Question

Answer the questions below based on this RNA sequences: 5'-AUGAUGAUGAUG-3'. Imagine that the genetic code were read in an overlapping fashion, using three nucleotides to specify each amino acid (i.e., the sequence above would be read: AUG-UGA-GUA and so on). Which of the following polypeptides would be obtained by translating the sequence above?

1) B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B
2) B-D-B-D-B-D-B-D-B-D
3) B-D-E-B-D-E-B-D-E-B
4) B-D-E-F-G-B-D-E-F-G
5) B-D-E-F-B-B-D-E-F-B

Answer 1

The given RNA sequence should not be read in an overlapping way as this is not how RNA translation works in reality. Overlapping reading frames would result in non-functional or non-sensical proteins. The sequence provided in the question, if translated based on real genetic code, would begin with methionine and continue with non-overlapping codons.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question requires us to translate a given RNA sequence to determine the resulting polypeptide chain. RNA is translated into protein by reading sets of three nucleotides, known as codons. Each codon corresponds to a specific amino acid. For the sequence 5'-AUGAUGAUGAUG-3', if read in an overlapping fashion (as specified in the question), the first codon would be AUG, which codes for the amino acid methionine (M). But since we would be reading it in an overlapping fashion the next two codons would be UGA and GUA, which are not standard reading frames and this overlapping read would result in a non-functional or non-sensical protein. This is a hypothetical situation as in reality, the genetic code is non-overlapping. In this non-standard reading, we could arbitrarily assign amino acids to the translated sequence (hypothetical amino acids labeled B, D, E, F, G) depending on the fictional overlapping codons presented in the answer choices.