How do you read an amino acid chart?

Answer 1

The codon you are trying to read should have three letters in it; each one will represent a nitrogenous base (U for Uracil, C for Cytosine, A for Adenine, and G for Guanine. Find the first nitrogenous base under the column labeled First Base, which will usually be located on the column on the very left. Next, find the second nitrogenous base under the column labeled Second Base, which is usually the four columns in the center of the chart. Then, find the third nitrogenous base under the column labeled Third Base, which will usually be located on the very right of the chart. Finally, find where the three letters on the chart meet, which will give you the amino acid that the mRNA codon will translate to.

ex. If the mRNA codon is CAG, I'll find C under First Column, A under Second Column, and G under Third Column. I then see where the three letters meet, which gave me the amino acid Glutamine (Glu for short).