What is the effect of a frameshift mutation on the protein produced?

A frameshift mutation occurs when nucleotides are inserted or deleted from the DNA sequence in numbers not divisible by three, which alters the reading frame of the gene during translation. This shift in the reading frame results in a completely different sequence of amino acids from that point onward. Consequently, the new sequence may introduce premature stop codons, leading to a truncated protein. Because of these alterations, the resulting protein often has an entirely different structure and function, likely making it nonfunctional.

Frameshift mutations can significantly disrupt the production of a functional protein, altering its biological activity or degrading it entirely. This introduces a high chance that the protein will not perform its intended role in the organism, highlighting the critical impact of such mutations on gene expression and protein synthesis. The other choices do not accurately reflect the consequences of a frameshift mutation; for instance, the protein will not typically remain unchanged, nor will it usually be produced at a higher level, as the altered sequence can lead to significant functional impairments.