"I've heard that researchers can isolate DNA from our mitochondria which is different from our nuclear DNA, but where is this mitochondrial DNA in the mitochondria?" PARINYA
Nucleic acids allow organisms to transfer genetic information from one generation to the next. There are two types of nucleic acids: deoxyribonucleic acid better known as DNA and ribonucleic acid, better known as RNA.
When a cell divides, its DNA is copied and passed from one cell generation to the next generation. As we have explored before, DNA contains the "programmatic instructions" for cellular activities. When organisms produce offspring, these instructions, in the form of DNA, are passed down.
RNA is involved in the synthesis of proteins. "Information" is typically passed from DNA to RNA to the resulting proteins.
Nucleotides
Nucleic acids are composed of nucleotide monomers.
Similar to what we have seen with protein monomers, nucleotides are linked to each other through dehydration synthesis.
Interestingly, some nucleotides perform important cellular functions as "individual" molecules, the most common example being ATP.
Polynucleotides
In polynucleotides, nucleotides are joined to one another by covalent bonds between the phosphate of one and the sugar of another. These linkages are called phosphodiester linkages.
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