Processivity
Processivity
Processivity (/prəˈsɛsɪvɪti/) is a term used in various scientific disciplines, including biochemistry, molecular biology, and polymer chemistry. It refers to the ability of an enzyme to catalyze consecutive reactions without releasing its substrate.
Etymology
The term "processivity" is derived from the English word "processive," which means advancing step by step. It was first used in the context of molecular biology in the late 20th century.
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
In biochemistry and molecular biology, processivity is a property of certain enzymes that operate on polymeric substrates. A highly processive enzyme will perform many catalytic cycles on a single substrate before dissociating. This is in contrast to a distributive enzyme, which will dissociate after each catalytic cycle.
Examples of processive enzymes include DNA polymerase, which synthesizes DNA, and RNA polymerase, which synthesizes RNA. These enzymes are able to add many nucleotides to a growing DNA or RNA chain without releasing the chain.
Polymer Chemistry
In polymer chemistry, processivity refers to the ability of a polymerase to catalyze the addition of multiple monomers to a growing polymer chain without releasing the chain. This is an important property for the synthesis of long, high-molecular-weight polymers.
Related Terms
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Processivity
- Wikipedia's article - Processivity
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