Message #26555

[Jennie McGrath]

Nucleotides

  Deoxyribose Adenine Thymine Deoxyribose
(C5OH7) (C5H4N5) (C5H5N2O2) (C5OH7)
Phosphate Phosphate
(PO4) (PO4)
Deoxyribose Cytosine Guanine Deoxyribose
(C5OH7) (C4H4N3O) (C5H4N5O) (C5OH7)
Phosphate Phosphate
(PO4) (PO4)



The nucleotides are described as sequences of the five atoms that appear on the preceding line. Each sequence represents the molecular formula of the nucleotide as incorporated into DNA (as opposed to the free form of the nucleotide).

For example, deoxyribose (C5OH7 in DNA, C5O4H10 when free), the nucleotide in the top left in the image, is read as:

11000
10000
11010
XXXXX
-----
75010
i.e. 7 atoms of hydrogen, 5 atoms of carbon, 0 atoms of nitrogen, 1 atom of oxygen, and 0 atoms of phosphorus.