Nabil Ahmed Khatri: Nucleic Acids Essay Number Two

What are Nucleic Acids?

Nucleic acids are organic compounds which are made up of phosphorus, nitrogen,

carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The main function of nucleic acids is to store and transmit

genetic information. The monomer unit of nucleic acids is nucleotides. Nucleotides are

composed of a phosphate group, a five-carbon sugar, as well as a nitrogenous base. There

are four different nitrogenous bases and each is found in a DNA molecule. These four

types include adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine. In a typical pair of bases, a

cytosine is always attached to a guanine while an adenine is always attached to a thymine.

The two types of nucleic acids are RNA and DNA. Generally, RNA and DNA are

found in the nucleus of a cell. The first type of nucleic acid is a ribonucleic acid or

otherwise known as RNA. RNA is vital because without it, the DNA molecule would not

be able to control all the activities of cells in an organism. However, unlike the structure

of the DNA molecule which is made up of many strands or chains, the structure of the

RNA molecule only consists of a single strand. Also, unlike DNA which has thymine as a

base, RNA is replaced by uracil. The part of the cell that produces RNA is the nucleolus

which is located in the nucleus. The nucleolus is also the site of protein synthesis.

The other type of nucleic acid is deoxyribonucleic acid or otherwise known as

DNA. DNA is genetic information that is passed on every generation. It is very powerful

because it directs the cell’s activities. DNA is also essential for the development and

growth of organisms. The DNA molecule consists of long chains and is coiled up into a

double helix.

1
Nabil Ahmed Khatri: Nucleic Acids Essay Number Two

There are many differences between RNA and DNA. As I already pointed out,

unlike the RNA molecule which is single stranded, the DNA molecule has many strands.

Also, DNA does not have uracil; however, RNA does have uracil which is a replacement

of thymine. The two nucleic acids are also found in different places of the cell. DNA is

found in the nucleus. However, RNA is found in the nucleolus or in other words, the

central part of the nucleus. The last difference is that RNA contains a sugar ribose. On the

other hand, DNA contains a sugar deoxyribose.

Therefore, nucleic acids are just as important as any of the other macromolecules

which are proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids. Nucleic acids are important because they

transmit hereditary information. There also two types of nucleic acids which are RNA

and DNA. RNA is important because without it, the DNA molecule would not be able to

control all the activities of cells in an organism. DNA is important because it is essential

for the development and of organisms. Just think about it, where would we be without the

wonderful nucleic acids?

[A Nucleic Acid Structure]