Cell biology | |
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Animal cell diagram | |
Ribosomes (/ˈraɪbəzoʊm, -soʊm/) are macromolecular machines, found within all cells, that perform biological protein synthesis (messenger RNA translation). Ribosomes link amino acids together in the order specified by the codons of messenger RNA molecules to form polypeptide chains. Ribosomes consist of two major components: the small and large ribosomal subunits. Each subunit consists of one or more ribosomal RNA molecules and many ribosomal proteins (r-proteins).[1][2][3] The ribosomes and associated molecules are also known as the translational apparatus.