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Name: Laura
Status: other
Grade: other
Location: Outside U.S.
Country: USA
Date: Fall 2011
Question:
Why do some amino acids have so many codons?


Replies:
Hi Laura,

Genetic code is degenerate code, meaning that some codons may have similar functions or produce the same output. Hence some amino acids will have more than one codon.

Good example: Leucine has codons CUU, CUC, CUA, CUG. You can almost say that Leucine is CUx, where x is any ribonucleotide base.

All have the same function and produce the same output.

Hope that helps.

Alex


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