Question

What is the purpose of DNA polymerase?

Answer 1

DNA polymerase is essential for DNA replication, where it adds complementary nucleotides to the growing strand and utilizes proofreading to maintain genetic fidelity.

Step-by-step explanation:

The enzyme DNA polymerase, often abbreviated as DNA pol, is essential for the replication of DNA. During the replication process, DNA polymerase adds nucleotides to the growing DNA strand in a sequence complementary to the template strand. A crucial function of DNA polymerase involves its proofreading ability. If DNA polymerase adds an incorrect nucleotide, it has a mechanism to correct this error. It can sense the mismatched base pair and utilize its 3' exonuclease activity to remove the wrong nucleotide. Once removed, the proper nucleotide can be inserted. This proofreading ability enhances the accuracy of DNA replication, maintaining the integrity of the genetic information.

Furthermore, DNA polymerase also requires a template strand to synthesize the new complementary strand and can only add nucleotides to a pre-existing strand of DNA. The energy for adding nucleotides is derived from the nucleotides themselves, which have three phosphates attached, providing the necessary energy for creating the phosphodiester bond in the growing DNA chain.

Answer 2

The main function of DNA polymerase is to make it from nucleotides, the building blocks of DNA. There are several forms of DNA polymerase that play a role DNA replication and they usually work in pairs to copy one molecule of double-stranded DNA into two new double stranded DNA molecules.