Open AccessDoes the specific recongnition of DNA by the restriction endonucleaseEcoRI involve a linear diffusion step? Investigation of the processivity of theEcoRI endonuclease
Author(s) -
J. Langowaski,
Jürgen Alves,
Alfred Pingoud,
G. Maaß
Publication year - 1983
Publication title -
nucleic acids research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 9.008
H-Index - 537
eISSN - 1362-4954
pISSN - 0305-1048
DOI - 10.1093/nar/11.2.501
Subject(s) - ecori , restriction enzyme , biology , sticky and blunt ends , endonuclease , dna , oligonucleotide , plasmid , microbiology and biotechnology , cleavage (geology) , base pair , genetics , paleontology , fracture (geology)
The time course of the EcoRI endonuclease catalysed cleavage of three substrates, two plasmid DNAs and one oligonucleotide, each with two EcoRI sites, was measured. The two plasmid DNAs with the EcoRI sites 318 and 96 base pairs apart are cut in a distributive fashion, while the oligonucleotide with the EcoRI sites 8 base pairs apart is cut in a partially processive manner. It is concluded that a linear diffusion of the EcoRI endonuclease on its substrate across long stretches of DNA is not likely to be operative during the recognition process. Microscopic dissociation-reassociation processes, however, increase the probability of the enzyme to attack further sites located in the immediate vicinity of a given site.