adenine
(A-deh-neen)
A chemical compound that is used to make one of the building blocks of DNA and RNA. It is also a part of many substances in the body that give energy to cells. Adenine is a type of purine.
Enlarge this image in new windowStructure of DNA. Most DNA is found inside the nucleus of a cell, where it forms the chromosomes. Chromosomes have proteins called histones that bind to DNA. DNA has two strands that twist into the shape of a spiral ladder called a helix. DNA is made up of four building blocks called nucleotides: adenine (A), thymine (T), guanine (G), and cytosine (C). The nucleotides attach to each other (A with T, and G with C) to form chemical bonds called base pairs, which connect the two DNA strands. Genes are short pieces of DNA that carry specific genetic information.