What are mutations?

What are mutations?

• A. Changes in the DNA sequence
• B. The process of transcription
• C. The building blocks of proteins
• D. A type of RNA

Answer: (A)

Mutations are changes in the DNA sequence, the string of letters that stores genetic information. These changes can be substitutions, insertions, deletions, or larger rearrangements that alter how the genetic code is read. Because DNA is the template for making RNA and, ultimately, proteins, mutations can affect the resulting RNA transcript and the amino acid sequence of a protein, sometimes altering function. They can arise from replication errors, environmental mutagens, or other cellular processes, and their effects range from neutral to harmful to occasionally beneficial in terms of evolution. The other options describe processes or components not mutations: transcription is the copying of DNA into RNA, the building blocks of proteins are amino acids, and an RNA molecule is a type of nucleic acid—not a mutation.

Mutations are changes in the DNA sequence, the string of letters that stores genetic information. These changes can be substitutions, insertions, deletions, or larger rearrangements that alter how the genetic code is read. Because DNA is the template for making RNA and, ultimately, proteins, mutations can affect the resulting RNA transcript and the amino acid sequence of a protein, sometimes altering function. They can arise from replication errors, environmental mutagens, or other cellular processes, and their effects range from neutral to harmful to occasionally beneficial in terms of evolution. The other options describe processes or components not mutations: transcription is the copying of DNA into RNA, the building blocks of proteins are amino acids, and an RNA molecule is a type of nucleic acid—not a mutation.