Equilibrium constants for the binding of beryllium(II) to the nucleotides: adenosine 5 0 -monophosphate, -diphosphate, and -triphosphate have been determined. The species formed are [BeL] (zÀ2)À , [Be(HL)] (zÀ3)À , [Be 2 (OH)L 2 ] (2zÀ3)À and [Be 3 (OH) 3 (HL) 3 ] (3zÀ6)À , where L zÀ represents the fully deprotonated nucleotide. When the complex contains a protonated ligand, the protonation site is an adenosine nitrogen. Formation of these complexes is unlikely to interfere, under physiological conditions, with the functioning of the nucleotides due to the precipitation of beryllium hydroxide in the pH range 6-7.