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Messenger RNA Essay

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There are three types of RNA: mRNA, tRNA, and rRNA. Messenger RNA (mRNA) is synthesized from a gene segment of DNA which ultimately contains the information on the primary sequence of amino acids in a protein to be synthesized. The genetic codes is translated is for mRNA, not DNA. The messenger RNA carries the code from the nucleus to the ribosome in the cytoplasm where protein synthesis occurs. It also carries the genetic information copied from the DNA in the form of a series of three-base code “words”, also known as triplets, each of which specifies a particular amino acid. Each nucleotide triplet, called a codon, can be “read” from the mRNA and translated into an amino acid to be incorporated into a protein being synthesized. Messenger RNA is a …show more content…

The tRNA molecules is made up of a single strand of RNA consisting of about 80 nucleotides. By twisting and folding upon itself, tRNA forms several double stranded regions in which short stretched of RNA pair with other stretches. There is a single stranded loop at one end of the RNA and it contains a special triplet of nitrogen bases called an anticodon. The anticodon triple on tRNA is complementary to a triplet codon on the mRNA. At the other end of the tRNA molecule is a site where an amino acid can attach. This specific structure of the tRNA gives tRNA its ability to match a particular nucleic acid word (codon) with its corresponding protein word (amino acid). There are about 45 different type soft RNAs, each with a certain shape and a specific anticodon. The third type of RNA is the ribosomal RNA (rRNA). In the cytoplasm, rRNA and several proteins combine to form a nucleoprotein called a ribosome. The ribosome serves as the site and carries the enzymes necessary for protein synthesis. Ribosomes are where protein synthesis actually takes place; they consist of two subunits – a large subunit and a small

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