DNA Transcription and Translation Tool
Transcribe DNA to RNA and translate to protein across all six reading frames, with the genetic code, GC content, reverse complement and open reading frames identified.
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The reading frame determines everything
A sequence of bases has three possible reading frames on each strand, since translation reads three bases at a time and can start at any of the first three positions. The same sequence produces six completely different protein sequences depending on which frame is read, and only one is usually correct. This is why an insertion or deletion of one or two bases is so damaging: it shifts the frame and every codon after the mutation encodes a different amino acid.
The code is redundant but not ambiguous
Sixty-four codons encode twenty amino acids plus a stop signal, so most amino acids have several codons. The redundancy is concentrated in the third base, which frequently does not change the amino acid at all, so a mutation there is often silent. No codon encodes two different amino acids, which is what makes translation deterministic, and the code is nearly universal across all life, with a handful of exceptions in mitochondria and a few organisms.
An open reading frame is a candidate, not a gene
A stretch from a start codon to a stop codon in the same frame could encode a protein, and most such stretches in a genome do not. Real genes have promoters, ribosome binding sites and, in eukaryotes, introns that are removed before translation. Finding an open reading frame is the first step in gene prediction rather than the answer, and short ones occur by chance frequently enough to be meaningless on their own.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why are there six reading frames?
Three on each strand, because translation reads three bases at a time and can begin at any of the first three positions, and DNA has two complementary strands that are both read in the same direction relative to themselves.
Why is a frameshift mutation so serious?
Because inserting or deleting one or two bases shifts every subsequent codon, so the entire protein after that point is wrong. A substitution changes one amino acid at most; a frameshift changes all of them.
What is a silent mutation?
A base change that does not alter the amino acid, which happens most often at the third position of a codon where the code is most redundant. It can still matter, since it may affect how efficiently the sequence is translated.
Does finding an open reading frame mean finding a gene?
No. It means finding a stretch that could encode a protein. Real genes need promoters, ribosome binding sites and, in eukaryotes, intron removal. Short reading frames occur by chance often enough to be meaningless alone.
Is the genetic code the same in all organisms?
Nearly. A small number of variations exist, mostly in mitochondria and a few single-celled organisms, where a codon that is normally a stop encodes an amino acid or vice versa. The standard code covers almost everything.
Privacy & Security
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How to Use
Paste a DNA sequence to transcribe and translate it.
Disclaimer: This tool is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Results are for educational and utility purposes.