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Nucleic Acids definitions

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  • Nucleic Acids
    Polymers that store and encode genetic information, composed of nucleotide monomers.
  • Nucleotides
    Monomers of nucleic acids, consisting of a phosphate group, a pentose sugar, and a nitrogenous base.
  • Phosphate Group
    A functional group in nucleotides, containing a phosphorus atom bonded to four oxygen atoms.
  • Pentose Sugar
    A five-carbon sugar in nucleotides; deoxyribose in DNA and ribose in RNA.
  • Nitrogenous Base
    A component of nucleotides, categorized as pyrimidines or purines, involved in base pairing.
  • Phosphodiester Bond
    Covalent bond linking nucleotides in nucleic acids, forming the sugar-phosphate backbone.
  • Sugar-Phosphate Backbone
    The structural framework of nucleic acids, consisting of alternating sugar and phosphate groups.
  • Directionality
    Orientation of nucleic acid strands, indicated by 5' and 3' ends, affecting polymer structure.
  • Pyrimidines
    Single-ringed nitrogenous bases, including cytosine, thymine, and uracil.
  • Purines
    Double-ringed nitrogenous bases, including adenine and guanine.
  • Base Pairing
    Hydrogen bonding between complementary nitrogenous bases in DNA and RNA.
  • Double Helix
    The twisted ladder structure of DNA, consisting of two antiparallel strands.
  • Antiparallel
    Orientation of DNA strands running in opposite directions, crucial for double helix structure.
  • Deoxyribose
    The sugar in DNA nucleotides, lacking one oxygen atom compared to ribose.
  • Ribose
    The sugar in RNA nucleotides, containing a hydroxyl group at the 2' position.