Show Notes
This release contains only the music track from Base by Base Episode 373.
Song title: Stop Signs Turn to Lyrics
Original Base by Base episode: 373: Base by Base 373 — A ciliate rewrites UAA and UAG
Article metadata:
Article title: Identification of a non-canonical ciliate nuclear genetic code where UAA and UAG code for different amino acids
Journal: PLOS Genetics
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1010913
Reference: McGowan J, Kilias ES, Alacid E, Lipscombe J, Jenkins BH, Gharbi K, et al. (2023) Identification of a non-canonical ciliate nuclear genetic code where UAA and UAG code for different amino acids. PLoS Genet 19(10): e1010913. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1010913
Lyrics:
Verse 1
On bright screens, the letters fall in line,
Three at a time, like a clockwork sign.
But in this quiet cell, the rules feel new—
Two “stop” lights shimmer into something true.
Pre-Chorus
U-A-A won’t let the story die,
U-A-G won’t say goodbye.
A tiny adapter changes the view,
And the sentence keeps running through.
Chorus
Stop signs turn to lyrics in the code tonight,
UAA to Lys, UAG to Glu—alright.
Readthrough like a river when the gate comes loose,
But UGA stands guard like a final truce.
Verse 2
Found the tRNAs, shaped just right,
Anticodon keys in the lab’s low light.
One points to lysine, one to glutamate,
Rewriting endings at the ribosome’s gate.
Bridge
Still, downstream there’s a double-stop line,
Tandem UGA, by design.
A safety net where the last word lands,
So proteins don’t spill past the planned.
Final Chorus
Stop signs turn to lyrics in the code tonight,
UAA to Lys, UAG to Glu—alright.
Annotation dreams need a wider lens,
’Cause the code can change where life begins.
Chapters
- (00:00:10) - Write in the Code
