Gene Expression

Gene expression involves two main processes: transcription and translation.

1. Transcription:
- DNA is used as a template to produce mRNA
- RNA polymerase synthesizes mRNA
- Occurs in the nucleus (in eukaryotes)

2. Translation:
- mRNA is decoded to produce a protein
- Occurs on ribosomes in the cytoplasm
- tRNA molecules bring amino acids to the ribosome
- Amino acids are linked to form a polypeptide chain

3. Post-translational modifications:
- The polypeptide may undergo further modifications to become a functional protein

This process allows the information in DNA to be expressed as functional proteins in the cell.