What is a nucleic acid made of?

A nucleic acid is a long molecule made up of smaller molecules called nucleotides. Nucleic acids were discovered in 1868, when twenty-four-year-old Swiss physician Friedrich Miescher isolated a new compound from the nuclei of white blood cells.

Is there a formula for DNA?

The sum formula of AGCU is C38H48O26N15P3. The deprotonated formulae are C39H47O22N15P33− (dAGCT) and C38H45O26N15P33− (AGCU)….Calculating the sum formula.

Base Formula (DNA) Formula (RNA)
C C9H12O6N3P C9H12O7N3P
T C10H13O7N2P (C10H13O8N2P)
U (C9H11O7N2P) C9H11O8N2P

How do you write nucleic acids?

In writing nucleotide sequences for nucleic acids, the convention is to write the nucleotides (usually using the one-letter abbreviations for the bases, shown in Figure 19.5 “Structure of a Segment of DNA”) starting with the nucleotide having a free phosphate group, which is known as the 5′ end, and indicate the …

What is the code for nucleic acids?

Nucleotides combine in a three-letter code, called the genetic code, to provide instructions for creating proteins. Each nucleotide triplet or codon is translated into a specific amino acid (Table 2). For example, the nucleotides UUC code for the amino acid phenylalanine (Phe).

Which molecule is a nucleotide?

A molecule consisting of a nitrogen-containing base (adenine, guanine, thymine, or cytosine in DNA; adenine, guanine, uracil, or cytosine in RNA), a phosphate group, and a sugar (deoxyribose in DNA; ribose in RNA).

Is a nucleic acid DNA or RNA?

The two main classes of nucleic acids are deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). If the sugar is ribose, the polymer is RNA; if the sugar is the ribose derivative deoxyribose, the polymer is DNA.

What is the formula of RNA?

RNA (poly(U))

PubChem CID 439261
Molecular Formula C27H34N6O22P2
Synonyms RNA (poly(U)) C00549 CHEBI:8758
Molecular Weight 856.5
Dates Modify 2022-05-28 Create 2005-06-24

What does 5 and 3 mean in DNA?

Each end of DNA molecule has a number. One end is referred to as 5′ (five prime) and the other end is referred to as 3′ (three prime). The 5′ and 3′ designations refer to the number of carbon atom in a deoxyribose sugar molecule to which a phosphate group bonds.

What is the monomer of nucleic acid?

nucleotides
Nucleic acids are giant biomolecules made of monomers called nucleotides. Nucleotides have three components: pentose sugar (5-carbon sugar), phosphate group, and nitrogenous base.

What are the 4 nucleotides of DNA?

There are four nucleotides, or bases, in DNA: adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G), and thymine (T). These bases form specific pairs (A with T, and G with C).