transfer RNA

noun

: a relatively small RNA that transfers a particular amino acid to a growing polypeptide chain at the ribosomal site of protein synthesis during translation

called also tRNA

compare messenger rna

Examples of transfer RNA in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Sutherland and his group had previously shown that analogs of right-handed transfer RNA molecules — which bind amino acids and bring them to the ribosome to make proteins — link to left-handed amino acids 10 times faster than to right-handed ones. Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 6 Sep. 2023 Okay, so tRNA is short for transfer RNA. Quanta Magazine, 1 June 2022 Then an undergraduate at Duke, Church typed into a computer all the transfer RNA sequences that were available at the time and folded each one into a three-dimensional structure, as RNA molecules were known to do. Ed Regis, Discover Magazine, 24 June 2010 Founded in 2018, Alltrna (pronounced All-terna) aims to understand a molecule known as transfer RNA to try to treat a broad range of genetic diseases. BostonGlobe.com, 9 Nov. 2021 The assortment included transfer RNA (tRNA) molecules, which are important for ferrying the amino-acid building blocks of proteins to the ribosomes. Roxanne Khamsi, Scientific American, 17 June 2020 For example, most viruses lack aminoacyl tRNA synthetase enzymes, which shuttle amino acids onto transfer RNA molecules; these in turn make their way to the ribosome, dropping off their cargo to build proteins from the chains of amino acids. Jeffrey Marlow, Discover Magazine, 20 Apr. 2017

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'transfer RNA.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1961, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of transfer RNA was in 1961

Dictionary Entries Near transfer RNA

Cite this Entry

“Transfer RNA.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/transfer%20RNA. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

transfer RNA

noun
: a relatively small RNA molecule that functions in the transfer of a particular amino acid to a growing protein at the site of protein synthesis during genetic translation compare messenger rna

Medical Definition

transfer RNA

noun
: a relatively small RNA that transfers a particular amino acid to a growing polypeptide chain at the ribosomal site of protein synthesis during translation

called also adapter RNA, soluble RNA, tRNA

compare messenger rna
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