Transfer RNA in Protein Synthesis is a comprehensive volume focusing on important aspects of codon usage, selection, and discrimination in the genetic code. The many different functions of tRNA and the specialized roles of the corresponding codewords in protein synthesis from initiation through termination are thoroughly discussed. Variations that occur in the initiation process, in reading the genetic code, and in the selection of codons are discussed in detail. The book also examines the role of modified nucleosides in tRNA interactions, tRNA discrimination in aminoacylation, codon discrimination in translation, and selective use of termination codons. Other topics covered include the adaptation of the tRNA population to codon usage in cells and cellular organelles, the occurence of UGA as a codon for selenocysteine in the universal genetic code, new insights into translational context effects and in codon bias, and the molecular biology of tRNA in retroviruses. The contributions of outstanding molecular biologists engaged in tRNA research and prominent investigators from other scientific disciplines, specifically retroviral research, make Transfer RNA in Protein Synthesis an essential reference work for microbiologists, biochemists, molecular biologists, geneticists, and other researchers involved in protein synthesis research.