start codon
nounMedical Definition of start codon
: a genetic codon in messenger RNA that stimulates the binding of a transfer RNA which starts protein synthesis
… the AUG codon for methionine functions as the start codon in the vast majority of mRNAs. — Harvey Lodish et al., Molecular Cell Biology, 6th edition, 2007
— called also initiation codon
— compare stop codon