DNA polymerase binding

A now classical example of the power of equilibrium dialysis is the determination by Englund et al that DNA polymerase binds all four nucleoside 5 -triphosphate substrates at the same subsite in the enzyme s catalytic center. See also Womack-Colowick Technique... 

Another class of DNA-binding proteins are the polymerases. These have a nonspecific interaction with DNA because the same protein acts on all DNA sequences. DNA polymerase performs the dual function of DNA repHcation, in which nucleotides are added to a growing strand of DNA, and acts as a nuclease to remove mismatched nucleotides. The domain that performs the nuclease activity has an a/P-stmcture, a deep cleft that can accommodate double-stranded DNA, and a positively charged surface complementary to the phosphate groups of DNA. The smaller domain contains the exonuclease active site at a smaller cleft on the surface which can accommodate a single nucleotide. 

The incorporation of acyclovir triphosphate into calf thymus DNA primer template has been shown to be much more rapid and extensive with HSV-1 DNA polymerase than with vero cell DNA polymerase a. This incorporation of acyclovir ceased after 15 min since the template is chain terminated by the acyclovir incorporation, as there is no 3 -hydroxyl group on which to continue elongation. The viral DNA polymerase is also inactivated by tight binding to the terminated template. 

Steitz has suggested that DNA bending by CAP could contribute to activation of transcription by looping the DNA around CAP to provide for contacts between RNA polymerase and DNA upstream of the CAP-binding site. Such a model could explain how CAP can activate transcription from a variety of distances from the RNA polymerase-binding site since the size of the loop could vary. 

Figure 9.2 Schematic model for transcriptional activation. The TATA box-binding protein, which bends the DNA upon binding to the TATA box, binds to RNA polymerase and a number of associated proteins to form the preinitiation complex. This complex interacts with different specific transcription factors that bind to promoter proximal elements and enhancer elements.

The gene promoter is a nucleotide sequence in DNA near the start of a gene, consisting of regulatory elements to which transcription factors and RNA polymerase bind. This leads to activation of the gene promoter and transcription of the corresponding gene. 

Examples (a) nucleosome K Huger, AW Mader, RK Richmond, DF Sargent, TJ Richmond. Nature 389 251-260, 1997 (b) DNA polymerases CA Brautigam, TA Steitz. Curr. Opin. Struct. Biol. 8 54-63, 1998 (c) single-stranded binding protein Y Shamoo, AM Friedman, MR Parsons, WH Konigsberg, TA Steitz. Nature 376 362-366, 1995 (d) restriction endonucleases RA Kovall, BW Matthews. Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 3 578-583, 1999 (e) DNA lig-ase S Shuman. Structure 4 653-656, 1996 (f) DNA helicases MC Hall, SW Matson. Mol. Microbiol. 34 867-877, 1999 (g) zinc-finger proteins Y Choo, JW Schwabe. Nat. Struct. Biol. 5 253-255, 1998. 

The polymerase III holoenzyme (the dnoE gene ptoduct in E colt) binds to template DNA as patt of a multiptotein complex that consists of sevetal polymetase accessoty factors ((3, y, 8, S ", and x). DNA polymerases only synthesize DNA in the j to 3 ditection. 

Figure 40-7. The polymerase chain reaction is used to amplify specific gene sequences. Double-stranded DNA is heated to separate it into individual strands. These bind two distinct primers that are directed at specific sequences on opposite strands and that define the segment to be amplified. DNA polymerase extends the primers in each direction and synthesizes two strands complementary to the original two. This cycle is repeated several times, giving an amplified product of defined length and sequence. Note that the two primers are present in excess.

Promoter Region of a DNA molecule at which RNA polymerase binds and initiates transcription. 

There are three mechanistic possibilities for catalysis by two-metal ion sites (Fig. 10). The first of these is the classic two-metal ion catalysis in which one metal plays the dominant role in activating the substrate toward nucleophilic attack, while the other metal ion furnishes the bound hydroxide as the nucleophile (Fig. 10 a). Upon substrate binding, the previously bridged hydroxide shifts to coordinate predominately with one metal ion. Enzymes believed to function through such a mechanism include a purple acid phosphatase [79], DNA polymerase I [80], inositol monophosphatase [81],fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase [82], Bam HI [83], and ribozymes [63]. 

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