Resources by BioInteractive

Shotgun sequencing

In shotgun sequencing many copies of the entire genome are "blown up" into millions of small fragments. Each small fragment is sequenced. Powerful computers then assemble the individual fragments into the original configuration. Repeat sequences pose a problem for this approach because their sizes can be much...

Small-molecule microarrays

Microarray technology is useful for screening many small molecules at once. DNA microarray can be used to measure the expression level of many genes simultaneously. DNA microarrays, for example, have been helpful in diagnosing different tumors. The widespread use of microarray technology promises to guide research...

Spreadsheet tutorials

This series of spreadsheet tutorials for excel 10, from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, work through a range of spreadsheet functions that can be used when analysing data.

Each tutorial contains detailed instructions and a series of exercises to work through. The tutorials start with some of the more...

The chemical structure of DNA

This video looks at how the chemical properties of DNA can be harnessed for a variety of biotechnology applications.

Used with permission from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Copyright (2003...

Translation (advanced detail)

In this animation, messenger RNA (mRNA) carries DNA's genetic information to the ribosome, where it is translated into a sequence of amino acids. mRNA is fed into the ribosome, and it is positioned so that it can be read in groups of three letters, known as codons. Each mRNA codon is matched against the transfer...

Translation (basic detail)

This animation shows that the ribosome is a molecular factory that translates the genetic information in RNA into a string of amino acids that becomes a protein. Inside the ribosome, the genetic code of the RNA is read three letters at a time and compared with the corresponding code on a transfer molecule. When a...

Watson constructing base pair models

During the process of trying to elucidate the structure of DNA, Jim Watson made some cardboard models to try to understand how DNA nucleotides are paired. It helped him visualize how hydrogen atoms of paired nucleotides interact with each other to form a symmetrical structure that fits the double helix model.