Other chapters in Help Me Understand Genetics. Genetics Home Reference has merged with MedlinePlus. Learn more. The information on this site should not be used as a substitute for professional medical care or advice. Contact a health care provider if you have questions about your health. What are mRNA vaccines and how do they work? Figure 1: A gene is expressed through the processes of transcription and translation.
The pre-mRNA is processed to form a mature mRNA molecule that can be translated to build the protein molecule polypeptide encoded by the original gene. Figure Detail During translation , which is the second major step in gene expression , the mRNA is "read" according to the genetic code , which relates the DNA sequence to the amino acid sequence in proteins Figure 2.
Each group of three bases in mRNA constitutes a codon , and each codon specifies a particular amino acid hence, it is a triplet code. The mRNA sequence is thus used as a template to assemble—in order—the chain of amino acids that form a protein. Figure 2: The amino acids specified by each mRNA codon. Multiple codons can code for the same amino acid. The codons are written 5' to 3', as they appear in the mRNA.
Figure Detail But where does translation take place within a cell? What individual substeps are a part of this process? And does translation differ between prokaryotes and eukaryotes? The answers to questions such as these reveal a great deal about the essential similarities between all species.
Within all cells, the translation machinery resides within a specialized organelle called the ribosome. In eukaryotes, mature mRNA molecules must leave the nucleus and travel to the cytoplasm , where the ribosomes are located.
On the other hand, in prokaryotic organisms, ribosomes can attach to mRNA while it is still being transcribed.
In all types of cells, the ribosome is composed of two subunits: the large 50S subunit and the small 30S subunit S, for svedberg unit, is a measure of sedimentation velocity and, therefore, mass. Each subunit exists separately in the cytoplasm, but the two join together on the mRNA molecule. The tRNA molecules are adaptor molecules—they have one end that can read the triplet code in the mRNA through complementary base-pairing, and another end that attaches to a specific amino acid Chapeville et al.
The idea that tRNA was an adaptor molecule was first proposed by Francis Crick, co-discoverer of DNA structure, who did much of the key work in deciphering the genetic code Crick, The rRNA catalyzes the attachment of each new amino acid to the growing chain.
Interestingly, not all regions of an mRNA molecule correspond to particular amino acids. In particular, there is an area near the 5' end of the molecule that is known as the untranslated region UTR or leader sequence. This portion of mRNA is located between the first nucleotide that is transcribed and the start codon AUG of the coding region, and it does not affect the sequence of amino acids in a protein Figure 3.
So, what is the purpose of the UTR? It turns out that the leader sequence is important because it contains a ribosome-binding site. A similar site in vertebrates was characterized by Marilyn Kozak and is thus known as the Kozak box.
If the leader is long, it may contain regulatory sequences, including binding sites for proteins, that can affect the stability of the mRNA or the efficiency of its translation. Figure 4: The translation initiation complex. When translation begins, the small subunit of the ribosome and an initiator tRNA molecule assemble on the mRNA transcript. The small subunit of the ribosome has three binding sites: an amino acid site A , a polypeptide site P , and an exit site E.
Here, the initiator tRNA molecule is shown binding after the small ribosomal subunit has assembled on the mRNA; the order in which this occurs is unique to prokaryotic cells.
In eukaryotes, the free initiator tRNA first binds the small ribosomal subunit to form a complex. Figure Detail Although methionine Met is the first amino acid incorporated into any new protein, it is not always the first amino acid in mature proteins—in many proteins, methionine is removed after translation.
In fact, if a large number of proteins are sequenced and compared with their known gene sequences, methionine or formylmethionine occurs at the N-terminus of all of them. However, not all amino acids are equally likely to occur second in the chain, and the second amino acid influences whether the initial methionine is enzymatically removed.
For example, many proteins begin with methionine followed by alanine. In both prokaryotes and eukaryotes, these proteins have the methionine removed, so that alanine becomes the N-terminal amino acid Table 1. However, if the second amino acid is lysine, which is also frequently the case, methionine is not removed at least in the sample proteins that have been studied thus far. These proteins therefore begin with methionine followed by lysine Flinta et al.
Table 1 shows the N-terminal sequences of proteins in prokaryotes and eukaryotes, based on a sample of prokaryotic and eukaryotic proteins Flinta et al. In the table, M represents methionine, A represents alanine, K represents lysine, S represents serine, and T represents threonine. Sections of the DNA code are transcribed into shortened messages that are instructions for making proteins. These messages — the mRNA — are transported out to the main part of the cell.
Once the mRNA arrives, the cell can produce particular proteins from these instructions. Identical copies of DNA reside in every single cell of an organism, from a lung cell to a muscle cell to a neuron. RNA is produced as needed in response to the dynamic cellular environment and the immediate needs of the body. As the intermediary messenger, mRNA is an important safety mechanism in the cell.
It prevents invaders from hijacking the cellular machinery to produce foreign proteins because any RNA outside of the cell is instantaneously targeted for destruction by enzymes called RNases. RNA is produced as needed in response to the dynamic cellular environment and the immediate needs of the body.
As the intermediary messenger, mRNA is an important safety mechanism in the cell. It prevents invaders from hijacking the cellular machinery to produce foreign proteins because any RNA outside of the cell is instantaneously targeted for destruction by enzymes called RNases. When these enzymes recognize the structure and the U in the RNA code, they erase the message, protecting the cell from false instructions. No cell wants to produce every protein described in your whole genome all at once.
Messenger RNA instructions are timed to self-destruct, like a disappearing text or snapchat message. Structural features of the mRNA — the U in the code, its single-stranded shape, ribose sugar and its specific sequence — ensure that the mRNA has a short half-life. Once the instructions vanish, protein production stops until the protein factories receive a new message.
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