Biological Molecules: Nucleic Acids
Nucleic Acids • Cytosine, thymine, and uracil are classified as
• Nucleic acids are the most important pyrimidines which have a single carbon-
macromolecules for the continuity of life. nitrogen ring as their primary structure.
• They carry the genetic blueprint of a cell and • The pentose sugar in DNA is deoxyribose, and
carry instructions for the functioning of the cell. in RNA, the sugar is ribose.
• The two main types of nucleic acids are
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic
acid (RNA).
• DNA and RNA are made up of monomers
known as nucleotides.
• The nucleotides combine with each other to
form a polynucleotide, DNA or RNA.
• Each nucleotide is made up of three
components: a nitrogenous base, a pentose
sugar, and a phosphate group.
o Each nitrogenous base in a nucleotide is
attached to a sugar molecule, which is
attached to one or more phosphate groups.
Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA)
• DNA is the genetic material found in all living
organisms.
• The entire genetic content of a cell is known as
its genome, and the study of genomes is
genomics.
• DNA has a double-helix structure.
• Only certain types of base pairing are allowed.
A can pair with T, and G can pair with C. This is
known as the base complementary rule. In other
words, the DNA strands are complementary to
each other.
Ribonucleic Acid (RNA)
• RNA is mostly involved in protein synthesis.
• The DNA molecules never leave the nucleus but
instead use an intermediary to communicate
with the rest of the cell. This intermediary is
the messenger RNA (mRNA).
• Other types of RNA—like rRNA, tRNA, and
microRNA—are involved in protein synthesis
and its regulation.
• RNA is usually single-stranded and is made of
• Each nucleotide in DNA contains one of four ribonucleotides that are linked by
possible nitrogenous bases: adenine (A), phosphodiester bonds.
guanine (G) cytosine (C), and thymine (T). • A ribonucleotide in the RNA chain contains
• Adenine and guanine are classified as purines. ribose (the pentose sugar), one of the four
The primary structure of a purine is two nitrogenous bases (A, U, G, and C), and the
carbon-nitrogen rings. phosphate group.
Transfer RNA (tRNA)
• one of the smallest of the four types of RNA,
usually 70–90 nucleotides long. It carries the
correct amino acid to the site of protein
synthesis.
Micro RNA (miRNA)
• the smallest RNA molecules and their role
involves the regulation of gene expression by
interfering with the expression of certain mRNA
messages.
Information flow in an organism takes place from
DNA to RNA to protein. DNA dictates the structure of
MRNA in a process known as transcription, and RNA
dictates the structure of protein in a process known
as translation. This is known as the central dogma of
life, which holds true for all organisms; however,
exceptions to the rule occur in connection with viral
infections.
TYPES OF RNA
Messenger RNA (mRNA)
• carries the message from DNA, which controls
all of the cellular activities in a cell. If a cell
requires a certain protein to be synthesized,
the gene for this product is turned “on” and the
messenger RNA is synthesized in the nucleus.
The mRNA is read in sets of three bases known
as codons. Each codon codes for a single amino
acid.
Ribosomal RNA (rRNA)
• a major constituent of ribosomes on which the
mRNA binds. The rRNA ensures the proper
alignment of the mRNA and the ribosomes; the
rRNA of the ribosome also has an enzymatic
activity (peptidyl transferase) and catalyzes the
formation of the peptide bonds between two
aligned amino acids.
