GeneChip Essentials - Basics of Biology Before we can understand how GeneChip® microarrays work, let's first review the fundamentals of biology, from DNA to RNA to protein.

The Double Helix
	To understand the significance of what GeneChip expression analysis microarrays do, you...
C pairs with G and T pairs with A
	There are only four molecules in the DNA chain: adenine (A), guanine (G), thymine (T) and...
A good match sticks, a bad match doesn't
	However, if two bases aren't complementary, they won't fit together. Instead, they'll repel...
Defining a gene
	A gene is a section of DNA that functions as a unit. It can be a sequence of the molecules...
Unzipping the DNA
	In order to make hair protein the gene first makes an RNA molecule. It does this with the...
Making the RNA copy of DNA
	RNA molecules are very similar to DNA and are attracted to the unzipped DNA. The RNA molecules...
The New RNA Copy of the Gene
	The new chain of RNA then breaks off and the DNA double helix zips back up. The new RNA...
Making Protein from RNA
	The RNA copy of the gene now serves as a template for making proteins, much in the same...