[Fundamental aspects of molecular biology. The multigene family of 5-HT1 receptors].

Genes, constituted by the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) contain all the genetic information of a cell. DNA is a double helix consisting of two antiparallel polynucleotide chains where each nucleotide is composed of the association between a base, a sugar and a phosphate group. The chains are associated by hydrogen bonds between the bases. Guanine bonds specifically with cytosine while adenine bonds specifically with thymine. The sequence of DNA is related to the sequence of protein by the genetic code. Each aminoacid is represented by a codon that consists of a nucleotide triplet. Information is expressed by a two-step process. The first step, transcription generates a single-stranded ribonucleic acid called messenger RNA (mRNA) (where a uracil base is present instead of a thymine) which acts as an intermediate molecule. In this step, RNA splicing is one of the maturation processes consisting of joining the exons by removing the introns of the precursor RNA molecule. The second step, translation, converts the nucleotide sequence into the sequence of aminoacids. Since the 1970s, the progress in DNA technology consisting of the development of molecular cloning, DNA library construction and sequencing methods, has made it possible to isolate and analyze specific genes directly from the genome. A sequence of genomic or complementary DNA (cDNA) is cloned by inserting it into a vector (plasmid or phage) that can replicate independently in bacteria. Before cloning, genomic DNA is digested into fragments by restriction enzymes (endonucleases cleaving specific sequences within double-stranded DNA) whereas RNA sequences are copied into cDNA by reverse transcriptase.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)