ribonucleic acid
Sign in to savethumb|A hairpin loop from a pre-mRNA. Highlighted are the nucleobases (green) and the ribose-phosphate backbone (blue). This is a single strand of RNA that folds back upon itself.
AI overview
Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a molecule made up of a sugar-phosphate backbone with nucleobases attached, similar in structure to DNA but typically existing as a single strand that can fold back on itself. RNA plays a crucial role in cells by helping to decode genetic information and carry out the instructions stored in DNA.
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Article
28 sectionsContents
- Chemical structure of RNA
- Basic chemical composition
- Differences between DNA and RNA
- Secondary and tertiary structures
- Chemical modifications
- Types of RNA
- RNAs involved in protein synthesis
- Regulatory RNA
- MicroRNA (miRNA) and small interfering RNA (siRNA)
- Long non-coding RNAs
- Enhancer RNAs
- Small RNA in prokaryotes
- Small RNA
- CRISPR RNA
- RNA synthesis and processing
- Synthesis
- RNA processing
- RNA in genetics
- RNA genomes
- Reverse transcription
- Double-stranded RNA
- Circular RNA
- Key discoveries in RNA biology
- Relevance for prebiotic chemistry and abiogenesis
- Medical applications
- See also
- References
- External links
thumb|A hairpin loop from a pre-mRNA. Highlighted are the nucleobases (green) and the ribose-phosphate backbone (blue). This is a single strand of RNA that folds back upon itself.
Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a polymeric molecule that is essential for most biological functions, either by performing the function itself (non-coding RNA) or by forming a template for the production of proteins (messenger RNA). RNA and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) are nucleic acids. The nucleic acids constitute one of the four major macromolecules essential for all known forms of life. RNA is assembled as a chain of nucleotides. Cellular organisms use messenger RNA (mRNA) to convey genetic information (using the nitrogenous bases of guanine, uracil, adenine, and cytosine, denoted by the letters G, U, A, and C) that directs synthesis of specific proteins. Many viruses encode their genetic information using an RNA genome.