Question

dna and rna are nucleic acids that can store biological information based on the sequence of their nucleotide monomers. figure 1 shows a short segment of each of the two types of nucleic acids. which of the following best describes a structural difference between dna and rna? a dna contains four types of nitrogenous bases, whereas rna contains only two types of nitrogenous bases. b the backbone of dna contains deoxyribose, whereas the backbone of rna contains ribose. c a dna molecule is composed of two parallel strands with the same 5’ to 3’ directionality, whereas an rna molecule is composed of only one 5’ to 3’ strand. d phosphate groups provide rigidity to dna, but rna is flexible and contains no phosphate groups.

Explanation:

DNA has deoxyribose in its backbone, RNA has ribose. Both have 4 nitrogen - bases. DNA strands are anti - parallel. RNA has phosphate groups.

Answer:

B. The backbone of DNA contains deoxyribose, whereas the backbone of RNA contains ribose.