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mRNA

mRNA is a long single strand of RNA arranged in a single helix.The base sequence of mRNA is a copy of the base sequence of the DNA sense strand for one gene.mRNA leaves the nucleus via nuclear pores where it attaches to a ribosome in the cytoplasm and determines the order in which amino acids are linked together to make polypeptides.Each triplet that specifies an amino acids is called a codon.

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Specification: AQA Biology (7401), AS-level, 3.4.2 DNA and protein synthesis. Topic: DNA, Genes and Protein Synthesis.

Key terms in this lesson

ribosome
A small organelle, made of RNA and protein, that is the site of protein synthesis.
gene
A length of DNA that codes for a polypeptide or a functional RNA molecule, at a specific locus on a chromosome.

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