Lecture 16 - Genetic changes and protein function Flashcards
What carries out translation?
RIbosomes
Where does translation occur?
the cytoplasm
What is the purpose of translation?
Making a polypeptide chain using the message encoded by mRNA
What does mRNA do?
Tells amino acids the correct order to join together in
What are ribosomes?
complex structures made of protein and rRNA
How do ribosomes work?
They work like enzymes to catalyse protein synthesis (peptide bond reaction)
What are the four unique bases in DNA?
Adenine, Cytosine, Guanine, Thymine
What are the four unique bases in RNA?
Adenine, Cytosine, Guanine, Uracil
How is the four-base code of DNA translated to the 20 different amino acids?
The DNA/RNA is read in sets of three called codons
What is the codon system known as?
Since it is common across all life it is known as the universal genetic code
What reads the codons in mRNA?
tRNA
What is the complementary sequence to the mRNA codon called in tRNA?
anti-codon
What does cytosine pair with?
Guanine
What does adenine pair with?
Thymine (in DNA) or Uracil (in RNA)
What are the key features of tRNA?
- Anticodon
- Amino acid attached
How does tRNA create a peptide chain in the correct order?
Every codon/anti-codon sequence has a particular amino acid that it pairs with. The tRNA attaches to the amino acid and only the amino acid that matches that tRNA molecules anti-codon will be able to attach
What happens during translational initiation?
The ribosome, mRNA, and first tRNA come together to form the translational initiation complex. The first tRNA always codes for Methionine
What happens during translational elongation?
The ribosome moves along the mRNA, adding amino acids to the growing peptide chain
What happens during translational termination?
A stop codon indicates the peptide chain has all the necessary amino acids and causes the translational complex to break apart. The newly formed peptide chain releases
How many possible codons are there?
64
How many amino acids are there?
20