ribosome

A ribosome is a component of cells that synthesizes protein chains. It assembles the twenty specific amino acid molecules to form the particular protein molecule determined by the nucleotide sequence of an RNA molecule.

One of the central tenets of biology, often referred to as the central dogma of molecular biology, is that sequential information in protein cannot flow back to nucleic acid, wherein a general case is that DNA makes RNA makes protein. The DNA sequence in genes is copied into a messenger RNA (mRNA). Ribosomes then read the information in this mRNA and use it to create proteins. This process is known as translation; the ribosome translates the genetic information from the mRNA into proteins. Ribosomes do this by binding to an mRNA and using it as a template for determining the correct sequence of amino acids in a particular protein. The amino acids are attached to transfer RNA (tRNA) molecules, which enter one part of the ribosome and bind to the messenger RNA sequence. The attached amino acids are then joined together by another part of the ribosome. The ribosome moves along the mRNA, "reading" its sequence and producing a corresponding chain of amino acids.