Questions? Comments? Please contact Dr. Phillip McClean or Christina Johnson.

Flythrough Tour
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CELLULAR PROCESSES
Atp Synthase
Electron Transport Chain
Protein Trafficking
Protein Modification
Protein Recycling
Constitutive Secretion
Regulated Secretion
Mitochondrial Protein Transport
Photosynthesis
Photosystem II
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MOLECULAR PROCESSES
Transcription
mRNA Processing
mRNA Splicing
Translation
Lac Operon
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HOME > mRNA splicing > ADVANCED LOOK > 1.) primary transcript > 2.) spliceosome > 3.) splicing
mRNA Splicing: Advanced Look --> 3.) Splicing

Splicing refers to the action by which the splicesome removes an intron and connects the remaining exons together. Clicking on each of the thumbnail images will bring up a larger, labeled version of the described scene.

To see the Flash movie for the following sequence of images, click here.

Splicing can now begin. First, the 5' end of the intron is cleaved.

The 5' GU end of the intron is then moved toward the A branch site, creating a lariat structure.

Next, the 3' end of the intron is cleaved.

Once the intron has been fully cleaved, the two exons are ligated together.

The spliceosome then dissociates.

Following splicing, the lariat intron quickly degrades.

The mature strand of mRNA is now ready for translation.