Here's a breakdown:

* Nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) are made up of nucleotides. Each nucleotide consists of a sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base.

* The nitrogenous bases are the key to hybridization. They can pair up in a specific way:

* Adenine (A) pairs with Thymine (T) in DNA, or Uracil (U) in RNA.

* Guanine (G) pairs with Cytosine (C).

* These base pairs form hydrogen bonds, which are weak but collectively strong enough to hold two complementary strands of nucleic acid together.

Therefore, nucleic acid hybridization relies on the principle of base pairing to create a stable, double-stranded structure. This principle is essential for many biological processes, including DNA replication, transcription, and translation.