English Explanatory Dictionary

nucleic acid

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. Any acidic, chainlike biological macromolecule consisting of multiple repeat units of phosphoric acid, sugar and purine and pyrimidine bases; they are involved in the preservation, replication and expression of hereditary information in every living cell

Pronunciation

/njuːˈkliː.ɪk ˈæsɪd/ /njuːˈkleɪ.ɪk ˈæsɪd/ /nuˈkleɪ.ɪk ˈæsɪd/ en-us-nucleic acid.ogg

Word forms

nucleic acid nucleic acids

Etymology

nucleic + acid; named for the fact that in eukaryotes, some of the important actions of such acids are especially associated with the nucleus of the cell.

Synonyms

nucleic acid

Related words

DNA RNA nucleoside nucleotide

Derived words

bridged nucleic acid deoxyribonucleic acid glycol nucleic acid locked nucleic acid nucleic acid analogue peptide nucleic acid ribonucleic acid spherical nucleic acid threonucleic acid threose nucleic acid unlocked nucleic acid xeno nucleic acid
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