Open AccessThe Anatomy of the Mitochondrial DNA
Author(s) -
Porcher Harald H.,
Koch Jürgen
Publication year - 1973
Publication title -
european journal of biochemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1432-1033
pISSN - 0014-2956
DOI - 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1973.tb03201.x
Subject(s) - mitochondrial dna , dna supercoil , dna , vero cell , heavy strand , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , chemistry , biophysics , biochemistry , rna , dna replication , transfer rna , in vitro , gene
The distribution of the mitochondrial DNA among the allomorphic forms, supercoiled circle, open circle and linear rod is a characteristic feature of each cell line. After pulse‐chase labeling with [ Me ‐ 3 H]thymidine the bulk of the radioactivity can be located either in the supercoiled circular mitochondrial DNA (monkey Vero, ATCC; CCL 81) or in the open circular mitochondrial DNA (mouse NCTC 929, ATCC; CCL 1). The open circular mitochondrial DNA from Vero cells contains one single nick, which is located in the heavy strand (alkaline CsCl gradient). In contrast, the open circular mitochondrial DNA from mouse cells contains one nick in one strand and at least two nicks in the opposite strand. The bulk of the supercoiled Vero mitochondrial DNA has a heat‐labile site in the heavy strand and one site in both strands at which the phosphodiester backbone can be hydrolyzed by pancreatic RNAase.