What is translation?

Translation is when an mRNA codon (sequence of 3 bases) is used to code for a specific amino acid. The process requires tRNA (translation RNA). This is how translation happens:

1. mRNA binds to the ribosome
2. complementary tRNA binds to mRNA which codes for an amino acid
3. The next tRNA binds to the next mRNA along the chain coding for more amino acid
4. The ribosome moves along mRNA, coding for more amino acids until the stop codon is reached

Key things you need to know:

1. enzyme which catalyses the formation of the peptide bond to join amino acids is 'peptidyl transferase'
2. translation is efficient because 2 tRNA molecules can bind at the same time and many ribosomes follow on the same mRNA so many polypeptides are made at the same time