Bio unit 2 (Genetics)

ligase

enzyme that joins two large molecules together by forming a new chemical bond

DNA polymerase

an essential enzyme that synthesizes new DNA molecules by assembling free nucleotides into a complementary strand

helicase

proteins that use energy from ATP hydrolysis to separate double-stranded nucleic acids (DNA, RNA, or DNA-RNA hybrids) into single strands

Lagging strand

strand of DNA that is synthesized discontinuously in the opposite direction of the replication fork opening

Leading strand

DNA strand that is synthesized continuously in the 5' to 3' direction during DNA replication

Okazaki fragments

short, newly synthesized DNA sequences formed discontinuously on the lagging strand during DNA replication

Origin of replication

specific sequence or location on a DNA or RNA molecule where duplication begins

Replication bubble

a local, unzipped region of a DNA double helix where DNA replication takes place

RNA polymerase

enzyme that synthesizes single-stranded RNA from a DNA template during the process of transcription

RNA primer

single-stranded sequence of ribonucleotides (usually 10 to 12 nucleotides long) that acts as a starting point for DNA synthesis

RNA synthetase

an essential enzyme that attaches a specific amino acid to its corresponding transfer RNA (tRNA) to "charge" it for protein synthesis

Single-stranded binding proteins

proteins that bind to single-stranded regions of DNA during replication, repair, and recombination across all domains of life

Telomerase

specialized ribonucleoprotein enzyme that adds repetitive DNA sequences (TTAGGG in humans) to the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes

Telomere

region of repetitive DNA sequences and specialized proteins at the ends of linear chromosomes

Topoisomerase

nuclear enzymes that control the topological state (coiling, tangling, and overwinding) of DNA by creating temporary single- or double-stranded breaks

DNase

Breaks down DNA by cutting the phosphodiester bonds that hold the DNA backbone together, turning long DNA molecules into nucleotides (small pieces)

RNase

Breaks down RNA (ribonucleic acid) into smaller components by cutting the chemical bonds between nucleotides

Proteinase

Breaks down proteins into smaller peptides or single amino acids by cutting peptide bonds

Locus/loci

The specific location of a gene

allele

An allele is one of two or more versions of DNA sequence at a given genomic location