Cells use DNA as their “design plans” for proteins.

Quick scoop

  • A cell’s DNA holds genes, and each gene is a specific set of instructions for building one protein.
  • During protein synthesis, a gene’s instructions are copied into messenger RNA (mRNA), which then guides ribosomes in putting amino acids together in the correct order to make that protein.

In short: the blueprint is the DNA, and a working copy of that blueprint is the mRNA that ribosomes read to build the protein.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.