How does a nonsense mutation ultimately affect protein synthesis?

A nonsense mutation is a specific type of point mutation in which a single nucleotide change results in a premature stop codon within the coding sequence of a gene. This premature stop codon signals the ribosome to halt translation before the full-length, functional protein can be produced. As a result, the protein synthesized is significantly shorter than intended, leading to a loss of function or an entirely nonfunctional protein, which can have significant consequences for the organism.

This alteration in the protein product illustrates how critical codons are in determining the final outcome of protein synthesis. The impact of a nonsense mutation is direct and profound because it disrupts the normal process of elongation during translation, stopping the synthesis of the polypeptide chain before it can achieve its proper structure and function.