Denaturation of DNA is a
Denaturation of DNA is a
Select an option to attempt
Correct Answer: Option A
Explanation
DNA denaturation (melting) is a cooperative (sigmoidal) process. Once initial base pairs break, adjacent base pairs become destabilised because: (1) stacking interactions between adjacent bases are disrupted, and (2) the helix is locally unwound, reducing the thermodynamic cost of further melting. This positive cooperativity produces a sharp melting curve with a well-defined melting temperature () — the temperature at which 50% of DNA is single-stranded. Theis higher for GC-rich sequences (3 H-bonds per GC pair vs. 2 for AT). The sigmoidal (not linear) shape proves the cooperative nature of DNA melting.