RNA polymerase

RNA Polymerase

RNA polymerase (pronounced: /ɑːrɛnˈeɪ pɒlɪməreɪz/), also known as RNAP or RNApol, is a type of enzyme that is responsible for synthesizing an RNA sequence from a DNA template, a process known as transcription.

Etymology

The term "RNA polymerase" is derived from the Greek words ríbon (meaning "ribonucleic acid"), polýs (meaning "many"), and meros (meaning "part"). Thus, "RNA polymerase" can be interpreted as "the enzyme that makes many parts of RNA".

Function

RNA polymerase binds to a specific section of the DNA strand known as the promoter. It then separates the two strands of DNA and uses one as a template to synthesize a complementary RNA strand. This process continues until the enzyme reaches a sequence of DNA known as the terminator, at which point the RNA polymerase molecule detaches from the DNA.

Types

There are several types of RNA polymerase, each of which is responsible for transcribing different types of RNA:

• RNA polymerase I transcribes rRNA, which is a component of ribosomes.
• RNA polymerase II transcribes mRNA, which carries the genetic information from DNA to the ribosome.
• RNA polymerase III transcribes tRNA, which is involved in the process of protein synthesis.

Related Terms

• Transcription
• Promoter
• Terminator
• rRNA
• mRNA
• tRNA

External links

• Medical encyclopedia article on RNA polymerase
• Wikipedia's article - RNA polymerase

This WikiMD article is a stub. You can help make it a full article.

---

Languages: - East Asian 中文, 日本, 한국어, South Asian हिन्दी, Urdu, বাংলা, తెలుగు, தமிழ், ಕನ್ನಡ,
Southeast Asian Indonesian, Vietnamese, Thai, မြန်မာဘာသာ, European español, Deutsch, français, русский, português do Brasil, Italian, polski