What is mRNA?

• A. The RNA that carries amino acids to the ribosome.
• B. The linear type of ribonucleic acid that encodes genetic information from DNA and conveys it to ribosomes.
• C. The RNA that makes up ribosomes.
• D. A DNA sequence used to begin transcription.

Answer: (B)

mRNA is messenger RNA—the form that carries the genetic code from DNA to the ribosome to direct protein synthesis. It’s a linear, single-stranded RNA that encodes the information from DNA and conveys it to ribosomes where translation reads the codons to specify amino acids. This is distinct from tRNA, which delivers amino acids to the ribosome, and from rRNA, which makes up most of the ribosome itself. A promoter sequence in DNA signals where transcription starts, but it isn’t the RNA that carries the code to ribosomes.