Definition that contains nucleic acid
- base a phosphoric ester of a nucleoside; the basic structural unit of nucleic acids (DNA or RNA)
- virus (virology) ultramicroscopic infectious agent that replicates itself only within cells of living hosts; many are pathogenic; a piece of nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) wrapped in a thin coat of protein
- todd Scottish chemist noted for his research into the structure of nucleic acids (born in 1907)
- mutation (genetics) any event that changes genetic structure; any alteration in the inherited nucleic acid sequence of the genotype of an organism
- ochoa United States biochemist (born in Spain) who studied the biological synthesis of nucleic acids (1905-1993)
- nucleoside a glycoside formed by partial hydrolysis of a nucleic acid
- prion (microbiology) an infectious protein particle similar to a virus but lacking nucleic acid; thought to be the agent responsible for scrapie and other degenerative diseases of the nervous system
- adenosine (biochemistry) a nucleoside that is a structural component of nucleic acids; it is present in all living cells in a combined form as a constituent of DNA and RNA and ADP and ATP and AMP
- restriction enzyme any of the enzymes that cut nucleic acid at specific restriction sites and produce restriction fragments; obtained from bacteria (where they cripple viral invaders); used in recombinant DNA technology
- virion (virology) a complete viral particle; nucleic acid and capsid (and a lipid envelope in some viruses)