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Nature Chemical Biology 4, 275–276 (1 May 2008) | doi:10.1038/nchembio0508-275

Breaking the barriers of translation

Scott C Blanchard

The translation of mRNA by the ribosome requires the precise orchestration of factor and tRNA selection, energy expenditure and step-wise, directional motions through potentially structured templates. Mechanistic complexity is also contributed by the ribosome itself, an enzyme composed of more than 60 individual gene products.