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About Nucleic Acids
Nucleotides serve most notably as an information storage medium in biological systems. Usually in the form of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), nucleotides hold the genetic material, which are the instructions for constructing proteins, cells and even whole organisms. Consequently nucleic acids are a vital part of life. Although a few organisms, notably some viruses, use ribonucleic acid (RNA) as their genetic material, and it has been speculated that simple life forms existed prior to the development of nucleic acids, they are a key component of life on earth.
Nucleotides however are involved in many more biological systems, as described here.
Nucleotides, the building blocks of DNA and RNA are the individual units that join together to form the nucleic aci polymers.
Much of nucleic acid chemistry is based on complementary base pairing, whereby particular nucleobases will interact with certain other bases.
DNA is the genetic material in humans, and many other lifeforms, a stable molecule, it contains the instructions for how to reconstruct an organism.
RNA is another type of nucleic acid that is used as the genetic material in some organisms, but in other organisms has a broader variety of functions, but is especially involved in converting DNA into to protein.
There are other nucleotides that have biological functions other than as part of DNA or RNA.