[Nucleic Acid Master Menu]


[-DNA & RNA Code of Life

The diagram above illustrates a ribosome. Ribosomes are the site of translation or protein synthesis.

A ribosome consists of 2 smaller subunits made of a special type of RNA known as ribosomal RNA or r-RNA for short.

A ribosome has 2 places in it (the P and A sites) where 2 transfer RNA molecules can sit side by side. When 2 t-RNA molecules are there, the 2 amino acid molecules that they carry will be bonded together. As the t-RNA molecule moves along a messenger RNA molecule, it reads the code (originally found in DNA) and places new t-RNA molecules at the P and A sites. New bonds are formed between the amino acids they carry and soon, when many amino acids have been linked, a protein is formed.

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