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Genetic code - 7 dictionary results

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genetic code

–noun

the biochemical instructions that translate the genetic information present as a linear sequence of nucleotide triplets in messenger RNA into the correct linear sequence of amino acids for the synthesis of a particular peptide chain or protein. Compare codon, translation (def. 9).

Origin:
1960–65

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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genetic code
n. The sequence of nucleotides in DNA or RNA that determines the specific amino acid sequence in the synthesis of proteins. It is the biochemical basis of heredity and nearly universal in all organisms.
genetic coding n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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genetic code
noun
the ordering of nucleotides in DNA molecules that carries the genetic information in living cells

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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genetic code (jə-nět'ĭk) Pronunciation Key

The sequence of nucleotides in DNA and RNA that serve as instructions for synthesizing proteins. The genetic code is based on an "alphabet" consisting of sixty-four triplets of nucleotides called codons. The order in which codons are strung together determines the order in which the amino acids for which they code are arranged in a protein.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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genetic code

The code that translates the sequence of nucleotides in genes along the DNA strand into the structure of protein, which, through its action as an enzyme, governs one chemical reaction in the cell. A simple mnemonic is “One gene codes for one protein which runs one reaction.”

Note: All living things share the same genetic code, a fact that represents strong evidence for evolution. Unraveling the genetic code was one of the great scientific achievements of the twentieth century, and it opened the way to genetic engineering.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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genetic code n.
The sequence of nucleotides that is the basis of heredity in the DNA molecule of a chromosome and that specifies the amino acid sequence in the synthesis of proteins.

Main Entry: genetic code
Function: noun
: the biochemical basis of heredity consisting of codons in DNA and RNA that determine the specific amino acid sequence inproteins and that appear to be uniform for all known forms of life —genetic coding noun