691:Nucleic Acid Denaturation; D009711:Nucleotides / Q000032:analysis; D011511:Proteus; D012486:Salmonella typhimurium; D012706:Serratia marcescens; D013698:Templates, Genetic; D014498:Uracil / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004279:DNA, Viral; D009711:Nucleotides; D014498:Uracil; D006147:Guanine; D003596:Cytosine; D000225:Adenine