List the 3 parts of a nucleotide in simple terms

Answer 1

A nucleotide consists of three main parts:

1. Phosphate Group: A small molecule made of phosphorus and oxygen; it helps link nucleotides together.

2. Sugar: A five-carbon sugar molecule (deoxyribose in DNA and ribose in RNA) that forms the backbone of the nucleotide.

3. Nitrogenous Base: A nitrogen-containing molecule that varies between different nucleotides; there are four types in DNA (adenine, thymine, cytosine, guanine) and four types in RNA (adenine, uracil, cytosine, guanine).

Together, these parts make up the building blocks of DNA and RNA.