The genetic code is the set of rules by which information encoded in genetic material (DNA or RNA sequences) is translated into proteins (amino acid sequences) by living cells.
*The genetic code consists of the sequence of bases in DNA or RNA. *Groups of three bases form codons, and each codon stands for one amino acid (or start or stop). *The codons are read in sequence following the start codon until a stop codon is reached.* The genetic code is universal, unambiguous, and redundant.
Related questions
Why is genetic code important?
The genetic code is (nearly) universal
A genetic code shared by diverse organisms provides important evidence for the common origin of life on Earth. That is, the many species on Earth today likely evolved from an ancestral organism in which the genetic code was already present.
What is the universal genetic code?
DNA is considered a universal genetic code because every known living organism has genes made of DNA. Bacteria, fungi, cats, plants, and you: every organism uses DNA to store genetic information. All organisms also use DNA to transcribe RNA, and then they translate that RNA into proteins.
What are the 4 steps of translation?
Translation happens in four stages: activation (make ready), initiation (start), elongation (make longer) and termination (stop). These terms describe the growth of the amino acid chain (polypeptide). Amino acids are brought to ribosomes and assembled into proteins
