How are both Nucleic Acids and Proteins considered polymers?
Both are made from smaller subunits that are joined by covalent bonds. In the case of proteins, these subunits are called amino acids. They are joined by special covalent bonds called peptide bonds. In the case of nucleic acids, the subunits are called nucleotides, which are a combination of a sugar (ribose or deoxyribose), phosphate group, and one of four possible bases (adenine, thymine, guanine, or cytosine). The nucleotides are covalently bonded along the “ladder” of the DNA molecule. Another feature of polymers is that the covalent bond that links the subunits (or monomers) is formed by dehydration synthesis, that is, a removal of a water molecule.
