Regularities in the composition of pentose nucleic acids.

Abstract

SINCE the time when they were first proposed1, certain regularities characteristic of deoxypentose nucleic acids in general, regardless of source and composition, have become well established2. The sum of total purine nucleotides equals that of the pyrimidine nucleotides, and the molar ratios of adenine to thymine and of guanine to cytosine (or its analogues) are 1. We wish to report here experimental observations which indicate that similar regularities occur in pentose nucleic acids, with uracil taking the place of thymine.