You are here
RNA
Ribonucleic acid is a biological molecule whose molecular structure is very close to DNA. It is composed of a single helicoidal chain with a structure similar to one of the two chains that make up DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). Living cells use RNA as the intermediate medium of genes for synthesising the proteins they require.
Seen from its molecular structure, RNA is very close to DNA. Furthermore, it is synthesised in cells and is distinguished by its essential role as messenger of genetic information. RNA is an intermediary-conveyor between DNA (of which it copies a sequence of information in “negative”) and the cellular structures, whose task is to read the sequence of information copied from the DNA in view to producing proteins. It is a kind of cellular “software”.
There are different types of RNA (messenger RNA, transfer RNA, ribosomal RNA) which each have a different specific function in the transmission of genetic information and which all play a specific role in the complex role of protein synthesis.