Page 227 - The Manga Guide to Biochemistry
P. 227
It sure was! In fact, Kornberg was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or
Medicine in 1959.
DNA polymerase is officially called “DNA-dependent DNA polymerase.”
This means that a DNA polymerase enzyme requires the presence of an
existing DNA template molecule in order to create a new DNA molecule.
polyDmNeA rase
I get it. Since the pairs are complementary, DNA polymerase steadily creates
the chain by referring to the template.
The chemical reaction that DNA polymerase catalyzes is shown below.
O O
O PP O Phosphodiester
-O P O CH2 O P O CH2 bond
Base
O O O
O
3' end HO H H
5´ O
connects to the next
deoxyribonucleotide 5´
phosphate O P O CH2 O
O
3´
-O -O -O Base
-O P O P O P O CH2
O
OOO
HO H
In this reaction, a nucleotide with three
phosphates attached is used as the substrate.
Molecular Biology and the Biochemistry of Nucleic Acids 213
