guanine

/ˈɡwɑː.niːn/

ꞬWⱭː · niːn (2 syllables)

English Noun
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Definition

A substance first obtained from guano; it is a nucleic base and pairs with cytosine in DNA and RNA (by means of three hydrogen bonds).

Etymology

From guano + -ine. Guanine was named by the German chemist Julius Bodo Unger in 1846 who isolated it from guano.

Example Sentences

  • "Then he found them, the substances that made up the four-letter alphabet in whose language all life is written — adenine and cytosine, guanine and thymine."
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