What is the significance of the 3' to 5' directionality in DNA replication and how does it impact the synthesis of new DNA strands?

The 3' to 5' directionality in DNA replication is significant because DNA polymerase can only add new nucleotides to the 3' end of the growing DNA strand. This means that DNA replication occurs in a continuous manner on one strand (leading strand) and in a discontinuous manner on the other strand (lagging strand), resulting in the formation of Okazaki fragments. These fragments are later joined together by DNA ligase to form a complete new DNA strand.