Introns and Exons – Explanation and Difference

Introns and exons are regions of a gene that have different functions. Introns are non-coding regions of a gene, while exons are coding regions of a gene. Introns are removed from a gene during RNA splicing, while exons are joined together to form a gene.

What are Introns?

Introns are segments of DNA that are not translated into proteins. They are found in the genes of eukaryotes and are removed from the RNA transcripts of those genes before the transcripts are translated into proteins.

What are Exons?

An exon is a region of a gene that is transcribed into messenger RNA and then translated into protein. The term “exon” refers to both the DNA sequence and the corresponding protein sequence.

Function of Introns

Introns are stretches of DNA that are not translated into proteins. They are found in the genes of all living things and play an important role in the regulation of gene expression. Introns are removed from the RNA transcript of a gene before it is translated into a protein. This process is called splicing and is carried out by the spliceosome.

Structure and Function of Exons

Exons are regions of DNA that code for proteins. They are found in the gene, and are the regions that are read by the ribosomes to create the protein. The exons are separated from each other by regions of DNA that do not code for proteins.

Difference between Introns and Exons

• Introns are segments of genetic code that are found within DNA but are not translated into proteins. Exons, on the other hand, are segments of genetic code that are found within DNA and are translated into proteins. The distinction between these two is important because it helps to explain how genetic information is translated into proteins.
• An intron is a section of DNA that is not translated into protein. Introns are found in the nucleus of the cell and are removed from the DNA strand before the protein is produced. Exons are the sections of DNA that are translated into protein. Exons are found in the nucleus of the cell and are responsible for the protein’s function.
• One of the main differences between introns and exons is that introns are found within the primary structure of a gene while other are found on the mRNA transcript of a gene. Introns are found within the gene’s DNA while exons are found on the gene’s mRNA. Introns are also found within the gene’s protein sequence while exons are not. Introns are also found within the gene’s functional unit while exons are not. Lastly, introns are found within the 5′ to 3′ direction of a gene while exons are found within the 3′ to 5′ direction of a gene.