Q. 17.37 - An Introduction to General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry

Question

What is meant by the term "transcription"?

Step-by-Step Solution

Answer

The transfer of genetic information from DNA by the formation of mRNA is called transcription.

Step 1: Introduction

The process of converting genetic information from DNA to mRNA is known as transcription.

$DNA\stackrel{transcription}{\to }mRNA$

Transcription begins when the section of DNA containing the gene to be reproduced slides away. A polymerase enzyme inside of this unwinding DNA recognises the signal to start mRNA production. DNA nucleotides link to ribonucleotides in the following order:

$G\to C,C\to G,T\to A,A\to U$

Step 2: Explanation

The polymerase enzyme forms bonds among nucleotides as it proceeds along undamaged DNA. The RNA polymerase reaches the termination site, signalling the conclusion of transcription. As a result, mRNA produces comparable nucleotides, thus DNA's double helix shape is restored.