* DNA Transcription + Occurs in the nucleus + RNA polymerase is the main enzyme + A single strand of DNA is used as a template + A single strand of mRNA, complementary to the DNA, is the product + mRNA = messenger RNA Decoding the Genetic Code: + DNA >> RNA >> Protein + DNA & RNA both have 4 different types of nucleotides + Proteins are mode of amino acides. There are 20 different kinds of amino acides. + mRNA (the product of transcription) must be read 3 letters at a time in order to account for all the amino acid possibilities + codon: sequence of three mRNA bases + start codon: AUG + stop codon: + ribosome - site of protein synthesis + tRNA - RNA that brings an amino acid to a ribosome (t = transfer) + anticodon - sequence of three tRNA bases that is complementary to a mRNA codon