Question

What is nucleoside?

Hint:

Nucleosides are precursors to nucleotides, which are the building blocks of nucleic acids such as DNA and RNA.

Answer 1

Step 1: Understand the structure of a nucleoside.
A nucleoside is made up of two components: 1. A nitrogenous base: This can be a purine (adenine or guanine) or a pyrimidine (cytosine, thymine, or uracil). 2. A sugar: This can either be ribose (in RNA) or deoxyribose (in DNA).
Step 2: Difference between nucleosides and nucleotides.
A nucleoside consists of the nitrogenous base and sugar, while a nucleotide also includes a phosphate group. The phosphate group is what distinguishes a nucleotide from a nucleoside.
Step 3: Examples of nucleosides.
- Adenosine (Adenine + Ribose) - Guanosine (Guanine + Ribose) - Thymidine (Thymine + Deoxyribose)
Final Answer: \[ \boxed{\text{A nucleoside is a compound consisting of a nitrogenous base and a sugar molecule without a phosphate group.}} \]