A-DNA

noun

A configuration of DNA in cells, right-hand twisting double helix with a small size difference between major groove and minor groove, wider and more squashed twist than B-DNA; found during transcription and replication.

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Meanings

nounA-DNA (countable and uncountable, plural A-DNAs)

plural A-DNAs

  1. uncountableA configuration of DNA in cells, right-hand twisting double helix with a small size difference between major groove and minor groove, wider and more squashed twist than B-DNA; found during transcription and replication.
  2. countableA DNA helix in such a configuration.

Origin

From A + DNA. Coined by Rosalind Franklin, for the first of two forms discovered during her X-ray crystallography experiments on DNA.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

A-DNA. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/A-DNA

MLA

“A-DNA.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/A-DNA. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “A-DNA,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/A-DNA.

Source: A-DNA on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.