What is the backbone for nucleic acids?

The sugar-phosphate backbone forms the structural framework of nucleic acids, including DNA and RNA. This backbone is composed of alternating sugar and phosphate groups, and defines directionality of the molecule. The sugar is the 3′ end, and the phosphate is the 5′ end of each nucleiotide.

What are the elements that consist the nucleic acids?

Nucleic acids contain the same elements as proteins: carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen; plus phosphorous (C, H, O, N, and P). Nucleic acids are very large macromolecules composed of repetitive units of the same building blocks, nucleotides, similar to a pearl necklace made of many pearls.

What is the backbone of a nucleic acid held together by?

phosphodiester bonds
Bases are held together by hydrogen bonds, and the DNA backbone is held together by phosphodiester bonds.

Which substances form the backbone of a nucleic acid molecule?

The sugar and phosphate make up the backbone, while the nitrogen bases are found in the center and hold the two strands together. The nitrogen bases can only pair in a certain way: A pairing with T and C pairing with G. This is called base pairing.

What is the main function of a nucleic acid?

​Nucleic Acid Nucleic acid is an important class of macromolecules found in all cells and viruses. The functions of nucleic acids have to do with the storage and expression of genetic information. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) encodes the information the cell needs to make proteins.

Does DNA contain the base uracil?

Three of the four nitrogenous bases that make up RNA — adenine (A), cytosine (C), and guanine (G) — are also found in DNA. In RNA, however, a base called uracil (U) replaces thymine (T) as the complementary nucleotide to adenine (Figure 3). (Remember, DNA is almost always in a double-stranded helical form.)

What are nucleic acids and why are they important?

Nucleic acid is an important class of macromolecules found in all cells and viruses. The functions of nucleic acids have to do with the storage and expression of genetic information. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) encodes the information the cell needs to make proteins.

Why are nucleic acids so special?

Nucleic acids are the most important macromolecules for the continuity of life. They carry the genetic blueprint of a cell and carry instructions for the functioning of the cell. The two main types of nucleic acids are deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA).

What are the 2 nucleic acids?

“Nucleic acid” is the term we use to describe specific large molecules in the cell. So they’re actually made of polymers of strings of repeating units, and the two most famous of the nucleic acids, that you’ve heard about, are DNA and RNA.