Nucleic acid was first of all isolated by a scientist Fredrick Meisher in 1870 from the nucleus of the pus cells. Nucleic acids are substances which are responsible for the transmission of hereditary information from one generation to other. Actually nucleic acids are strong acids which were found in the nucleus that is these are called nucleic acids.
Types of Nucleic Acids
There are two types of nucleic acids in different organisms
1. DNA
2. RNA
The fact that DNA is the genetic material of eukaryotic organisms was confirmed by the scientists Griffith, Avery, Macleod and McCarty.
Test Your Understanding and Answer These Questions:
- Define nucleic acids.
- Name the types of nucleic acids.
- Name the scientists who provided the evidence of DNA as a genetic material.