Ribosome

Ribosome
Large (red) and small (blue) subunits of a ribosome
Details
Part ofCell (biology)
Identifiers
MeSHD012270
FMA66867
Anatomical terms of microanatomy
Cell biology
Animal cell diagram
Components of a typical animal cell:
  1. Nucleolus
  2. Nucleus
  3. Ribosome (dots as part of 5)
  4. Vesicle
  5. Rough endoplasmic reticulum
  6. Golgi apparatus (or, Golgi body)
  7. Cytoskeleton
  8. Smooth endoplasmic reticulum
  9. Mitochondrion
  10. Vacuole
  11. Cytosol (fluid that contains organelles; with which, comprises cytoplasm)
  12. Lysosome
  13. Centrosome
  14. Cell membrane

A ribosome (/ˈrbəzm, -sm/) is a ribonucleoprotein particle found in all cells, both prokaryotic and eukaryotic, responsible for the synthesis of proteins. A ribosome functions as a molecular machine in the translation of strands of messenger RNA (mRNA) and production of a protein. A ribosome links amino acids together in the order specified by the codons of mRNA molecules to form polypeptide chains. A ribosome is made up of a large and a small subunit, each consisting of one or more ribosomal RNA molecules and many ribosomal proteins. The ribosomes and associated molecules are also known as the translational apparatus.

Ribosome biogenesis is the process of making ribosomes. This is an energy-consuming, dynamic process, requiring the synthesis of around 200 proteins in the processing of ribosomal RNAs and assembling them with ribosomal proteins to make the ribosomes subunits.