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Transcription is the process through which a DNA sequence is enzymatically copied by an RNA polymerase to produce a complementary RNA. So to say, it is the transfer of genetic information from DNA into RNA. In the case of protein-encoding DNA, transcription is the beginning of the process that ultimately leads to the translation of the genetic code (via the mRNA intermediate) into a functional peptide or protein. The stretch of DNA that is transcribed into an RNA molecule is called a transcription unit. Transcription has some proofreading mechanisms, but they are fewer and less effective than the controls for copying DNA; therefore, transcription has a lower copying fidelity than DNA replication.citation needed]
As in DNA replication, transcription proceeds in the 5' → 3' direction (i.e. the old polymer is read in the 3' → 5' direction and the new, complementary fragments are generated in the 5' → 3' direction). Transcription is divided into 3 stages: initiation, elongation and termination.