Nucleotides and Nucleic Acids Flashcards

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the fundamental components, structural linkages, and naming conventions of nucleotides and nucleic acids based on Chapter 8 of Biological Chemistry.

Nucleic acids

The overall name for DNA and RNA, which are organic polymers of nucleotides essential to all known forms of life that direct and control protein synthesis.

Nucleotide

An organic compound formed by a nitrogenous (nitrogen-containing) base, a pentose sugar, and a phosphate group.

Anomeric carbon

The specific carbon of the sugar ($D ext{-ribose}$ in RNA or $2' ext{-deoxy-D-ribose}$ in DNA) that is bonded to a heterocyclic amine base via a eta ext{-glycosidic} linkage.

Purine

One of the two parent compounds for nitrogenous bases; it consists of a nine-membered ring system and includes adenine ($A$) and guanine ($G$).

Pyrimidine

One of the two parent compounds for nitrogenous bases; it consists of a six-membered ring system and includes cytosine ($C$), thymine ($T$), and uracil ($U$).

Thymine ($T$)

A substituted pyrimidine base found in DNA but not in RNA.

Uracil ($U$)

A substituted pyrimidine base found in RNA but not in DNA.

eta ext{-furanose} form

The closed five-membered ring structure adopted by the pentose sugars in nucleotide units.

N ext{-}eta ext{-glycosyl} bond

The covalent bond joining the base to the $1$ carbon of the pentose, specifically at $N-1$ for pyrimidines and $N-9$ for purines.

Nucleoside

A compound containing a base bonded to $D ext{-ribose}$ or $2' ext{-deoxy-D-ribose}$, without the phosphate group.

Primed numbers

The numbering system (e.g., $1'$, $2'$) used to identify the ring positions of the sugar component in a nucleoside to distinguish them from the positions on the base.

Kinases

Specific enzymes in the cell that produce nucleotides by phosphorylating nucleosides on the sugar's alcohol group ($-CH_2 ext{-OH}$).

Phosphodiester

The linkage that connects the sugar of one nucleotide to the sugar of the next nucleotide in a nucleic acid chain.

Suffix "-idine"

The naming convention used for a nucleoside derived from a pyrimidine base.

Suffix "-osine"

The naming convention used for a nucleoside derived from a purine base.