Researched
The genetic code
Three DNA letters spell one amino acid: the dictionary between genes and proteins was cracked.
Open in the interactive tree →Marshall Nirenberg and Heinrich Matthaei showed in 1961 that the RNA sequence UUU codes for the amino acid phenylalanine; by 1966 the work of Nirenberg, Khorana and others had assigned all 64 triplets. The code turned out to be nearly universal across life. This makes it possible to read, write and move genes between species.
Prerequisites
- Structure of DNA1953
- Gene regulation (operon)1961Messenger RNA, shown in 1961, made decoding the code possible