An RNA molecule that transfers the coding information for protein synthesis from the
chromosomes to the
ribosomes. mRNA is formed from a DNAtemplate by
transcription.
It may be a copy of a single
gene or of several adjacent genes (polycistronic mRNA). On the ribosome, the sequence is converted into the programmed amino acid sequence through translation.
Source:
PAC, 1992, 64, 143
(Glossary for chemists of terms used in biotechnology (IUPAC Recommendations 1992))
on page 160