DNA - Double Helix

The secondary structure of DNA is actually very similar to the secondary structure of proteins. The protein single alpha helix structure held together by hydrogen bonds was discovered with the aid of X-ray diffraction studies. The X-ray diffraction patterns for DNA show somewhat similar patterns.

In addition, chemical studies by E. Chargaff indicate several important clues about the structure of DNA. In the DNA of all organisms:
a) The concentration of adenine equals that of thymine.
b) The concentration of guanine equals that of cytosine.

Chargaff's findings clearly indicate that some type of heterocyclic amine base pairing exists in the DNA structure. X-ray diffraction data shows that a repeating helical pattern occurs every 34 Angstrom units with 10 subunits per turn. Each subunit occupies 3.4 Angstrom units which is the same amount of space occupied by a single nucleotide unit. Using Chargaff's information and the X-ray data in conjunction with building actual molecular models, Watson and Crick developed the double helix as a model for DNA.

The double helix in DNA consists of two right-handed polynucleotide chains that are coiled about the same axis. The heterocyclic amine bases project inward toward the center so that the base of one strand interacts or pairs with a base of the other strand. According to the chemical and X-ray data and model building exercises, only specific heterocyclic amine bases may be paired.

http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/vchembook/582dnadoublehelix.html

Alternative double-helical structures

Further information: Mechanical properties of DNA

DNA exists in many possible conformations.^[8] However, only A-DNA, B-DNA, and Z-DNA have been observed in organisms. Which conformation DNA adopts depends on the sequence of the DNA, the amount and direction of supercoiling, chemical modifications of the bases and also solution conditions, such as the concentration of metal ions and polyamines.^[25] Of these three conformations, the "B" form described above is most common under the conditions found in cells.^[26] The two alternative double-helical forms of DNA differ in their geometry and dimensions.

The A form is a wider right-handed spiral, with a shallow, wide minor groove and a narrower, deeper major groove. The A form occurs under non-physiological conditions in dehydrated samples of DNA, while in the cell it may be produced in hybrid pairings of DNA and RNA strands, as well as in enzyme-DNA complexes.^[27][28] Segments of DNA where the bases have been chemically-modified by methylation may undergo a larger change in conformation and adopt the Z form. Here, the strands turn about the helical axis in a left-handed spiral, the opposite of the more common B form.^[29] These unusual structures can be recognized by specific Z-DNA binding proteins and may be involved in the regulation of transcription.^[30]

From left to right, the structures of A, B and Z DNA

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA

DNA genetic material

	We All Share the Same Building Blocks
		DNA is a winning formula for packaging genetic material. Therefore almost all organisms – bacteria, plants, yeast and animals – carry genetic information encapsulated as DNA. One exception is some viruses that use RNA instead. Different species need different amounts of DNA. Therefore the copying of the DNA that precedes cell division differs between organisms. For example, the DNA in E. coli bacteria is made up of 4 million base pairs and the whole genome is thus one millimeter long. The single-cell bacterium can copy its genome and divide into two cells once every 20 minutes. The DNA of humans, on the other hand, is composed of approximately 3 billion base pairs, making up a total of almost a meter-long stretch of DNA in every cell in our bodies. In order to fit, the DNA must be packaged in a very compact form. In E. coli the single circular DNA molecule is curled up in a condensed fashion, whereas the human DNA is packaged in 23 distinct chromosome pairs. Here the genetic material is tightly rolled up on structures called histones.
		A New Biological Era
		This knowledge of how genetic material is stored and copied has given rise to a new way of looking at and manipulating biological processes, called molecular biology. With the help of so-called restriction enzymes, molecules that cut the DNA at particular stretches, pieces of DNA can be cut out or inserted at different places. In basic science, where you want to understand the role of all the different genes in humans and animals, new techniques have been developed. For one thing, it is now possible to make mice that are genetically modified and lack particular genes. By studying these animals scientists try to figure out what that gene may be used for in normal mice. This is called the knockout technique, since stretches of DNA have been taken away, or knocked out. Scientists have also been able to insert new bits of DNA into cells that lack particular pieces of genes or whole genes. With this new DNA, the cell becomes capable of producing gene products it could not make before. The hope is that, in the future, diseases that arise due to the lack of a particular protein could be treated by this kind of gene therapy.
		Was Franklin Nominated?
Rosalind Franklin. Photo: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Archives		Many voices have argued that the Nobel Prize should also have been awarded to Rosalind Franklin, since her experimental data provided a very important piece of evidence leading to the solving of the DNA structure. In a recent interview in the magazine Scientific American, Watson himself suggested that it might have been a good idea to give Wilkins and Franklin the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and him and Crick the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine – in that way all four would have been honored. Rosalind Franklin died in 1958. As a rule only living persons can be nominated for the the Nobel Prize, so the 1962 Prize was out of the question. But she may have been a nominee while she was still alive. The Nobel archives, that among other things contain the nominations connected to the prizes, are held closed. But 50 years after a particular prize had been awarded, the archives concerning the nominees are released. Therefore, in 2008 it will be possible to see whether Rosalind Franklin was ever a nominee for the Nobel Prize concerning the DNA helix.
		The DNA-Helix
The sugar-phosphate backbone is on the outside and the four different bases are on the inside of the DNA molecule.		The two strands of the double helix are anti-parallel, which means that they run in opposite directions. The sugar-phosphate backbone is on the outside of the helix, and the bases are on the inside. The backbone can be thought of as the sides of a ladder, whereas the bases in the middle form the rungs of the ladder. Each rung is composed of two base pairs. Either an adenine-thymine pair that form a two-hydrogen bond together, or a cytosine-guanine pair that form a three-hydrogen bond. The base pairing is thus restricted. This restriction is essential when the DNA is being copied: the DNA-helix is first "unzipped" in two long stretches of sugar-phosphate backbone with a line of free bases sticking up from it, like the teeth of a comb. Each half will then be the template for a new, complementary strand. Biological machines inside the cell put the corresponding free bases onto the split molecule and also "proof-read" the result to find and correct any mistakes. After the doubling, this gives rise to two exact copies of the original DNA molecule. The coding regions in the DNA strand, the genes, make up only a fraction of the total amount of DNA. The stretches that flank the coding regions are called introns, and consist of non-coding DNA. Introns were looked upon as junk in the early days. Today, biologists and geneticists believe that this non-coding DNA may be essential in order to expose the coding regions and to regulate how the genes are expressed.

http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/dna_double_helix/readmore.html

DNA sequence and Supercoiling

Sense and antisense

Further information: Sense (molecular biology)

A DNA sequence is called "sense" if its sequence is the same as that of a messenger RNA copy that is translated into protein. The sequence on the opposite strand is called the "antisense" sequence. Both sense and antisense sequences can exist on different parts of the same strand of DNA (i.e. both strands contain both sense and antisense sequences). In both prokaryotes and eukaryotes, antisense RNA sequences are produced, but the functions of these RNAs are not entirely clear.^[17] One proposal is that antisense RNAs are involved in regulating gene expression through RNA-RNA base pairing.^[18]

A few DNA sequences in prokaryotes and eukaryotes, and more in plasmids and viruses, blur the distinction between sense and antisense strands by having overlapping genes.^[19] In these cases, some DNA sequences do double duty, encoding one protein when read along one strand, and a second protein when read in the opposite direction along the other strand. In bacteria, this overlap may be involved in the regulation of gene transcription,^[20] while in viruses, overlapping genes increase the amount of information that can be encoded within the small viral genome.^[21]

Supercoiling

Further information: DNA supercoil

DNA can be twisted like a rope in a process called DNA supercoiling. With DNA in its "relaxed" state, a strand usually circles the axis of the double helix once every 10.4 base pairs, but if the DNA is twisted the strands become more tightly or more loosely wound.^[22] If the DNA is twisted in the direction of the helix, this is positive supercoiling, and the bases are held more tightly together. If they are twisted in the opposite direction, this is negative supercoiling, and the bases come apart more easily. In nature, most DNA has slight negative supercoiling that is introduced by enzymes called topoisomerases.^[23] These enzymes are also needed to relieve the twisting stresses introduced into DNA strands during processes such as transcription and DNA replication.^[24]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA

structure of DNA

Using X-rays to See Through DNA
"Photograph 51". X-ray diffraction photo of a DNA molecule, structure B, Photo: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Archives		Watson and Crick used stick-and-ball models to test their ideas on the possible structure of DNA. Other scientists used experimental methods instead. Among them were Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins, who were using X-ray diffraction to understand the physical structure of the DNA molecule. When you shine X-rays on any kind of crystal – and some biological molecules, such as DNA, can form crystals if treated in certain ways – the invisible rays bounce off the sample. The rays then create complex patterns on photographic film. By looking at the patterns, it is possible to figure out important clues about the structures that make up the crystal.

A Three-Helical Structure?
Model of the alpha helix, 1951. Photo: Oregon State University's Special Collections		The scientist Linus Pauling was eager to solve the mystery of the shape of DNA. In 1954 he became a Nobel Laureate in Chemistry for his ground-breaking work on chemical bonds and the structure of molecules and crystals. In early 1953 he had published a paper where he proposed a triple-helical structure for DNA. Watson and Crick had also previously worked out a three-helical model, in 1951. But their theory was wrong. Their mistake was partly based on Watson having misremembered a talk by Rosalind Franklin where she reported that she had established the water content of DNA by using X-ray crystallographic methods. But Watson did not take notes, and remembered the numbers incorrectly. Instead, it was Franklin's famous "photograph 51" that finally revealed the helical structure of DNA to Watson and Crick in 1953. This picture of DNA that had been crystallized under moist conditions shows a fuzzy X in the middle of the molecule, a pattern indicating a helical structure.

Specific Base-Pairing
		The base-pairing mystery had been partly solved by the biochemist Erwin Chargoff some years earlier. In 1949 he showed that even though different organisms have different amounts of DNA, the amount of adenine always equals the amount of thymine. The same goes for the pair guanine and cytosine. For example, human DNA contains about 30 percent each of adenine and thymine, and 20 percent each of guanine and cytosine. With this information at hand Watson was able to figure out the pairing rules. On the 21st of February 1953 he had the key insight, when he saw that the adenine-thymine bond was exactly as long as the cytosine-guanine bond. If the bases were paired in this way, each rung of the twisted ladder in the helix would be of equal length, and the sugar-phosphate backbone would be smooth.
		Structure Shows Action
		"It has not escaped our notice that the specific pairing we have postulated immediately suggests a possible copying mechanism for the genetic material" wrote Watson and Crick in the scientific paper that was published in Nature, April 25, 1953. This was indeed a breakthrough in the study of how genetic material passes from generation to generation. Once the model was established, its mere structure hinted that DNA was indeed the carrier of the genetic code and thus the key molecule of heredity, developmental biology and evolution. The specific base pairing underlies the perfect copying of the molecule, which is essential for heredity. During cell division, the DNA molecule is able to "unzip" into two pieces. One new molecule is formed from each half-ladder, and due to the specific pairing this gives rise to two identical daughter copies from each parent molecule.

http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/dna_double_helix/readmore.html

DNA Base pairing

Further information: Base pair

Each type of base on one strand forms a bond with just one type of base on the other strand. This is called complementary base pairing. Here, purines form hydrogen bonds to pyrimidines, with A bonding only to T, and C bonding only to G. This arrangement of two nucleotides binding together across the double helix is called a base pair. The double helix is also stabilized by the hydrophobic effect and pi stacking, which are not influenced by the sequence of the DNA.^[12] As hydrogen bonds are not covalent, they can be broken and rejoined relatively easily. The two strands of DNA in a double helix can therefore be pulled apart like a zipper, either by a mechanical force or high temperature.^[13] As a result of this complementarity, all the information in the double-stranded sequence of a DNA helix is duplicated on each strand, which is vital in DNA replication. Indeed, this reversible and specific interaction between complementary base pairs is critical for all the functions of DNA in living organisms.^[1]

Top, a GC base pair with three hydrogen bonds. Bottom, an AT base pair with two hydrogen bonds. Hydrogen bonds are shown as dashed lines.

The two types of base pairs form different numbers of hydrogen bonds, AT forming two hydrogen bonds, and GC forming three hydrogen bonds (see figures, left). The GC base pair is therefore stronger than the AT base pair. As a result, it is both the percentage of GC base pairs and the overall length of a DNA double helix that determine the strength of the association between the two strands of DNA. Long DNA helices with a high GC content have stronger-interacting strands, while short helices with high AT content have weaker-interacting strands.^[14] In biology, parts of the DNA double helix that need to separate easily, such as the TATAAT Pribnow box in some promoters, tend to have a high AT content, making the strands easier to pull apart.^[15] In the laboratory, the strength of this interaction can be measured by finding the temperature required to break the hydrogen bonds, their melting temperature (also called T_m value). When all the base pairs in a DNA double helix melt, the strands separate and exist in solution as two entirely independent molecules. These single-stranded DNA molecules have no single common shape, but some conformations are more stable than others.^[16]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA

Solving the DNA Puzzle

In the late 1940's, the members of the scientific community were aware that DNA was most likely the molecule of life, even though many were skeptical since it was so "simple." They also knew that DNA included different amounts of the four bases adenine, thymine, guanine and cytosine (usually abbreviated A, T, G and C), but nobody had the slightest idea of what the molecule might look like.

In order to solve the elusive structure of DNA, a couple of distinct pieces of information needed to be put together. One was that the phosphate backbone was on the outside with bases on the inside; another that the molecule was a double helix. It was also important to figure out that the two strands run in opposite directions and that the molecule had a specific base pairing.

As in the solving of other complex problems, the work of many people was needed to establish the full picture.

The original DNA model by Watson and Crick. Photo: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Archives

http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/dna_double_helix/readmore.html

DNA major and minor grooves

The double helix is a right-handed spiral. As the DNA strands wind around each other, they leave gaps between each set of phosphate backbones, revealing the sides of the bases inside (see animation). There are two of these grooves twisting around the surface of the double helix: one groove, the major groove, is 22 Å wide and the other, the minor groove, is 12 Å wide.^[10] The narrowness of the minor groove means that the edges of the bases are more accessible in the major groove. As a result, proteins like transcription factors that can bind to specific sequences in double-stranded DNA usually make contacts to the sides of the bases exposed in the major groove.^[11]

Animation of the structure of a section of DNA. The bases lie horizontally between the two spiraling strands. Large version<sup>[9]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA</sup>

What is DNA?

The work of many scientists paved the way for the exploration of DNA. Way back in 1868, almost a century before the Nobel Prize was awarded to Watson, Crick and Wilkins, a young Swiss physician named Friedrich Miescher, isolated something no one had ever seen before from the nuclei of cells. He called the compound "nuclein." This is today called nucleic acid, the "NA" in DNA (deoxyribo-nucleic-acid) and RNA (ribo-nucleic-acid).

Two years earlier, the Czech monk Gregor Mendel, had finished a series of experiments with peas. His observations turned out to be closely connected to the finding of nuclein. Mendel was able to show that certain traits in the peas, such as their shape or color, were inherited in different packages. These packages are what we now call genes.

For a long time the connection between nucleic acid and genes was not known. But in 1944 the American scientist Oswald Avery managed to transfer the ability to cause disease from one strain of bacteria to another. But not only that: the previously harmless bacteria could also pass the trait along to the next generation. What Avery had moved was nucleic acid. This proved that genes were made up of nucleic acid.

Francis Crick and James Watson, 1953. Photo: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Archives

Maurice Wilkins.

http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/dna_double_helix/readmore.html

DNA Physical and chemical properties

DNA is a long polymer made from repeating units called nucleotides.^[1][2] The DNA chain is 22 to 26 Ångströms wide (2.2 to 2.6 nanometres), and one nucleotide unit is 3.3 Å (0.33 nm) long.^[3] Although each individual repeating unit is very small, DNA polymers can be enormous molecules containing millions of nucleotides. For instance, the largest human chromosome, chromosome number 1, is approximately 220 million base pairs long.^[4]

In living organisms, DNA does not usually exist as a single molecule, but instead as a tightly-associated pair of molecules.^[5][6] These two long strands entwine like vines, in the shape of a double helix. The nucleotide repeats contain both the segment of the backbone of the molecule, which holds the chain together, and a base, which interacts with the other DNA strand in the helix. In general, a base linked to a sugar is called a nucleoside and a base linked to a sugar and one or more phosphate groups is called a nucleotide. If multiple nucleotides are linked together, as in DNA, this polymer is called a polynucleotide.^[7]

The backbone of the DNA strand is made from alternating phosphate and sugar residues.^[8] The sugar in DNA is 2-deoxyribose, which is a pentose (five-carbon) sugar. The sugars are joined together by phosphate groups that form phosphodiester bonds between the third and fifth carbon atoms of adjacent sugar rings. These asymmetric bonds mean a strand of DNA has a direction. In a double helix the direction of the nucleotides in one strand is opposite to their direction in the other strand. This arrangement of DNA strands is called antiparallel. The asymmetric ends of DNA strands are referred to as the 5′ (five prime) and 3′ (three prime) ends. One of the major differences between DNA and RNA is the sugar, with 2-deoxyribose being replaced by the alternative pentose sugar ribose in RNA.^[6]

The DNA double helix is stabilized by hydrogen bonds between the bases attached to the two strands. The four bases found in DNA are adenine (abbreviated A), cytosine (C), guanine (G) and thymine (T). These four bases are attached to the sugar/phosphate to form the complete nucleotide, as shown for adenosine monophosphate.

These bases are classified into two types; adenine and guanine are fused five- and six-membered heterocyclic compounds called purines, while cytosine and thymine are six-membered rings called pyrimidines.^[6] A fifth pyrimidine base, called uracil (U), usually takes the place of thymine in RNA and differs from thymine by lacking a methyl group on its ring. Uracil is not usually found in DNA, occurring only as a breakdown product of cytosine.

The chemical structure of DNA. Hydrogen bonds are shown as dotted lines.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA

The Discovery of the Molecular Structure of DNA - The Double Helix

The sentence "This structure has novel features which are of considerable biological interest" may be one of science's most famous understatements. It appeared in April 1953 in the scientific paper where James Watson and Francis Crick presented the structure of the DNA-helix, the molecule that carries genetic information from one generation to the other.

Nine years later, in 1962, they shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Maurice Wilkins, for solving one of the most important of all biological riddles. Half a century later, important new implications of this contribution to science are still coming to light.

Scientific Breakthrough
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/dna_double_helix/readmore.html

DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and some viruses. The main role of DNA molecules is the long-term storage of information. DNA is often compared to a set of blueprints, since it contains the instructions needed to construct other components of cells, such as proteins and RNA molecules. The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in regulating the use of this genetic information.

Chemically, DNA is a long polymer of simple units called nucleotides, with a backbone made of sugars and phosphate groups joined by ester bonds. Attached to each sugar is one of four types of molecules called bases. It is the sequence of these four bases along the backbone that encodes information. This information is read using the genetic code, which specifies the sequence of the amino acids within proteins. The code is read by copying stretches of DNA into the related nucleic acid RNA, in a process called transcription.

Within cells, DNA is organized into structures called chromosomes. These chromosomes are duplicated before cells divide, in a process called DNA replication. Eukaryotic organisms (animals, plants, and fungi) store their DNA inside the cell nucleus, while in prokaryotes (bacteria and archae) it is found in the cell's cytoplasm. Within the chromosomes, chromatin proteins such as histones compact and organize DNA. These compact structures guide the interactions between DNA and other proteins, helping control which parts of the DNA are transcribed.

The structure of part of a DNA double helix


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA

Sony KDL-40V3000 Research

Features

BRAVIA Engine EX Full Digital Video Processor: This television uses Sony's BRAVIA Engine EX full digital video processor for crisp and clear images. Several special picture enhancement technologies are integrated into the processor to create better gradations and details, enhance contrast, dynamically improve color, and reduce image flicker. It also has the ability to upconvert 480i standard definition signals via Digital Reality Creation Multi Function v1.0 technology for a picture with more detail and definition.

NTSC/ATSC/QAM Tuners: The TV is equipped with an analog NTSC tuner, a digital ATSC/8VSB tuner, and a digital QAM tuner for receiving unscrambled digital cable channels. It is not CableCARD compatible. You do not need to connect an external HDTV set-top box in order to receive High-Definition programming.

Native Resolution: The KDL-40V3000 has a full HD native resolution of 1920 x 1080 with over 2 million pixels (more than twice the pixels of 720p HDTV). The TV's two HDMI inputs can accept 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p and 1080/24p signals, and the two component video inputs can accept 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i and 1080p signals. All video signals from standard definition and high definition are upconverted to 1080p.

10-Bit Processor and 10-Bit Display: The Sony TV utilizes 10-bit processing along with a 10-bit panel, allowing 64 times the levels of color expression than an 8-bit panel. What that translates to is smoother transitions from color to color and subtle color changes faithfully reproduced.

Live Color Creation System With WCG-CCFL: Live Color Creation is a special Sony function that achieves precise, wide color reproduction using a combination of advanced chroma signal processing algorithms. A special Wide Color Gamut (WCG-CCFL) backlight is combined with Sony's Live Color Creation circuitry. The benefit is clear blues, natural greens and overall vibrant colors in all scenes.

Advanced Contrast Enhancer (ACE) Function: Sony's Advanced Contrast Enhancer (ACE) builds on the TV's excellent on-contrast ratio performance of 1,600:1. A Dynamic Contrast Ratio of up to 13,000:1 is achieved by using real-time image processing to adjust the contrast along with optimizing backlight levels. ACE translates to blacker blacks in darker scenes, as well as better shadow detail in other scenes for a difference that you can see.

24pTrue Cinema (24p Input Capability): Many movies are filmed at 24 frames per second (fps) and prime time TV programs are video taped at 24p. Seizing on an opportunity, some studios are taking a purist approach and encoding high definition video content such as Blu-ray Disc in 24p. Sony wisely takes advantage of this by including 24p input capability via HDMI on this television producing images that are smooth and natural looking.

DMex (Digital Module Extender) Ready: Sony's Digital Media Extender (DMex) ready televisions offer a digital connection path for the addition of optional Sony modules like the new BRAVIA Internet Video Link (DMX-NV1, sold separately). With innovative DMex expansion capabilities featuring the Emmy award winning XMB user interface, the KDL-40V3000 is not merely a TV, but a powerful entertainment platform that not only meets your needs today, but expands easily to meet tomorrow's needs as well.

BRAVIA Theatre Sync: This TV is equipped with BRAVIA Theatre Sync, an HDMI Control function that allows communication between Sony TVs and other Sony equipment when they are connected via HDMI. Once the supported equipment is connected, the following operations are available:

• Turn off the equipment automatically when you turn off the TV
• When the connected equipment is turned on by One-Touch-Play, the TV will automatically turn on and select the respective HDMI input
• Automatically turn on equipment listed under the External Inputs on the XMB when selected.
• When a Sony A/V receiver with BRAVIA Theater Sync is connected the following additional operations are possible:
  • Turning on the A/V receiver when the TV is turned on
  • Automatically switching to the audio output of the A/V receiver's attached speakers.
  • Adjusting the volume and muting of the A/V receiver with the TV's remote control.

Xross Media Bar (XMB) Interface: Sony's award-winning Xross Media Bar provides a logical and fast way to access set up menus, user controls, and more. The on-screen display comes to life by pushing the XMB menu button on the remote. Navigation through the menus is smooth and fast.

Picture Mode: You can select one of the following picture modes:

• Vivid: enhances picture contrast and sharpness
• Standard: displays a standard picture for typical viewing environments
• Cinema: used to view film-base content; suitable for viewing in a theater-like environment
• Custom: allows you to store your preferred settings for Backlight, Picture, Brightness, Color, Hue, Color Temperature, Sharpness, Noise and MPEG Noise Reduction

Advanced Video Settings: In addition to the Picture mode, the Advanced Video Settings menu also features the following:

• Black Corrector: enhances black areas of the picture for stronger contrast
• Advanced Contrast Enhancer: automatically optimizes the backlight and contrast
• Gamma: adjusts the balance between bright and dark areas of the picture
• Clear White: emphasizes white and light colors
• Live Color: makes colors more vivid and reproduces clear skin tones
• Color Space: select the range of color reproduction from Wide to Normal
• White Balance: adjust the color temperature color by color
• Detail Enhancer: enhances the details of the picture
• Edge Enhancer: enhances the outline of the picture

Light Sensor: In the menu, you can activate the automatic picture brightness control. A light sensor measures the amount of ambient light in the room and adjusts the picture brightness level accordingly.

DRC Mode: This mode produces a high-resolution picture for high-density sources such as Blu-ray, DVD, or Digital Satellite. You can select from Mode1(Recommended), Mode2 (only for 1080i) or Off.

DRC Palette: This feature allows you customize the level of detail (Reality) and smoothness (Clarity) for input sources.

Color Matrix: This feature allows you to reproduce the color-difference signals. You can choose between Standard (Automatically optimizes based on signal) or Custom (select either ITU601 or ITU709 which normalized the tone when color tones look unnatural).

Screen Modes: You can choose from the following Screen Modes:

• 4:3 Default:
  • Wide Zoom: Enlarges the center portion of the 4:3 picture proportionately, while the left and right edges of the screen are stretched to fill the screen
  • Normal: Displays the 4:3 picture in its original size with black bars at the left and right sides to fill the screen
  • Full: Stretches the entire 4:3 picture horizontally only to fill the screen
  • Zoom: Enlarges the entire 4:3 picture proportionately to fill the screen (useful for watching Letterbox movies)
• 16:9 Wide Mode:
  • Wide Zoom: Enlarges the picture to fill the screen with minimal distortion
  • Normal: Displays a 4:3 picture in its original aspect ratio when the original source is 4:3
  • Full: Displays the picture at its original size
  • Zoom: Enlarges the picture proportionately, both vertically and horizontally
• Auto Wide: Automatically changes screen settings base upon incoming video signal and content.

CineMotion 3/2 Pulldown Processing: This function optimizes the display by automatically detecting film content and applying a reverse 3-2 pulldown process. Moving pictures will appear clearer and more natural-looking.

Game/Text Mode: This mode provides the optimum screen settings for viewing images with fine lines and characters that are input from video game equipment and PCs.

P&P Feature: The TV comes features P&P (picture and picture) to allow you to view two pictures simultaneously. P&P provides two windows side by side with A/V inputs and TV channels. The main window can be from the component 1 or 2 or HDMI 1 or 2 inputs (except PC timing), while the sub window comes from a TV channel from the VHF/UHF/Cable input.

Favorite Channel: This feature allows you to store and quickly access 30 of your favorite analog and digital channels.

Freeze Function: Press this button once to display a frozen image of the current program in a window on the screen. Press again to show only frozen image on the TV screen. Press again to return to the program.

Jump Function: This feature allows you to jump back and forth between two channels. The TV alternates between the current channel and the last channel that was selected.

Label Channels: This feature allows you to assign labels such as station call letter to the channel numbers. You can use up to seven characters.

Input Label: Each of the six video inputs can be labeled with names (VCR, DVD, Satellite, etc.) instead of video 1, video 2, video 3, etc.

Caption Vision/Info Banner: This feature allows Closed Caption and/or channel programming information to be displayed on the TV screen. You can choose from CC1, CC2, CC3, CC4, Text1, Text2, Text3 and Text4. Digital Channel's Closed Captions can be customized. You can select Text-type, Character-size, Character-style, Character-color, Character-opacity, Edge-type, Edge-color, Background-color and Background-opacity.

Sound Settings: The Sound Settings menu allow you to make the following adjustments:

• Sound Mode: You can customize the bass and treble or use one of the two preset sound modes:
  • Dynamic: enhances both treble and bass
  • Standard: suitable for spoken dialogue
  • Custom: allows you to store your preferred settings for bass and treble
• Treble, Bass, Balance: You can individually set the treble, bass, and balance settings as desired.
• S-FORCE Front Surround: S-FORCE front surrounds provides a virtual surround experience made possible using just two front speakers. When turned off, the normal stereo or mono reception resumes.
• Sound Booster: Sound Booster provides a fuller sound with greater depth and width by emphasizing the high and low frequency sounds. You can select High or Low for the amount of boost you desire.
• Voice Zoom: Adjusts the clarity of human voices by emphasizing or softening vocals.
• Steady Sound: Steady Sound equalizes volume levels so there is consistent output between programs and commercials.
• Volume Offset: adjusts the volume level of the current input (TV or video input) relative to other inputs.

Timers: There is one event timer and a sleep timer built in. The event timer is set for the day, time, channel, duration and volume. The sleep timer switches the television off after a specified amount of time. The sleep timer can be set to 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, or 120 minutes.

Power Saving: This feature reduces the power consumption by adjusting the backlight brightness of the TV's screen. This also enhances the black level of the television. You can select from Low, High, Off and Picture Off.

Parental Control: You can select a viewing limitation based on the TV and movie ratings. Three presets are available (Child, Youth, and Y. Adult) or the limitation can be customized to specific industry ratings. The control is accessed and protected by a 4-digit password.

PC Compatible: The television can be used as a monitor for your PC through the TV's RGB HD-15 input or HDMI input. The TV supports the following PC resolutions - VGA, SVGA, XGA, WXGA, SXGA and HDTV. You can adjust Phase, Pitch, Horizontal and Vertical Position and Wide Mode of picture.

Wireless Remote Control: The TV comes supplied with an IR wireless remote control (RM-YD014). The remote is designed for TV operation only.

Mounting Options

Removable Stand: The display comes mounted on a removable tabletop stand. There is also a support belt supplied that bolts to the base of the stand and is attached to the back of the shelf on which the TV sits. The stand can be detached by removing 4 philips-head screws from the back panel of the TV.

Optional Wall Mount Brackets: The stand can be removed, allowing you to wall-mount the TV using an optional wall-mount bracket. The TV has 4 threaded screw holes with a horizontal spacing of 11-3/4" (300mm) and a vertical spacing of 7-7/8" (200mm). The screw holes all accept M6 (6mm) screws.

Inputs and Outputs Notes

HDMI: The KDL-40V3000 features two HDMI inputs. One input also has left and right RCA audio jacks. The HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) terminals provide an uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface. With an HDMI-to-DVI cable, you can connect the TV to a DVI-equipped A/V component. When connecting to a DVI-equipped component, the RCA audio inputs are used.

Note: The HDMI input will accept 1080/24p, 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 480p, and 480i signals.

Component Video Inputs: The two component video inputs will accept 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 480p, and 480i signals.

PC Input (RGB): A 15-pin HD15 jack allows you to connect your personal computer to the display. There is also a corresponding stereo mini-jack (3.5mm) for the computer's audio signal.

Side Panel AV Inputs: For convenience, there is an A/V input on the left side panel of the TV. Included are stereo RCA inputs and a composite video input.

Headphone Jack: Along with the A/V input on the left side of the TV, there is a 3.5mm stereo headphone jack. When headphones are plugged into the TV, the speakers are muted.

Analog Audio Outputs: These stereo RCA audio jacks allow you to listen to the TV's audio through your stereo system. In the menu you can set the output to Fixed (volume controlled by the receiver/amplifier) or Variable (volume controlled by the TV's remote control) operation.

Note: You must turn the TV speakers off in the menu in order for the audio outs to function.

Digital Audio Output: Optical digital output that connect to the optical digital input of your digital audio equipment that is PCM/Dolby Digital compatible. Dolby Digital Audio signal from the HDMI input will be output as PCM.

DMex/Service Port: This USB port is for service use only unless you are connecting the optional Bravia DMex external module.

http://www.crutchfield.com/App/Product/Item/Main.aspx?i=15840V3000&tp=161&tab=detailed_info

Sony KDL-40V3000

Sony's BRAVIA HDTV line takes a major leap in picture quality with the "V-Series" models — Sony's lowest-priced flat-panels with full 1080p resolution. Most HD programs — whether broadcast, cable, or satellite — employ the 1080i format. To see all of the detail in 1080-line programs, you need a 1080p screen.

10-bit LCD panel and video processing for more accurate colors
Two key factors determining LCD picture quality are the LCD panel and the video processing circuitry. The KDL-40V3000's LCD screen has 10-bit resolution. A 10-bit panel can display 1024 levels of color gradation compared to only 256 steps for conventional 8-bit panels. And 10-bit video processing fully utilizes the panel's exceptional color resolution to show even the subtlest shadings.

Details:

• 40" widescreen HDTV (16:9 aspect ratio)
• built-in digital (ATSC) and analog (NTSC) tuners for over-the-air TV broadcasts ( required)
• built-in QAM cable TV tuner receives unscrambled programs without a set-top box (cable service required)
• 1920 x 1080 pixels
• 8-millisecond pixel response time
• 1800:1 contrast ratio (13,000:1 dynamic)
• 178°(H) x 178°(V) viewing angle
• 10-bit display panel & video processing for over a billion possible colors
• BRAVIA Engine™ EX digital video processing
• Advanced Contrast Enhancer (ACE) dynamic backlighting
• wide-range fluorescent backlight for extended color range
• 1-tuner Picture-in-Picture
• built-in stereo speakers (11 watts x 2)
• remote control
• BRAVIA Theatre Sync remote control networking system (HDMI-CEC)
• picture settings memory for each video input
• 7 A/V inputs, including:
  • 3 composite video (2 rear, 1 side)
  • 1 S-video
  • 2 component video (accepts signals up to 1080p)
  • 2 HDMI (accepts signals up to 1080p — 60Hz, 24Hz)
• PC input: analog RGB (D-Sub 15-pin)
• RF input for antenna/cable signals
• optical digital audio output for Dolby® Digital
• compatible with optional
• Energy Star® compliant
• detachable stand (stand "footprint" is 19-1/4"W x 10-1/2"D)
• wall-mountable (bracket not included)
• 39"W x 25-1/4"H x 3-3/4"D (27"H x 10-1/2"D on stand)
• weight: 56 lbs. with stand; 48 lbs. without stand

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-r95r90z4syb/App/Product/Item/Main.aspx?I=15840V3000

46" BRAVIA W series LCD Flat Panel HDTV

W series features: Full HD 1080p, BRAVIA Engine™ EX, 10-bit display panel and processing, x.v.Color™ capability, Deep Color (HDMI v1.3 option), 1080/24p input capable, PhotoTV HD, brushed metal frame design

Sony's BRAVIA W series Full HD 1080p televisions take performance to the next level with advanced HDMI v1.3 features such as x.v.Color which greatly broadens the color space input capabilities to include 1.8 times as many natural colors as existing HDTV signals. In addition, Deep Color input capability works with the 10-bit processor and panel to deliver 64 times the level of color expression versus current 8-bit systems. Wrap all of this up with an elegant a new brushed metal picture frame design and there's nothing like W-Series HDTVs.

Full HD 1080

There are a lot of ways to define high-definition but BRAVIA® Full HD means you’re getting the best resolution that high-definition has to offer consumers. With Sony BRAVIA W Series HDTVs, Full HD 1080 means 1920 x 1080 pixels⁵ and 1080p video inputs. Your lifestyle demands the best in high-definition and with BRAVIA Full HD 1080 products you get it.

1920 x 1080 Native Panel Resolution

When it comes to high-definition TV the pinnacle of performance is achieved by using 1920 x 1080 display panels. Full HD 1920 x 1080 panel resolution with over 2 million pixels ⁵(more than twice that of 720p HDTV) is exactly what you need to reproduce the 1080p content that can be delivered by our cutting edge 1080p Blu-ray disc™ player.

10-bit Processing and 10-bit Display

While it's great to state that a TV is capable of creating billions of colors it's a whole lot better when you have a display that can actually display them. That's the logic behind Sony's 10-bit processor and 10-bit display. Sony follows 10-bit processing with a 10-bit panel, allowing 64 times the levels of color expression than an 8-bit panel. What that translates to is smoother transitions from color to color and subtle color changes faithfully reproduced.

BRAVIA Engine™ EX Full Digital Video Processor

BRAVIA Engine™ EX full digital video processing system is based on Sony's BRAVIA Engine video processing system. It has all of the same functions of BRAVIA Engine plus the added ability to upconvert 480i standard definition signals (such as 480i DVDs and TV broadcasts) via Digital Reality Creation Multi Function v1.0 (DRC-MF v1.0) technology, which renders a picture with four times the density of the original one resulting in a picture with more detail and definition.

Live Color Creation™ System featuring WCG-CCFL

Many colors in the real world such as deep reds, greens and clear blues cannot be expressed with conventional display technologies. Working in combination with the special WCG-CCFL backlight in LCD HDTVs or the optical engine in our MDPJ HDTVs, Live Color Creation technology achieves wide color reproduction using advanced chroma signal processing algorithms. The primary benefits are clear blues, natural greens and an overall vibrant color for all scenes.

Advanced Contrast Enhancer (ACE) Function

Sony’s Advanced Contrast Enhancer (ACE) builds on our excellent on-contrast ratio performance of 1,800:1¹. A Dynamic Contrast Ratio of up to 16,000:1² is achieved by using real-time image processing to adjust the contrast along with optimizing backlight levels. But rather than focus on the "numbers", Sony focuses on actual picture performance avoiding exaggerated blacks where detail can be lost. ACE translates to blacker blacks in darker scenes, as well as better shadow detail in other scenes for a difference that you can see.

x.v.Color™ technology

BRAVIA® HDTV's performance has now advanced to the point that the color range can be defined by limitations in the original video source, rather than the TV. Thanks to the adoption of a newly approved international color standard called xvYCC (an option in the HDMI v1.3 spec and which Sony participated in creating), the color space has been greatly expanded. 1.8 times as many natural colors as existing HDTV signals will now be faithfully reproduced. x.v.Color enabled products can now offer more accurate color reproduction and natural colors beyond broadcast HDTV.

24p True Cinema (24p Input Capability)

Many movies are filmed at 24 frames per second (fps) and prime time TV programs are recorded at 24p. Seizing on an opportunity, some studios are taking a purist approach and encoding high definition video content such as Blu-ray Disc™ in 24p. Sony wisely takes advantage of this by including 24p output capabilityon our Blu-ray Disc™ players as well as including 24p input capability select 2007 BRAVIA TVs. The benefit— Images are smooth and natural looking. Once you experience 24p video it will be hard to view video without it.

DMe^x - Ready (Digital Media Extender)

Sony's Digital Media Extender (DMex) ready televisions offer a digital connection path for the addition of the optional modules like the new BRAVIA Internet Video Link. ⁶ With innovative DMex expansion capabilities featuring the Emmy® award winning XMB user interface, these models are not merely TVs, but powerful entertainment platforms that not only meet your needs today, but extend to add new features seamlessly.

Xross Media Bar® (XMB) interface

When was the last time you saw an on-screen display that was fast, fun and easy to use— Sony's award-winning Xross Media Bar™ (pronounced Cross) provides a logical and fast way to access set up menus, user controls, and more. The on-screen display comes to life by pushing the XMB menu button on the remote. Navigation through the menus is smooth and fast.

BRAVIA® Theatre Sync™ technology

Sony® created BRAVIA® Theatre Sync™ to go beyond basic digital audio and video transmission. Based on the HDMI-CEC function, BRAVIA® Theatre Sync™ will be included on select BRAVIA® Theatre home A/V systems and components. This useful function reduces the hassle and time consuming job of powering up, routing signals, etc. to the simple push of one button.⁸ Want to play your DVD on your Sony® A/V system— Easy, just push PLAY on the BRAVIA® HDTV remote and everything is taken care of for you. Even when the system is off! Want to change from TV sound to digital surround sound through your Sony BRAVIA® Theatre A/V system— Just one push of the Theater Sound button on the remote and voila, surround sound through your system. Want to power down everything once you've finished enjoying it— Push one button and the TV and A/V system powers down. BRAVIA® Theatre Sync™ helps make things a whole lot easier to operate.

S-Force™ Front Surround

Built around a sophisticated set of Sony algorithms, the S-Force Front Surround enhancement function generates realistic surround sound from the two speakers in the TV. Unlike some other "virtual surround" technologies, S-Force Front Surround sound does not need to be bounced off of side walls or other surfaces to hear three-dimensional sound. No matter what the size or shape of the room it's possible to hear sounds from behind you.

HDMI™ and PC Connectivity

Designed for maximum versatility, Sony's BRAVIA® W Series LCD TVs are equipped with a comprehensive range of input interfaces. The HDMI™ (High-Definition Multimedia Interface™) is the industry-supported, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface. HDMI technology supports enhanced or High Definition video, together with multi-channel digital audio to provide matchless image and sound reproduction. BRAVIA® W Series TVs include (3) HDMI inputs capable of up to 1080/60p. The PC input⁴ (HD-15 pin) offers up to 1920 x 1080p connection to your PC, allowing you to use your high resolution BRAVIA® W Series Digital TV as a computer monitor.

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