Stop Codon
Definition
A stop codon is a sequence of three nucleotides (a trinucleotide) in DNA or messenger RNA (mRNA) that signals a halt to protein synthesis in the cell. There are 64 different trinucleotide codons: 61 specify amino acids and 3 are stop codons (i.e., UAA, UAG and UGA).
Narration
Stop codon. A stop codon is to protein synthesis what a period is to a sentence. Since a protein isn't infinitely long, biology created an incredibly clever way to say, “Stop! You've reached the end of this protein.”
