DNA
DNA is a molecule that carries hereditary information in many organisms. In Descienced, DNA is a central anchor for comparisons in biology, medicine, and technology (e.g. gene editing).
biology.genetics
Metrics
Diameter (Double Helix)
Diameter of the B-DNA double helix, approx. 2.0 nm.
Base Pair Spacing
Distance between successive base pairs in B-DNA.
Human Genome
Haploid human genome, approx. 3.2 × 10^9 base pairs.
DNA Length per Cell
Total length of all DNA strands in a diploid human cell (46 chromosomes), stretched end to end.
Relations
Gene editing builds on the understanding of genetic information (context).
Explanations
DNA is the molecule that carries genetic information in most living things. It has a famous shape: a double helix that's only about 2 nanometers thick (that's 2 millionths of a millimeter!). In each of your cells, a DNA strand is coiled up and is about 2 meters long total – and it contains around 3.2 billion base pairs that encode your entire human genetic blueprint. DNA is so important that scientists use it to develop technologies like CRISPR, which allows them to edit genes.
Sources
Standard-Lehrbuch der Zell- und Molekularbiologie. Strukturdaten zu B-DNA und Genomgrößen.
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Provenance
Status
seed
Review
none
Last Updated
2026-02-16