GC: n

S: WHO – http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/86/12/07-050120-ab/en/ (last access: 20 July 2016); http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3495036/ (last access: 20 July 2016); http://www.news-medical.net/life-sciences/RNA-Discovery.aspx (last access: 20 July 2016).

N: 1. 1948, abbreviation of ribonucleic acid.
ribonucleic (adj): 1931, from ribo-, comb. form of ribose, the sugar component, + nucleic acid.
2. The discovery of RNA began with the discovery of nucleic acids by Friedrich Miescher in 1868 who called the material ‘nuclein’ since it was found in the nucleus.
3. RNA, abbreviation of ribonucleic acid, complex compound of high molecular weight that functions in cellular protein synthesis and replaces DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) as a carrier of genetic codes in some viruses. RNA consists of ribose nucleotides in strands of varying lengths. The structure varies from helical to uncoiled strands. One type, transfer RNA (tRNA), sometimes called soluble, or activator, RNA, contains fewer than 100 nucleotide units; other types contain thousands of units. The nitrogenous bases in RNA are adenine, guanine, cytosine, and uracil.
4. A number of different types exist, most of which are associated with the synthesis of proteins. These include mRNA (messenger RNA), rRNA (ribosomal RNA), tRNA (transfer RNA) and HnRNA (heterogeneous nuclear RNA).

S: 1. OED – http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=RNA (last access: 20 July 2016). 2. http://www.news-medical.net/life-sciences/RNA-Discovery.aspx (last access: 20 July 2016). 3. EncBrit – https://global.britannica.com/science/RNA (last access: 20 July 2016). 4. TERMIUM PLUS – http://goo.gl/vskz0R (last access: 20 July 2016).

SYN:
S:

CR: DNA, ribosome, translation (2), transcription.