process of translation

genes iN dna used as code

DNA is often referred to as the storage of information for humans and other life. But how does that information get from your DNA to something useful? Well, there are a few steps. This isn’t going to go into too much detail, although links to websites that go a little further will be included at the end.

Genes are segments of DNA that code for proteins. There is a process called transcription which uses the code in your DNA as a reference to make a copy. This copy is referred to as messenger RNA. The reason DNA is copied is because the DNA doesn’t leave the cell nucleus and so a copy that can is made. The mRNA leaves the nucleus to travel to the cell cytoplasm and looks for a molecular machine called a ribosome.

The ribosome is made up of parts that attach to the RNA and begin using the mRNA as code for a molecule called a transfer RNA. There are different tRNA, all with amino acids attached, that correspond to segments of RNA. So really in the case of translation the copied DNA codes for amino acids.

tRNA attach to the mRNA at the place of where the ribosome attaches to the mRNA. The amino acid leaves its tRNA to create a chain of amino acids. The tRNA then detaches. The ribosome then moves to a different section of code and different tRNA attach that correspond to that code. And so it continues until a chain of amino acids is made. The chain of amino acids is called a protein.

For further information and detail on how proteins are made check out this link here. What you’ll find pretty quickly is that there is a lot more information than just shown up top and the reason this app is being made. It’s seemingly complicated but is information that could contribute to solving big problems for humans(like understanding how cancer works to potentially find a cure and creating antibiotics).

Link to a video of translation here.

There’s also a nice video here to understand how proteins work.

If you are super keen on understanding translation this video goes into more of the molecular detail. Link is included here.