8) Start codon issues

Alternative Start Codon Issues

Possible start codons AUG (most common in archaea), GUG and UUG [1].

Olivia came across a very interesting conundrum because she checked and tried to verify a lot of the computer's work.

When the start codon is not AUG, is the first amino acid in the protein's primary sequence a Met or the correct amino acid for that codon triplet?

Here is what I have found on this issue. I think it would be an interesting side study but it may require wet lab work to decipher whether or not the first amino acid is really Met when an alternative start codon is used. It may also be interesting to look for a trend in the genes that begin with an alternative start codon.

Good Articles to Reference:

1. Transcription and translation in Archaea: a mosaic of eukaryal and bacterial features.