What is the formula that shows the sequence of events that result in the production of a new protein molecule?Then please explain what is happenening in each step of the sequence.

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ncchemist | eNotes Employee

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There is no single chemical formula that accounts for the formation of an entire protein.  Proteins are made up of amino acids.  These amino acids bind together in long polymeric chains by forming amide bonds with their carboxylic acids and amines in the following generic formula:

R-COOH + H2N-R --> R-CONH-R + H2O

The actual process of protein formation is a two step sequence of events.  The first event is transcription.  This is when the DNA in the nucleus is unwound and separated into separate strands.  These strands then encode for a complementary sequence of messenger RNA (mRNA).  Once formed, the mRNA then exits the nucleus to begin the second event called translation.  The mRNA enters the organelle called the ribosome.  While there, the sequence of mRNA then is used to piece together different amino acids in a particular order to make a completed protein.  The various amino acids are brought to the ribosome via transfer RNA (tRNA).  A three sequence unit of mRNA nucleotides is called a codon and it codes for a particular amino acid.  So the sequencing of the DNA ultimately contains the instructions for building together an entire protein one amino acid at a time.

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