Crick and Watson's original paper was entitled "Molecular structure of Nucleic Acids," (1953), Nature 171:737-738. The opening sentence is: "We wish to suggest a structure for the salt of deoxyribose nucleic acid (D.N.A.). This structure has novel features which are of considerable biological interest."
The American Heritage Dictionary, 4th ed. defines "nucleic acid" as
"Any of a group of complex compounds found in all living cells and viruses, composed of purines, pyrimidines, carbohydrates, and phosphoric acid. Nucleic acids in the form of DNA and RNA control cellular function and heredity."
However, looking at [[Talk:DNA]] and the descriptions of the changes on the page, history, I don't see any obvious dispute framed in terms of whether "whether DNA is a nucleic acid."
-- Daniel P. B. Smith, dpbsmith@world.std.com alternate: dpbsmith@alum.mit.edu "Elinor Goulding Smith's Great Big Messy Book" is now back in print! Sample chapter at http://world.std.com/~dpbsmith/messy.html Buy it at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1403314063/