How Many Types Of Nucleic Acids Are Found In Living Systems?

Introduction

There are two types of nucleic acid in general present in all the living systems which can be bifurcated into Single stranded DNA, Double stranded DNA, Double stranded circular DNA, Single stranded RNA are the various types of nucleic acid. Nucleic acid is the essential component of life. Nucleic acid carrying information for the cell. Nucleic acid is the one type of macromolecule. Nucleic acid was discovered by Friedrich Miescher and it is isolated from white blood cells. The term nucleic acid given by Richard Altman. Nucleic acid is made up of smaller molecules called nucleotides.

How Nucleic Acid Is Discovered

First time scientists Friedrich Miescher gave the term nuclein and at that time DNA and RNA was not differentiated. After that scientists Kossel further purified the discovered substance of Friedrich Miescher and Kossel found that substance has an acidic nature and acidic nature found due to the presence of the nucleobases.

Composition Of Nucleic Acid

Nucleic acid is made up of three different compounds, 1. nitrogenous base, 2. sugar and 3. phosphate group. If nitrogen is base in sugar by then it is called a nucleoside. And nitrogen base, sugar and phosphate group are attached then it is called as nucleotide.

In DNA, 4 Nitrogen bases are present namely Thymine, cytosine, Guanine and cytosine is present. In RNA, four nitrogen bases are present except Thymine, Thymine is absent in RNA and Uracil is present instead of Thymine. In DNA deoxyribose sugar is present and in RNA ribose sugar is present.

Type Of Nucleic Acid

Two types of nucleic acid exist in nature, 1.DNA and 2.RNA. The term nucleic acids given by Richard Altman. There three forms of DNA are found, namely B DNA, Z DNA and A DNA. In the human body B DNA is found. DNA is the highly stable molecule then the RNA. Due to the presence of phosphate groups within the DNA, it gives a negative charge to the DNA. Nucleic acid is present in the nucleus because nuclear membranes protect DNA from DNA degrading enzymes and from the attack of viruses. For the proper folding of DNA into the chromosome and for the protection of nucleic acid, histone protein is present. If we want to purify the DNA or RNA then it requires an electrophoresis method and for their visualization of DNA requires a uv chamber.

1. DNA means Deoxyribonucleic acid. 3D structure of DNA given by Avery, McCarty and MacLeod. DNA able to transfer from one generation to another.

2. RNA means Ribonucleic acid. RNA discovered by Fredrick Miescher. And the structure of RNA was discovered by Alexander Rich.

The Following Are The Similarities Of Nucleic Acid:

• Molecules of nucleic acid, such as DNA and RNA are found in the form of monomers, known as nucleotides.

• These nucleic acid molecules possess four nitrogenous bases.

• Molecules of nucleic acid exhibit a phosphate backbone. With this phosphate backbone, attachment of nitrogenous bases takes place.

The Following Are The Differences Of Nucleic Acid:

1. DNA is a double-stranded molecule, And RNA is a single-stranded molecule.

2. DNA is made up of long chains of nucleotides. And RNA is made up of a shorter chain of nucleotides.

3. Absence of hydroxyl groups in DNA, that make DNA molecules more stable . And RNA molecules have the ribose backbone, the hydroxyl groups make the molecule less stable.

4. In DNA, Sugar is deoxyribose. And in RNA, Sugar part is ribose, Which exhibits a hydroxyl group in the 2’ position of the pentose ring.

5. In DNA, the complementary base pairing of adenine is Thymine. But In RNA, the complementary base pairing of adenine is Uracil.

Central Dogma Of Life

It is the process that occurs within the body for the reading of genomic information inherently present within the DNA. Central dogma of life was discovered by Francis Crick. In the process of central Dogma, DNA information is converted into messenger RNA and messenger RNA converted into the protein. This complete process of conversion is called the transcription process and translation process.

The conversion of information from DNA to messenger RNA is called a transcription process. And this messenger protein contains information about protein. Transcription process found in nucleus. messenger RNA is a Type of single stranded RNA. This messenger RNA goes in cytoplasm for protein synthesis through the nucleopore.

Conversion of messenger RNA into protein is called a translation process. Translation process found in cytoplasm and ribosome involved in translation process. In cytoplasm information of protein present in triplet codon of amino acid. Triplet codon of amino acid read by ribosome.

Function Of Nucleic Acid

• Cell store genetic information permanently in the form of DNA

• DNA control all activity of the cell

• It is the blueprint of organism

• DNA control entry of molecule from outside to inside by the signaling process

• Nucleic acid possessed with protein synthesis information

• It maintains identity of the cell

• it is the self replicating molecule