Mitochondrial ribosomes consist of a large 39S subunit and a small 28S subunit, both of which are comprised of multiple mitochondrial ribosomal proteins (MRPs) that are encoded by nuclear genes and are essential for protein synthesis within mitochondria. MRP-S34 (mitochondrial ribosomal protein S34), is a 218 amino acid protein that localizes to the mitochondrion, where it exists as a component of the 28S ribosomal subunit and works in conjunction with other MRPs to mediate protein synthesis. The gene encoding MRP-S34 maps to human chromosome 16, which encodes over 900 genes and comprises nearly 3% of the human genome.