[Campbell Biology P.389] The text states that the nontemplate DNA strand is often called the... | Practice Question

The text states that the nontemplate DNA strand is often called the 'coding strand'. Based on the information provided, why is this convention adopted?

  • A: Because its sequence is nearly identical to the mRNA sequence that will be translated, with T replacing U.
  • B: Because it directly serves as the template for protein synthesis.
  • C: Because it contains the promoter region that initiates transcription.
  • D: Because it is the strand that directly binds to ribosomes during translation.

Explanation

The text states: 'The term codon is also used for the DNA nucleotide triplets along the nontemplate strand. These codons are complementary to the template strand and thus identical in sequence to the mRNA except for T's instead of U's . For this reason, the nontemplate DNA strand is often called the coding strand.' This clearly indicates that its sequence similarity to mRNA is the reason for the name.