Question

What is the enzymatic function of restriction enzymes?

a.to add new nucleotides to the growing strand of DNA
b.to join nucleotides during replication
c.to join nucleotides during transcription
d.to cleave nucleic acids at specific sites
e.to repair breaks in sugar-phosphate backbones

Answer 1

Restriction enzymes cleave nucleic acids at specific sites, typically palindromic sequences (option D), to produce 'sticky ends' or 'blunt ends', enabling DNA analysis and recombinant DNA technology.

Step-by-step explanation:

The enzymatic function of restriction enzymes is to cleave nucleic acids at specific sites. These enzymes recognize specific sequences within DNA, often palindromic sequences that read the same in both directions, and make precise cuts. This cutting can result in 'sticky ends' which have short overhanging single-stranded DNA sequences or 'blunt ends' which are straight cuts across both strands without overhangs. The specificity of these cuts is crucial for applications such as cloning, where DNA fragments cut by the same restriction enzyme can be spliced together or analyzed for variations such as in DNA fingerprinting.