Nucleic acids and nucleotides

There are two types of nucleic acid
- DNA
- RNA
A nucleic acid is very large molecules that are constructed/maybe by linking together nucleotides to form polymers.
- They consist of three parts:
  - Sugar; 5 carbon atoms
  - Phospate group; acidic and -ve charged (Covalent bonds)
  - Base; nitrogen with one or two rings (Covalent bonds)
- In order to link nucleotides into a chain, a covalent bond is formed b/n the phosphate and a pentose sugar.
Four d/f bases in DNA and RNA; four d/f nucleotides.
- It can be linked together in any sequence; due to the same sugar and phosphate used to link the bonds.
- Any base sequence is possible, which is the key to nucleic acids acting as a store of genetic information.
  - The base sequence is the store of info. and the sugar-phosphate backbone ensures that the store is stable and secure.