Nucleic acids arelarge molecules where genetic information is stored. There are two types of nucleic acids:deoxyribonucleic acid, better known asDNA andribonucleic acid, better known asRNA.
The nucleic acids are made ofnucleotides. A nucleotide is made of a nitrogenous base,sugar with five carbon atoms and a phosphate group.
Nucleic acids allow organisms to transfer genetic information from one generation to the next. When a cell divides, its DNA is copied and passed from one cell generation to the next generation.
DNA is organized intochromosomes and found within thenucleus of our cells. Its function in any cell is to carry the sequence of bases which will betranscribed into RNA. The function of RNA is much more difficult to explain. One well-known function is formessenger RNA to betranslated intoproteins, mainlyenzymes. But there are other types of RNA, and these are callednon-coding RNAs.
