The leading and the lagging strands differ in that
A) the leading strand is synthesized in the same direction as the movement of the replication fork, and the lagging strand is synthesized in the opposite direction.
B) the leading strand is synthesized by adding nucleotides to the 3' end of the growing strand, and the lagging strand is synthesized by adding nucleotides to the 5' end.
C) the lagging strand is synthesized continuously, whereas the leading strand is synthesized in short fragments that are ultimately stitched together.
D) the leading strand is synthesized at twice the rate of the lagging strand.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The leading strand is synthesized continuously in the 5' to 3' direction, which is the same as the movement of the replication fork, whereas the lagging strand is synthesized in the opposite direction and in short fragments called Okazaki fragments. This difference is due to the antiparallel nature of DNA strands.

The Leading and the Lagging Strands Differ in That