Nucleic acid structure refers to the arrangement of nucleotides in DNA and RNA, which determines their function and interaction with other molecules. The primary structure is the sequence of nucleotides, while secondary and tertiary structures involve the folding and 3D conformation critical for biological activity.
Electron Capture Dissociation (ECD) is a mass spectrometry technique used to fragment gas-phase ions by capturing low-energy electrons, leading to the cleavage of N-Cα bonds in peptides and proteins. This method provides valuable information about the primary structure of biomolecules, preserving labile post-translational modifications that are often lost in other fragmentation techniques.