Characteristic	DNA	RNA
Composed of nucleotides	Yes	Yes
Type of sugar	Deoxyribose	Ribose
Presence of 2′-OH group	No	Yes
Bases	A, G, C, T	A, G, C, U
Nucleotides joined by phosphodiester bonds	Yes	Yes
Double or single stranded	Usually double	Usually single
Secondary structure	Double helix	Many types
Stability	Stable	Easily degraded