GNA (nucleic acid)

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GNA is glycol nucleic acid, a chemical similar to DNA or RNA but differing in the composition of its "backbone." GNA is not known to occur naturally in existing life on Earth.

DNA and RNA have a deoxyribose and ribose sugar backbone, respectively, whereas GNA's backbone is composed of repeating glycol units linked by phosphodiester bonds. The glycol molecule has just three carbon atoms and still shows Watson-Crick base pairing. Interestingly, the Watson-Crick base pairing is much more stable in GNA than its natural counterparts DNA and RNA as it has requires a high temperature to melt a duplex of GNA. It is possibly the simplest of the nucleic acids, so making it a possible simple precursor to RNA.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

Meggers Laboratory
Simpler than DNA - Chemical and engineering news
The original paper

[edit] References

Zhang, Lilu, Adam Peritz, Eric Meggers (March 2005). "A Simple Glycol Nucleic Acid". J. Am. Chem. Soc 127 (12): 4174-4175.

Nucleic acids and oligonucleotides edit
Nucleobases:	Adenine \| Thymine \| Uracil \| Guanine \| Cytosine \| Purine \| Pyrimidine
Nucleosides:	Adenosine \| Uridine \| Guanosine \| Cytidine \| Deoxyadenosine \| Thymidine \| Deoxyguanosine \| Deoxycytidine
Nucleotides:	AMP \| UMP \| GMP \| CMP \| ADP \| UDP \| GDP \| CDP \| ATP \| UTP \| GTP \| CTP \| cAMP \| cADPR \| cGMP
Deoxynucleotides:	dAMP \| TMP \| dGMP \| dCMP \| dADP \| TDP \| dGDP \| dCDP \| dATP \| TTP \| dGTP \| dCTP
Ribonucleic acids:	RNA \| mRNA \| tRNA \| rRNA \| ncRNA \| sgRNA \| shRNA \| siRNA \| snRNA \| miRNA \| snoRNA \| LNA
Deoxyribonucleic acids:	DNA \| mtDNA \| cDNA \| plasmid \| Cosmid \| BAC \| YAC \| HAC
Analogues of nucleic acids:	GNA \| PNA \| TNA\| LNA \| morpholino
←Amino acids	Major families of biochemicals	Carbohydrates→