Question

Is plasmid the same as a cell’s chromosomal DNA?

Answer 1

The Plasmid DNA: A small, circular plasmid is a piece of DNA that is not identical to chromosomal DNA. Its replication capacity is independent of chromosomal DNA. They are usually found in bacteria, but also exist in multicellular organisms.

Chromosomal DNA: Genomic DNA is found in prokaryotic and eukaryotic units. Eukaryotic genomes have several linear chromosomes, while prokaryotic genomes have a single circular chromosome.

Chromosomal DNA	Plasmid DNA
Transfer of genetic information to cellular form	Double-stranded DNA - circular, small, distinct from chromosomal DNA
Type of genomic DNA	Form of extrachromosomal DNA
Larger than plasmid DNA	Smaller than chromosomal DNA
Found in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells	Found only in prokaryotes
Circular in prokaryotes and linear in eukaryotes	Circular in shape
The number varies depending upon the species.	Number of occurrences, in a cell, varies from 1 to a thousand
Crucial in the development, growth, number and reproduction of an entity	Not essential for the functioning of the cell
Replicate with the genome	Can duplicate independent of the genome
Prokaryotes – Possess an open reading frame Eukaryotes – Possess exons and introns	Do not contain introns and exons. Possess an open reading frame
Transferred by cell division	Transferred by horizontal gene transfer
Significant in the reading of genetic information	Significant in recombinant DNA technology