nitrogenous base
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A nitrogenous base is an organic molecule that contains nitrogen and participates in forming the building blocks of nucleic acids, i.e. DNA and RNA. There are five types of nitrogenous bases that occur in nucleotides: adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), thymine (T) and uracil (U).
Adenine (A) and guanine (G) are purine bases which have a double-ring structure, whereas cytosine (C), thymine (T) and uracil (U) are pyrimidine bases which have a single-ring structure. In DNA, adenine pairs with thymine, and guanine pairs with cytosine, forming base pairs which are connected by hydrogen bonds.
In RNA, thymine is replaced by uracil, so base pairing occurs between adenine and uracil, and guanine and cytosine. The sequence of nitrogenous bases determines the genetic code, which provides instructions for the synthesis of proteins and the regulation of cellular processes. Therefore, the study of nitrogenous bases is crucial in understanding genetics and molecular biology.
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