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How does deoxyribose differ from ribose?

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Diagram of a DNA polynucleotide chain showing linked deoxyribose sugars, phosphate groups, and nitrogenous bases (adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine), with an inset comparing ribose and uracil in RNA. — Nucleic acid A portion of the polynucleotide chain of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), with an inset showing the corresponding pentose sugar and pyrimidine base in ribonucleic acid (RNA).

Both deoxyribose and ribose are five-carbon sugars that serve as essential structural components in nucleic acids. They alternate with phosphate groups to form the "backbone" of these polymers.12

The primary chemical difference between the two is that deoxyribose—the sugar found in DNA—lacks a hydroxyl group (–OH) on the 2′ carbon of its sugar ring, whereas ribose, found in RNA, possesses this group. This structural distinction is a fundamental reason why DNA and RNA function differently within biological systems.314