Nucleic acid, Nucleic acid: A large biological macromolecule (polymer) made up of repeating chains of nucleotides that stores, expresses, and transmits genetic information in living cells. The two primary types of nucleic acids are deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), which stores genetic code, and ribonucleic acid (RNA), which carries instructions to build proteins., nucleotide, The basic chemical building block (monomer) of nucleic acids like DNA and RNA, composed of three main parts linked together: a phosphate group, a pentose sugar (deoxyribose or ribose), and a nitrogenous base (adenine, thymine, guanine, cytosine, or uracil)., Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), A double-stranded nucleic acid that stores and transmits genetic information in living organisms., Ribonucleic acid, A single-stranded nucleic acid involved in protein synthesis and carrying genetic code from DNA to the ribosomes., phosphate, A chemical group (PO43-) that links with pentose sugars to form the structural outer frame of nucleic acids., Pentose sugar, A 5-carbon sugar molecule that forms part of the backbone of nucleotides., Deoxyribose sugar, The 5-carbon sugar found specifically in DNA nucleotides (lacks one oxygen atom compared to ribose)., Ribose sugar, The 5-carbon sugar found specifically in RNA nucleotides., Nitrogenous base, A nitrogen-containing organic molecule attached to a sugar in a nucleotide that acts as the "letter" of the genetic code., Sugar-phosphate backbone, The structural outer frame of DNA and RNA formed by alternating pentose sugar and phosphate groups., Base pair, Two nitrogenous bases linked together across the center of a DNA molecule (e.g., A–T or G–C)., Double helix, The twisted ladder shape formed by the two complementary strands of DNA., antiparallel, The orientation of the two DNA strands running parallel to each other but in opposite directions (5'3' and 3'5')., Complementary base pairing, The rule that specific bases bond only with each other: Adenine with Thymine (or Uracil in RNA), and Guanine with Cytosine., adenine, A nitrogenous base found in both DNA and RNA; pairs with thymine in DNA and uracil in RNA., thymine, A nitrogenous base found only in DNA; pairs with adenine., guanine, A nitrogenous base found in both DNA and RNA; pairs with cytosine., cytosine, A nitrogenous base found in both DNA and RNA; pairs with guanine., uracil, A nitrogenous base found only in RNA, replacing thymine to pair with adenine., Hydrogen bond, A weak chemical bond that holds opposing nitrogenous bases together down the center of the DNA double helix., Chargaff’s rule, The observation that in DNA, the amount of adenine equal amounts of thymine (A=T), and guanine equal amounts of cytosine (G=C)., DNA replication, The biological process by which a cell creates an exact duplicate copy of its DNA before cell division., helicase, An enzyme that unzips and unwinds the DNA double helix by breaking the hydrogen bonds between base pairs., polymerase, An enzyme that builds the new DNA strand by matching and joining complementary nucleotides to the template strand., chromosome, A tightly coiled, thread-like structure of DNA and proteins found in the nucleus that carries genetic information., genome, The complete set of genetic material present in an organism or cell., gene, A specific segment of DNA that contains the instructions for making a protein or functional RNA., protein, A complex molecule made up of one or more chains of amino acids that performs essential structural and metabolic functions in the cell., Amino acid, The basic building block (monomer) used to assemble proteins., Semi-conservative replication, The mechanism of DNA replication where each newly formed DNA molecule consists of one original parent strand and one newly synthesized daughter strand.

Nucleic Acid

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