Q&A for How to Make a Model of DNA Using Common Materials

It doesn't matter. You can use any kind of string.

Try and use wire instead of string and make sure you have a base made of wood. Drill holes into the wood and put the wire there and hot glue it if it is still unstable.

It already is 3D if it's made out of pipe cleaners. There isn't anything else you have to do to it.

If you want to make a moving model, use CDs, chopsticks and small, plastic, colored balls.

It really depends on how long you want the DNA module to be. Make sure to use an even space between beads.

You can use pliers to bend it. If that is still too difficult, your wire may be too thick.

Yes, paper clips should serve the same purpose as the string.

It is not stable enough to stand on its own. If you want it to stand, put a base on the bottom of it and glue it to the base.

You could use thin wire instead. Make sure it isn't too thick so you can twist it.

The nucleotides connect to each other in pairs (AT en GC) via hydrogen bonds. AT connect via two hydrogen bonds, and GC via three. This is also why A can only pair with T and G with C; otherwise the number of bonds doesn't match.

You can make this 10 steps by adding more material and repeating steps. You could also make it more smaller, which makes it more compact.

Yes. Different colored straws could be used to represent nitrogenous bases A, T, G and C. The phosphodiester backbones could be made up of Scotch tape so that you can helical twist the ladder. Make sure that base-pairs are equidistant.