AGA and AGG were thought to have become mitochondrial stop codons early in vertebrate evolution.[1] However, at least in humans it has now been shown that AGA and AGG sequences are not recognized as termination codons. A -1 mitoribosome frameshift occurs at the AGA and AGG codons predicted to terminate the CO1 and ND6 open reading frames (ORFs), and consequently both ORFs terminate in the standard UAG codon.[2]
Incomplete stop codons
Mitochondrial genes in some vertebrates (including humans) have incomplete stop codons ending in U or UA, which become complete termination codons (UAA) upon subsequent polyadenylation.[3][4][5][6]
A The codon AUG both codes for methionine and serves as an initiation site: the first AUG in an mRNA's coding region is where translation into protein begins.[7]
^Oh, D. J.; Kim, J. Y.; Lee, J. A.; Yoon, W. J.; Park, S. Y.; Jung, Y. H. (2007). "Complete mitochondrial genome of the rabbitfish Siganus fuscescens (Perciformes, Siganidae)". DNA Sequence. 18 (4): 295–301. doi:10.1080/10425170701248525. PMID17541835. S2CID38458668.
^Ki, J. S.; Hwang, D. S.; Park, T. J.; Han, S. H.; Lee, J. S. (2009). "A comparative analysis of the complete mitochondrial genome of the Eurasian otter Lutra lutra (Carnivora; Mustelidae)". Molecular Biology Reports. 37 (4): 1943–55. doi:10.1007/s11033-009-9641-0. PMID19757186. S2CID24233602.
^Nakamoto T (March 2009). "Evolution and the universality of the mechanism of initiation of protein synthesis". Gene. 432 (1–2): 1–6. doi:10.1016/j.gene.2008.11.001. PMID19056476.