alleryStart learning →The genetic code is described as degenerate, meaning one amino acid can be encoded by:
AMore than one triplet
BOnly a single triplet
CNo triplet at all
DExactly four triplets
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. More than one triplet
1. Sixty-four codons must cover only about twenty amino acids.
2. Scientists theorized that amino acids were encoded by nucleotide triplets.
3. They also theorized that the genetic code was degenerate.
4. In other words, a given amino acid could be encoded by more than one nucleotide triplet.
_Source: OpenStax Biology 2e (CC BY 4.0), Ch 15 'Genes and Proteins', sections 15.1-15.5_
Keep practising Genes and Proteins
Browse all Genes and Proteins questions for AP Biology, or explore more Biology topics.
Related questions
Complete the code rulesTrue or false: genes and proteinsCount the genetic codeMatch each gene expression termOrder the path from gene to proteinOnce a prokaryotic gene is transcribed, termination signals instruct the polymerase to:At the start of the elongation phase of translation, the initiating methionyl transfer RNASixty-four codons encode about twenty amino acids, which requires the code to be: