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A nucleotide is a chemical compound that consists of a heterocyclic base, a sugar, and one or more phosphate groups. In the most common nucleotides the base is a derivative of purine or pyrimidine, and the sugar is pentose - deoxyribose or ribose.

Nucleotides are the structural units of RNA, DNA, and several cofactors - CoA, FAD, FMN, NAD, and NADP. In the cell they play important roles in energy production, metabolism, and signaling.


The structure elements of the most common nucleotides

Nomenclature Edit

Nucleotide codes
Code Equivalence Complement
A A T or U
T or U T A
M A or C K
R A or G Y
W A or T W
S C or G S
Y C or T R
K G or T M
V A or C or G B
H A or C or T D
D A or G or T H
B C or G or T V
X or N A or C or G or T X

Nucleotide names are abbreviated into standard four-letter codes. The first letter is lower case and indicates whether the nucleotide in question is a ribonucleotide (r) or deoxyribonucleotide (d). The second letter indicates the nucleoside corresponding to the nucleobase:

G: Guanine
A: Adenine
T: Thymine
C: Cytosine
U: Uracil not usually present in DNA, but takes the place of Thymine in RNA


For example, deoxy-cytidine-triphosphate is abbreviated as dCTP.

Chemical structures Edit

Nucleotides Edit

AMP chemical structure
Adenosine monophosphate
ADP chemical structure
Adenosine diphosphate
ATP chemical structure
Adenosine triphosphate
GMP chemical structure
Guanosine monophosphate
GDP chemical structure
Guanosine diphosphate
GTP chemical structure
Guanosine triphosphate
TMP chemical structure
Thymidine monophosphate
TDP chemical structure
Thymidine diphosphate
TTP chemical structure
Thymidine triphosphate
UMP chemical structure
Uridine monophosphate
UDP chemical structure
Uridine diphosphate
UTP chemical structure
Uridine triphosphate
CMP chemical structure
Cytidine monophosphate
CDP chemical structure
Cytidine diphosphate
CTP chemical structure
Cytidine triphosphate

Deoxynucleotides Edit

DAMP chemical structure
Deoxyadenosine monophosphate
DADP chemical structure
Deoxyadenosine diphosphate
DATP chemical structure
Deoxyadenosine triphosphate
DGMP chemical structure
Deoxyguanosine monophosphate
DGDP chemical structure
Deoxyguanosine diphosphate
DGTP chemical structure
Deoxyguanosine triphosphate
DTMP chemical structure
Deoxythymidine monophosphate
DTDP chemical structure
Deoxythymidine diphosphate
DTTP chemical structure
Deoxythymidine triphosphate
DUMP chemical structure
Deoxyuridine monophosphate
DUDP chemical structure
Deoxyuridine diphosphate
DUTP chemical structure
Deoxyuridine triphosphate
DCMP chemical structure
Deoxycytidine monophosphate
DCDP chemical structure
Deoxycytidine diphosphate
DCTP chemical structure
Deoxycytidine triphosphate



Purine ribonucleotidesEdit

Nucleotides syn1

The synthesis of IMP.

Nucleotides syn3

The biosynthetic origins of purine ring atoms

By using a variety of isotopically labeled compounds it was demonstrated that N1 of purines arises from the amine group of Asp; C2 and C8 originate from formate; N3 and N9 are contributed by the amide group of Gln; C4, C5 and N7 are derived from Gly; and C6 comes from HCO3- (CO2).

The de novo synthesis of purine nucleotides by which these precursors are incorporated into the purine ring, proceeds by a 10 step pathway to the branch point intermediate IMP, the nucleotide of the base hypoxanthine. AMP and GMP are subsequently synthesized from this intermediate via separate, two step each, pathways. Thus purine moieties are initially formed as part of the ribonucleotides rather than as free bases. Six enzymes take part in IMP synthesis. Three of them are multifunctional - GART (reactions 2, 3, and 5), PAICS (reactions 6, and 7) and ATIC (reactions 9, and 10).

Reaction 1. The pathway starts with the formation of PRPP. PRPS1 is the enzyme that activates R5P, which is primarily formed by the pentose phosphate pathway, to PRPP by reacting it with ATP. The reaction is unusual in that a pyrophosphoryl group is directly transferred from ATP to C1 of R5P and that the product has the α configuration about C1. This reaction is also shared with the pathways for the synthesis of the pyrimidine nucleotides, Trp, and His. As a result of being on (a) such (a) major metabolic crossroad and the use of energy, this reaction is highly regulated.

Reaction 2. In the first reaction unique to purine nucleotide biosynthesis, PPAT catalyzes the displacement of PRPP's pyrophosphate group (PPi) by Gln's amide nitrogen. The reaction occurs with the inversion of configuration about ribose C1, thereby forming β-5-phosphorybosylamine (5-PRA) and establishsing the anomeric form of the future nucleotide. This reaction which is driven to completion by the subsequent hydrolysis of the released PPi, is the pathway's flux generating step and is therefore regulated too.

Reaction 3.


Pyrimidine ribonucleotidesEdit

Nucleotides syn2

The synthesis of UMP.
The color scheme is as follows: enzymes, coenzymes, substrate names, inorganic molecules


See also Edit

External links Edit


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