Question
Chemistry Question on Biomolecules
Nucleotides are building blocks of nucleic acids. Each nucleotide is a composite molecule formed by
A
Base-sugar-phosphate
B
Base-sUgar-OH
C
(Base-sugar-phosphate)n
D
Sugar-phosphate
Answer
Base-sugar-phosphate
Explanation
Solution
Each nucleotide consists of three distinct units - a phosphate group derived from phosphoric acid, a pentose sugar and a ring shaped nitrogenous base. The base-sugar combination without phosphate group is called nucleoside. A nucleotide is formed by the reaction of sugar portion of a nucleoside with phosphoric acid through dehydration synthesis, e.g. Adenosine monophosphate - composed of ribose, adenine and phosphate.