Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) are perhaps the most important molecules in cell biology, responsible for the storage and reading of genetic information that underpins all life.

At the heart of molecular biology is the study of genetic material – DNA and RNA – which serve as the fundamental blueprints for life. These nucleic acids are not only essential for understanding how ...

This image illustrates the chemical structures of the five main nucleobases found in DNA and RNA. The pyrimidines, thymine (DNA), uracil (RNA), and cytosine are shown on top while the purines, adenine ...

This image illustrates the chemical structure of a purine molecule, highlighting the numbering of the carbon and nitrogen atoms. The purine structure consists of a pyrimidine ring (positions 1 to 6) ...

The original version of this story appeared in Quanta Magazine. For a molecule of RNA, the world is a dangerous place. Unlike DNA, which can persist for millions of years in its remarkably stable, ...

More of the ingredients for life have been found in meteorites. Space rocks that fell to Earth within the last century contain the five bases that store information in DNA and RNA, scientists report ...

Many writers grouse when an editor makes a change in a story, but the consequences of changing a single word usually aren’t that dire. Not so with genetic instructions for making proteins. Even a ...

Life's instructions are written in DNA, but it is the enzyme RNA polymerase II (Pol II) that reads the script, transcribing ...

Scientists found DNA and RNA components in meteorites. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. Three meteorites contain the molecular ...