DNA Club

Numbering scheme for the nucleic acid bases:

The 2'-deoxribonucleosides are designated by the above symbols prefixed by d, e.g., dAdo for 2'-deoxyribosyladenine (deoxyadenosine), dThd for 2'-deoxyribosylthymine (thymidine).

Numbering scheme for the 2'deoxyribonucleosides:

Mononucleotides. In the three-letter symbols, mononucleotides are normally expressed as phosphoric esters, such as Ado-3'-P or P-3'-Ado for adenosine, 3'-phosphate P-2'-Guo or Guo-2'-P for guanosine 2'-phosphate, Cyd-5'-P or P-5'-Cyd for cytidine 5'-phosphate.

Cyclic phosphodiesters are designated by two primed numerals, one for each point of attachment, as in Cyd-2':3'-P (or P-2':3'-Cyd) or in Ado-3':5'-P (or P-3':5'- Ado). (The corresponding bisphosphates would be Cyd-2',3'-P2 and Ado-3',5'-P2.)

Nucleoside diphosphate sugars, which center about a pyrophosphate group, are represented by, e.g., Urd-5'PP-Glc for uridine diphosphate glucose, i.e., uridine 5'-(-D-glucopyranosyl diphosphate), often termed UDPG or UDP-Glc.

To learn more visit:
Abbreviations and Symbols for Nucleic Acids, Polynucleotides and their Constituents
Nomenclature for Incompletely Specified Bases in Nucleic Acid Sequences

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