What process initiates plasma protein synthesis?

The process that initiates plasma protein synthesis is transcription on chromosomal DNA. This step is crucial because it involves creating a messenger RNA (mRNA) strand from a DNA template within the cell's nucleus. The mRNA serves as a blueprint for assembling proteins, including plasma proteins, by providing the necessary information on which amino acids to link together.

Once the mRNA is synthesized, it exits the nucleus and enters the cytoplasm, where proteins are synthesized. While translation on free polyribosomes is indeed the process that follows and involves the actual assembly of the protein based on the mRNA sequence, it is transcription that initiates the entire process. After transcription, translation occurs, where ribosomes read the mRNA and synthesize the protein according to the sequence of codons in the mRNA.

The other processes mentioned are not responsible for initiating plasma protein synthesis. For instance, oxidation of amino acids typically refers to metabolic processes that alter amino acids after they have been incorporated into proteins, while the formation of disulfide bonds occurs later in the protein folding process, stabilizing the structure of proteins and not initiating their synthesis.