key idea: what are the components of a nucleic acid, how are they formed, and what are the different kinds of nucleic acids?
topic i: nucleotides
nucleotides are the building blocks (monomers) of nucleic acids like dna and rna. a nucleotide has three components: a nitrogenous base, a pentose sugar, and a phosphate group. nucleotides may contain one of five bases (a, t, c, g and u), and one of two pentose sugars (deoxyribose and ribose). the combination and sequential order of these nitrogenous base determines what information the nucleic acid is storing, while the sugar determines if the nucleotide will form dna or rna.

image: nucleotide structure with labels (phosphate, nitrogenous base, pentose sugar) and nitrogenous bases (purines: adenine, guanine; pyrimidines: uracil, thymine, cytosine)

1. what is the monomer of a nucleic acid?
2. label the three parts of a nucleotide on the image of the nucleotide above.
3. what functional group provides the phosphorous to the nucleotide?
4. what are the two options for pentose sugars? how many carbons are in each?
5. what is the difference between a purine and a pyrimidine?
6. what nitrogenous bases are purines? which are pyrimidines?

topic ii: nucleic acids
dna and rna are the two nucleic acids involved in the storage and transmission of genetic information. the primary nucleic acid is dna, which serves as the template to create rna, which is then used as genetic instructions to form proteins. both dna and rna are made up of nucleotides linked together to form chains or strands. the strands vary in the sequence that provides coding for the amino acids that make up proteins.

image: dna/rna synthesis reaction (condensation/hydrolysis)

7. what is the primary type of nucleic acid? what is its purpose?
8. what is the purpose of rna?
9. both dna and rna hold the instructions to create which other type of biomolecule?
10. view the image above. which of the two water-related reactions takes place to synthesize whole strands of dna and rna from individual nucleotide monomers?
11. which two of the three parts of a nucleotide are involved in the reaction to form the backbone of the dna or rna molecule?

Question

key idea: what are the components of a nucleic acid, how are they formed, and what are the different kinds of nucleic acids?
topic i: nucleotides
nucleotides are the building blocks (monomers) of nucleic acids like dna and rna. a nucleotide has three components: a nitrogenous base, a pentose sugar, and a phosphate group. nucleotides may contain one of five bases (a, t, c, g and u), and one of two pentose sugars (deoxyribose and ribose). the combination and sequential order of these nitrogenous base determines what information the nucleic acid is storing, while the sugar determines if the nucleotide will form dna or rna.

image: nucleotide structure with labels (phosphate, nitrogenous base, pentose sugar) and nitrogenous bases (purines: adenine, guanine; pyrimidines: uracil, thymine, cytosine)

1. what is the monomer of a nucleic acid?
2. label the three parts of a nucleotide on the image of the nucleotide above.
3. what functional group provides the phosphorous to the nucleotide?
4. what are the two options for pentose sugars? how many carbons are in each?
5. what is the difference between a purine and a pyrimidine?
6. what nitrogenous bases are purines? which are pyrimidines?

topic ii: nucleic acids
dna and rna are the two nucleic acids involved in the storage and transmission of genetic information. the primary nucleic acid is dna, which serves as the template to create rna, which is then used as genetic instructions to form proteins. both dna and rna are made up of nucleotides linked together to form chains or strands. the strands vary in the sequence that provides coding for the amino acids that make up proteins.

image: dna/rna synthesis reaction (condensation/hydrolysis)

7. what is the primary type of nucleic acid? what is its purpose?
8. what is the purpose of rna?
9. both dna and rna hold the instructions to create which other type of biomolecule?
10. view the image above. which of the two water-related reactions takes place to synthesize whole strands of dna and rna from individual nucleotide monomers?
11. which two of the three parts of a nucleotide are involved in the reaction to form the backbone of the dna or rna molecule?

Accepted Answer

To solve these questions, we analyze each one based on the provided notes and biological concepts:

### Question 1
# Brief Explanations:
Nucleic acids (DNA/RNA) are polymers. Their monomers (building blocks) are nucleotides, as stated in the “Topic I: Nucleotides” section: *“Nucleotides are the building blocks (monomers) of nucleic acids like DNA and RNA.”*
# Answer:
The monomer of a nucleic acid is a **nucleotide**.

### Question 2
# Brief Explanations:
A nucleotide has three components: 1) *Nitrogenous base* (the ring - structured part with nitrogen, e.g., adenine/guanine/uracil/thymine/cytosine), 2) *Pentose sugar* (the 5 - carbon sugar, labeled as “Pentose Sugar” in the diagram, either deoxyribose or ribose), 3) *Phosphate group* (the part with phosphorus, e.g., the “Phosphate” or “$PO_4$ - like” structure in the diagram). On the given nucleotide image, label these three parts accordingly.
# Answer:
On the nucleotide image:
- The ring - shaped structure with nitrogen atoms (e.g., the adenine - like ring in the diagram) is the **nitrogenous base**.
- The 5 - carbon sugar (labeled “Pentose Sugar” with an - OH group) is the **pentose sugar** (deoxyribose or ribose).
- The group with phosphorus (e.g., $HO - P(=O)(O^ - ) - O - $) is the **phosphate group**.

### Question 3
# Brief Explanations:
The phosphate group contains phosphorus (P) in its structure (e.g., $PO_4^{3 - }$ - derived group). From the nucleotide diagram and notes, the phosphate group is the source of phosphorus in a nucleotide.
# Answer:
The **phosphate group** provides the phosphorus to the nucleotide.

### Question 4
# Brief Explanations:
From “Topic I: Nucleotides”: *“one of two pentose sugars (deoxyribose and ribose).”* Pentose sugars have 5 carbon atoms (the prefix “pento - ” means 5).
# Answer:
The two pentose sugar options are **deoxyribose** and **ribose**. Each has $\boldsymbol{5}$ carbons.

### Question 5
# Brief Explanations:
Purines (adenine, guanine) have a double - ring structure (two fused rings: a 6 - membered and a 5 - membered ring). Pyrimidines (uracil, thymine, cytosine) have a single 6 - membered ring structure. This structural difference distinguishes them.
# Answer:
Purines have a **double - ring (fused two - ring) structure**, while pyrimidines have a **single 6 - membered ring structure**.

### Question 6
# Brief Explanations:
From the “Nitrogenous Bases” diagram and notes: Purines are adenine (A) and guanine (G) (double - ring structure). Pyrimidines are uracil (U), thymine (T), and cytosine (C) (single - ring structure).
# Answer:
- Purines: **Adenine (A)** and **Guanine (G)**.
- Pyrimidines: **Uracil (U)**, **Thymine (T)**, and **Cytosine (C)**.

### Question 7
# Brief Explanations:
From “Topic II: Nucleic Acids”: *“The primary nucleic acid is DNA, which serves as the template to create RNA, which is then used as genetic instructions to form proteins.”*
# Answer:
The primary type of nucleic acid is **DNA**. Its purpose is to serve as a template to create RNA (and store genetic information for protein synthesis).

### Question 8
# Brief Explanations:
From “Topic II: Nucleic Acids”: *“RNA, which is then used as genetic instructions to form proteins.”*
# Answer:
The purpose of RNA is to be used as **genetic instructions to form proteins** (and to carry out other roles like translation, but from the notes, this is the key purpose).

### Question 9
# Brief Explanations:
From “Topic II: Nucleic Acids”: *“the sequence that provides coding for the amino acids that make up proteins.”* DNA and RNA hold instructions for protein synthesis, so they code for **proteins**.
# Answer:
Both DNA and RNA hold instructions to create **proteins**.

### Question 10
# Brief Explanations:
To synthesize nucleic acid strands (polymers) from nucleotide monomers, a dehydration synthesis reaction occurs. Dehydration synthesis removes a water molecule to form a covalent bond (e.g., phosphodiester bond) between monomers. The other water - related reaction (hydrolysis) breaks polymers into monomers (adds water), so synthesis uses dehydration.
# Answer:
The **dehydration synthesis** reaction (removes water to link nucleotides) takes place to synthesize DNA/RNA strands from nucleotide monomers.

### Question 11
# Brief Explanations:
The backbone of DNA/RNA is formed by alternating pentose sugars and phosphate groups, linked by phosphodiester bonds. The nitrogenous base is attached to the sugar but not part of the backbone. So the two parts involved are the **pentose sugar** and the **phosphate group**.
# Answer:
The **pentose sugar** and the **phosphate group** are involved in forming the backbone of DNA/RNA.

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