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Chapter 24: Problem 12

How do ribonucleotides and deoxyribonucleotides differ in structure? Do they form polymers in the same way?

Short Answer

Expert verified
Ribonucleotides have an -OH at the 2' carbon; deoxyribonucleotides have an H. Both form polymers via phosphodiester bonds.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding the Components

Ribonucleotides and deoxyribonucleotides are both nucleotides, which are the building blocks of nucleic acids. A nucleotide consists of three components: a nitrogenous base, a five-carbon sugar, and one or more phosphate groups.
02

Analyzing the Sugar Component

Ribonucleotides contain the sugar ribose, whereas deoxyribonucleotides contain the sugar deoxyribose. The primary structural difference between the two sugars is that ribose has a hydroxyl group (-OH) at the 2' carbon, while deoxyribose has a hydrogen atom (H) at the 2' carbon.
03

Examining the Polymer Formation

Both ribonucleotides and deoxyribonucleotides form polymers through phosphodiester bonds. These bonds are formed between the 3' hydroxyl group of one nucleotide's sugar and the 5' phosphate group of the next nucleotide, leading to the formation of RNA and DNA, respectively.
04

Comparing the Structural Differences

In summary, the main structural difference lies in the presence of an -OH group in ribonucleotides and an H in deoxyribonucleotides at the 2' carbon of the sugar. Despite this difference, both types of nucleotides form polymers (RNA and DNA) using a similar phosphodiester linkage mechanism.

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Key Concepts

These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.

Ribonucleotides
Ribonucleotides are the building blocks of RNA, a type of nucleic acid that plays a critical role in coding, decoding, and expression of genes. Each ribonucleotide consists of three essential parts:
  • A nitrogenous base: adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), or uracil (U).
  • A five-carbon sugar, ribose, which distinguishes it from other nucleotides due to the presence of a hydroxyl group (-OH) at its 2' carbon.
  • One or more phosphate groups that link the ribonucleotides together.
The hydroxyl group on the ribose makes RNA more reactive and less stable than DNA, which is an important structural feature for its function. Ribonucleotides are integral for the synthesis of RNA strands, which are vital for many biological processes such as protein synthesis.
Deoxyribonucleotides
Deoxyribonucleotides serve as the building blocks of DNA, which stores and transmits genetic information from one generation to the next. Like ribonucleotides, they are composed of:
  • A nitrogenous base: adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), or thymine (T). Note the substitution of uracil (found in RNA) with thymine.
  • A sugar, deoxyribose, which has a hydrogen atom (H) instead of a hydroxyl group at the 2' carbon, providing added stability to the DNA structure.
  • One or more phosphate groups that facilitate the formation of DNA polymers.
The absence of the hydroxyl group on deoxyribose helps stabilize DNA, making it less reactive and ideal for storing lifelong genetic code.
Phosphodiester Bonds
Phosphodiester bonds are crucial for linking nucleotides together to form the backbone of both RNA and DNA polymers. These bonds create strong covalent links between the 3' hydroxyl group of one nucleotide's sugar and the 5' phosphate group of the subsequent nucleotide. This, in turn:
  • Forms a sturdy backbone within the strands of nucleic acids.
  • Allows for the replication and transmission of genetic information.
These bonds are essential for maintaining the structural integrity of nucleic acids, ensuring the strands can withstand various cellular processes without breaking apart.
RNA
RNA, or ribonucleic acid, functions primarily as a messenger that carries instructions from DNA for controlling the synthesis of proteins. It has several forms including messenger RNA (mRNA), transfer RNA (tRNA), and ribosomal RNA (rRNA), each playing unique roles in protein synthesis. RNA is uniquely characterized by:
  • Its single-stranded structure, which provides flexibility enabling it to form various shapes and functions.
  • The presence of uracil instead of thymine, allowing it to easily alternate during the transcription process.
  • Its relatively short lifespan and higher reactivity compared to DNA.
RNA鈥檚 flexibility is key to its diverse functionalities in cellular mechanisms, especially in protein synthesis pathways.
DNA
DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary material found in the cells of all living organisms. It provides the instructions necessary for building and maintaining the organism. DNA is characterized by:
  • Its double-helix structure, allowing it to store genetic material efficiently and safely.
  • Pairing of complementary bases: adenine with thymine (A-T) and cytosine with guanine (C-G).
  • The use of deoxyribonucleotides, which provides stability necessary to preserve genetic information over time.
DNA's ability to self-replicate and encode complex biological information makes it indispensable for life, providing the blueprint that guides cellular functions and organism development.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Natural rubber is an addition polymer of isoprene. Gutta percha is a similar rubber-like material, although its properties are rather different. (It is a hard material at room temperature but softens when heated.) Its structure has the trans form of polyisoprene instead of the cis form present in natural rubber. a. Draw the structure of gutta percha. b. If a sample of gutta percha has an average molecular mass of 250,000 amu, what is the average number of isoprene units in the polymer? c. When you stretch a rubber band, it evolves heat. If the stretched rubber band is then spontaneously allowed to contract to its equilibrium shape, it cools. Does the entropy of rubber increase or decrease when it is stretched?

What is the difference between an addition polymer and a condensation polymer? Give an example of each, writing the equation for its formation.

If a codon consists of four nucleotides, how many codons would be possible? Would this be workable as an aminoacid code?

The genetic code uses four bases taken in groups of three for each code. a. How many of these base groups are possible? b. Is this enough to establish a code for each of the 20 amino acids found in proteins? c. Imagine a genetic code that uses only two bases but uses groups of four of these bases for the genetic code. How many different groups of this type are possible? d. Is this enough to establish a code for each of the 20 amino acids found in proteins? e. Devise a hypothetical code of this type for the 20 amino acids in proteins. Then, using this code, write the base se-

A polymer is hydrolyzed to give an acidic substance and a compound that was found to have properties of an alcohol. When this compound was oxidized, it produced an acid whose molecular mass was found to be \(90.0\) amu. A \(0.145-\mathrm{g}\) sample of this acid is completely neutralized with \(30.5 \mathrm{~mL}\) of \(0.1056 M\) \(\mathrm{NaOH}\) to give a salt. The acid produced a white precipitate with calcium chloride. What was the precipitate that formed? Explain what is happening at each step.
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