Question

what is a frameshift mutation? explain how such a mutation can occur.

Answer 1

Imagine I told you to read this sentence.

That was easy, right? But what if you made a mistake reading the words?

magineI t oldy out or eadt hiss entence.

Not so easy anymore, is it?

Answer 2

Imagine the delimination between words (spaces) refers to boundaries of "frames" of DNA. It is imperative that frames are read in correct alignment, in the same sense that the spaces need to be positioned correctly. If we move the spaces, you notice we get nonsense "words". In DNA, this same process can take place. This is a frameshift mutation, where the "spaces" when reading frames are accidentally misplaced, resulting in totally different "words" which code for different amino acids and can result in entirely dysfunctional proteins.