Small subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (SSU rRNA) is the smaller of the two major
RNA
Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a polymeric molecule that is essential for most biological functions, either by performing the function itself (non-coding RNA) or by forming a template for the production of proteins (messenger RNA). RNA and deoxyrib ...
components of the
ribosome
Ribosomes () are molecular machine, macromolecular machines, found within all cell (biology), cells, that perform Translation (biology), biological protein synthesis (messenger RNA translation). Ribosomes link amino acids together in the order s ...
.
Associated with a number of
ribosomal proteins, the SSU rRNA forms the small subunit of the ribosome. It is encoded by SSU-
rDNA.
Characteristics
Use in phylogenetics
SSU rRNA sequences are widely used for determining
evolutionary relationships among organisms, since they are of ancient origin and are found in all known forms of life.
See also
*
LSU rRNA
Large subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (LSU rRNA) is the largest of the two major RNA components of the ribosome
Ribosomes () are molecular machine, macromolecular machines, found within all cell (biology), cells, that perform Translation (b ...
: the large subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid.
References
{{Ribosome subunits
Ribosomal RNA
Protein biosynthesis