Nucleic acids are made up of three main components:

1. Nitrogenous Bases: These are the "letters" of the genetic code. There are five main nitrogenous bases:

* Adenine (A)

* Guanine (G)

* Cytosine (C)

* Thymine (T) (found in DNA)

* Uracil (U) (found in RNA)

2. Sugar: This is a five-carbon sugar molecule. There are two types:

* Deoxyribose (found in DNA)

* Ribose (found in RNA)

3. Phosphate Group: This is a negatively charged group that links the sugar molecules together.

The combination of a nitrogenous base, a sugar, and a phosphate group forms a nucleotide. Nucleotides are the building blocks of nucleic acids.

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and RNA (ribonucleic acid) are the two main types of nucleic acids. They differ in the type of sugar they contain (deoxyribose vs. ribose) and in one of their nitrogenous bases (thymine vs. uracil).

Here's a summary:

| | DNA | RNA |

|---|---|---|

| Sugar | Deoxyribose | Ribose |

| Nitrogenous Bases | Adenine (A), Guanine (G), Cytosine (C), Thymine (T) | Adenine (A), Guanine (G), Cytosine (C), Uracil (U) |

| Structure | Double helix | Single strand |

| Function | Stores genetic information | Involved in protein synthesis |