Molecular Evolution and Information

Transcription and Translation

Suppose that the phrase uno, dos, tres is found in a Spanish book. The process of transcription copies a page from this book onto a piece of paper. Translation then requires a person with a Spanish to English dictionary to copy the phrase onto another piece of paper in English (figure 3.1). Life uses both transcription and translation. The message in the DNA corresponds to the written words in a Spanish book (uno, dos, tres). This message is copied through transcription to create an intermediate message called RNA. RNA is analogous to the piece of paper with the phrase uno, dos, tres. The final piece of paper with the phrase one, two, three is analogous to a protein.


Figure 3.1: Transcription and Translation

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