Adenine
From open-encyclopedia.com - the free encyclopedia.
Adenine is one of the two purine bases used in forming nucleotides of the nucleic acids DNA and RNA. In DNA, adenine (A) binds to thymine (T) to assist in stabilizing the nucleic acid structures. In RNA, adenine binds to uracil (U).
Adenine forms adenosine, a nucleoside, when attached to ribose, and deoxyadenosine when attached to deoxyribose, and it forms adenosine triphosphate (ATP), a nucleotide, when three phosphate groups are added to adenosine. Adenosine triphosphate is used in cellular metabolism as one of the basic methods of transferring chemical energy between reactions.
In older literature, adenine was sometimes called Vitamin B4. However it is no longer considered a true vitamin. (See Vitamin B.) It has a chemical formula of C5H5N5. ca:Adenina de:Adenin es:Adenina eo:Adenino fr:Adénine it:Adenina ja:アデニン nl:Adenine pl:Adenina pt:Adenina sv:Adenin tr:Adenin zh:腺嘌呤
