What process involves the conversion of RNA to DNA?

The process that involves the conversion of RNA to DNA is known as reverse transcription. This process is primarily associated with retroviruses, such as HIV, where the viral RNA genome is reverse-transcribed into DNA after the virus enters a host cell. The enzyme reverse transcriptase facilitates this conversion, allowing the newly synthesized DNA to integrate into the host's genome, leading to the production of viral proteins and replication of the virus.

Transcription refers to the process of synthesizing RNA from a DNA template, while translation is the process by which ribosomes synthesize proteins based on the sequence of the mRNA. Replication is the process of copying DNA to produce two identical DNA molecules. Each of these processes plays a crucial role in the flow of genetic information, but only reverse transcription specifically describes the transformation of RNA back into DNA.