amino acid sequence

amino acid sequence

the order in which AMINO ACIDS are placed along a protein molecule (see PRIMARY STRUCTURE). Secondary and tertiary protein structure is highly dependent upon amino-acid sequence in the POLYPEPTIDE CHAIN, which affects the bonding together of the molecule. The ‘blueprint’ for this sequence is contained in DNA, whose bases contain the amino acid code; three bases provide the code for each amino acid. By the processes of TRANSCRIPTION and TRANSLATION the DNA-base sequence is mirrored in the amino-acid sequence, there generally being COLINEARITY between DNA and protein in PROKARYOTES. see Fig. 165 (FRAMESHIFT) for diagram.

Collins Dictionary of Biology, 3rd ed. © W. G. Hale, V. A. Saunders, J. P. Margham 2005