genetic code








noun

  1. the biochemical instructions that translate the genetic information present as a linear sequence of nucleotide triplets in messenger RNA into the correct linear sequence of amino acids for the synthesis of a particular peptide chain or protein.Compare codon, translation(def 9).

noun

  1. biochem the order in which the nitrogenous bases of DNA are arranged in the molecule, which determines the type and amount of protein synthesized in the cell. The four bases are arranged in groups of three in a specific order, each group acting as a unit (codon), which specifies a particular amino acidSee also messenger RNA, transfer RNA

n.

  1. The sequence of nucleotides that is the basis of heredity in the DNA molecule of a chromosome and that specifies the amino acid sequence in the synthesis of proteins.

  1. The sequence of nucleotides in DNA and RNA that serve as instructions for synthesizing proteins. The genetic code is based on an “alphabet” consisting of sixty-four triplets of nucleotides called codons. The order in which codons are strung together determines the order in which the amino acids for which they code are arranged in a protein.

The code that translates the sequence of nucleotides in genes along the DNA strand into the structure of protein, which, through its action as an enzyme, governs one chemical reaction in the cell. A simple mnemonic is “One gene codes for one protein which runs one reaction.”

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