Question

What will happen if the amino acid sequence is used directly for primer designing?

(a) There would be certainty because the genetic code is unique for each amino acid

(b) There would be uncertainty as the genetic code is degenerate and none of the amino acid is having a unique code

(c) There would be uncertainty as the genetic code is degenerate but some of the amino acids such as methionine are having a unique codon

(d) The amount of uncertainty or certainty is a matter of chance

The question was asked during an interview.

I want to ask this question from Primers in section Polymerase Chain Reaction of Genetic Engineering

Answer 1

Correct option is (c) There would be uncertainty as the genetic code is degenerate but some of the amino acids such as methionine are having a unique codon

For explanation I would say: If the amino acid sequence is used directly, there would be uncertainty. It is so because the genetic code is degenerate. It means that one codon can correspond to many amino acids. There are some exceptions such as methionine which are having a unique codon.