What is the difference between Purines And Pyrimidines?

Purines and pyrimidine are nitrogenous bases found in DNA and RNA. They may be similar, but they are totally different in structure. Purines are made up of 2 Carbon nitrogen rings. The molecular formula of purine is C5H4N4. Some amino acids are necessary for purine synthesis. This includes Aspartate, glycine, and glutamine. Adenine and Guanine are the two types of Purines. They make up 2 of the five nucleobases in DNA and RNA.

Purine has a melting point of 214 degrees Celsius. Pyrimidine is made from one carbon-nitrogen ring, and aspartate is the major amino acid present. The molecular formula of a pyrimidine base is C4H4N2. It has a melting point of 20–22 °C, which is much lower than that of purine. There are three types of pyrimidine. These are cytosine, uracil, and thymine. Uracil is present in RNA, while thymine is found in DNA.

Purines and Pyrimidines may seem similar to each other, but they do have differences that people have to know. The structure of these two is different. Purines are composed of double-carbon nitrogen rings with four nitrogen atoms.

Pyrimidines are composed of single-carbon nitrogen rings with nitrogen atoms(2). The size of the purines is bigger than pyrimidines. Their sources are also different from each other. Purines come from the adenine and guanine that can be found in the DNA and RNA. Pyrimidines come from the cytosine that can be found in both RNA and DNA. These differences will help you know which one you are looking at.

Purines and Pyrimidines have both similarities and differences. They share some similarities on the ground that they are both heterocyclic organic compounds. Also, they both serve the same function. Part of their functions is to regulate enzymes and other cells activities in the body. They also help in the production of DNA and RNA, starches and proteins. However, they differ in their compositions. Purines are heterocyclic organic compound that consist of both imidazole and pyrimidine rings and there are four nitrogen carbons in their compounds.

While pyrimidines are a heterocyclic organic compound that has structures in the form of benzene rings with two nitrogen atoms at carbon 1 and 3. Another difference is that, purine contains two rings while pyrimidine contains just a ring, that is why purine tends to have more weight than pyrimidine. The end product of pyrimidine after the body has synthesized it is ammonia and carbon dioxide while the end product of purines is uric acid.