Where does transcription occur?

• A. In the cytoplasm
• B. In the nucleus
• C. On the ribosome
• D. Inside the mitochondria

Answer: (B)

Transcription copies DNA instructions into RNA, and in eukaryotic cells this happens in the nucleus because that's where the DNA is housed and protected. The transcription machinery, like RNA polymerase, reads the DNA template inside the nucleus to synthesize pre-mRNA, which is then processed and sent to the cytoplasm for translation.

Why the other locations aren’t the place for transcription: the cytoplasm is where translation occurs, using mRNA to build proteins. The ribosome is the molecular machine for translation, not transcription. Mitochondria do carry out some transcription for their own genes, but the primary and most general location for transcription in a typical cell is the nucleus.