Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Pyrimidine
| Pyrimidine | |
|---|---|
| Chemical name | Pyrimidine |
| Chemical formula | C4H4N2 |
| Molecular mass | 80.09 g/mol |
| Density | 1.016 g/ml |
| Melting point | 20 - 22 °C |
| Boiling point | 123 - 124 °C |
| CAS number | 289-95-2 |
| SMILES | C1=NC=NC=C1 |
Pyrimidine is a heterocyclic aromatic organic compound, which is similar to benzene and pyridine and that contains two nitrogen atoms at positions 1 and 3 of the six-membered ring.
Three nucleobases found in nucleic acids, namely cytosine, thymine, and uracil, are pyrimidine derivatives. In DNA and RNA, these bases form hydrogen bonds with their complementary purines.
purine pyrimidine A T G C
In RNA, the complement of A is U instead of T:
purine pyrimidine A U G C
| Thymine | Uracil | Cytosine |
These hydrogen bonding modes are for classical Watson-Crick base pairing. Other hydrogen bonding modes are available in both DNA and RNA, although the additional 2'-hydroxyl group of RNA expands the configurations through which RNA can form hydrogen bonds.
See also
- Pyrazine, an analog with the nitrogen atoms in positions 1 and 4.
- Simple aromatic rings
10-26-2009 08:16:03
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details