Polünukleotiidi

Polünukleotiidi are naturally occurring polymers composed of nucleotide monomers. Each nucleotide consists of three components: a nitrogenous base, a five-carbon sugar (ribose or deoxyribose), and one or more phosphate groups. These nucleotides are linked together by phosphodiester bonds, forming a long chain. The sequence of these nucleotides is what carries genetic information.

There are two primary types of polünukleotiidi found in biological systems: deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). DNA is typically a double-stranded helix, with the sugar being deoxyribose and the bases being adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), and thymine (T). RNA is usually single-stranded, contains ribose as its sugar, and has uracil (U) in place of thymine, alongside adenine, guanine, and cytosine.

The functions of polünukleotiidi are crucial for life. DNA serves as the primary carrier of genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth, and reproduction of all known organisms and many viruses. RNA plays diverse roles, including messenger RNA (mRNA) which carries genetic code from DNA to ribosomes for protein synthesis, transfer RNA (tRNA) which aids in protein synthesis by bringing amino acids to the ribosome, and ribosomal RNA (rRNA) which is a structural component of ribosomes. Artificial polünukleotiidi can also be synthesized for research and therapeutic purposes.