Open Question
Name and draw the structures of amino acids that fit the following descriptions. (a) Contains an isopropyl group (b) Contains an alcohol group (c) Contains a thiol group (d) Contains an aromatic ring
Ch.23 - Organic and Biological Chemistry
Chapter 23, Problem 126
What is a nucleotide, and what three kinds of components does it contain?
Verified step by step guidance1
A nucleotide is a basic building block of nucleic acids, such as DNA and RNA, which are essential for storing and transmitting genetic information in living organisms.
Nucleotides consist of three main components: a nitrogenous base, a five-carbon sugar, and a phosphate group.
The nitrogenous base can be one of the following: adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), thymine (T) in DNA, or uracil (U) in RNA.
The five-carbon sugar is either deoxyribose in DNA or ribose in RNA, which differentiates the two types of nucleic acids.
The phosphate group is attached to the sugar molecule and links nucleotides together through phosphodiester bonds to form the backbone of nucleic acid strands.
Related Practice
Open Question
Use the three-letter abbreviations to name all tripeptides containing methionine, isoleucine, and lysine.
Open Question
How many tetrapeptides containing alanine, serine, leucine, and glutamic acid can you form? Use the three-letter abbreviations to name three.
Open Question
What are the names of the sugars in DNA and RNA, and how do they differ?
Open Question
Show by drawing structures how the phosphate and sugar components of a nucleic acid are joined.
Open Question
Show by drawing structures how the sugar and nitrogenous base components of a nucleic acid are joined.