Scientists investigated how the concentration of magnesium ions (Mg2+\text{Mg}^{2+}Mg2+) in a cell-free translation system affected the rate of protein synthesis.
The scientists measured the rate of translation, expressed as the average number of polypeptides synthesized per ribosome per minute, at six different magnesium ion concentrations.
Table 1 shows the results of this investigation.
Table 1
| Magnesium ion concentration (mmol dm−3\text{mmol dm}^{-3}mmol dm−3) | Average number of polypeptides synthesized per ribosome per minute |
|---|---|
| 1.5 | 3 |
| 3.0 | 25 |
| 4.5 | 74 |
| 6.0 | 120 |
| 7.5 | 42 |
| 9.0 | 2 |
Describe the effect of magnesium ion concentration on the rate of translation.
