Exceptions to the Central Dogma of Biology

You’ve probably memorized DNA → RNA → Protein… but what if I told you biology breaks its

own ‘unbreakable’ rule all the time? Let me show you the exceptions your textbook forgets

to mention. Everyone learns the central dogma as DNA → RNA → Protein… but biology loves

loopholes. Here are the biggest exceptions you must know. First: Reverse transcription.

Retroviruses like HIV take RNA and turn it back into DNA using reverse transcriptase.

This flips the dogma on its head. Second: RNA replication. Many viruses don’t use DNA at all.

They copy RNA directly from RNA — positive-sense, negative-sense, and double-stranded RNA viruses all

do this. Third: RNA editing. Some organisms and organelles—like mitochondria—chemically