Genetics: Analysis and Principles 5th Edition by Robert Brooker

Exercise 4

As described in Chapter 9, one bp of DNA is approximately 0.34 nm in length. A bacterial chromosome is about 4 million bp in length and is organized into about 100 loops that are about 40,000 bp in length
a. If it was stretched out linearly, how long (in micrometers) would one loop be
B. If a bacterial chromosomal loop is circular, what would be its diameter (Note: Circumference = D , where D is the diameter of the circle.)
C. Is the diameter of the circular loop calculated in part B small enough to fit inside a bacterium The dimensions of the bacterial cytoplasm, such as E. coli , are roughly 0.5 m wide and 1.0 m long.