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RNA polymerase
noun
: any of a group of enzymes that promote the synthesis of RNA using DNA or RNA as a template
Examples of RNA polymerase in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The researchers next set out to understand what caused the RNA polymerase II to stall in older mice.
—William A. Haseltine, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024
Notable new developments in these areas include using computational algorithms to optimize mRNA sequences in ways that enhance their stability and engineering RNA polymerases that introduce fewer side products that may cause an immune response.
—Discover Magazine, 8 Jan. 2024
Most viruses that use RNA as their genetic material, including HIV and the hepatitis C virus (HCV), are also highly prone to mutation because the RNA polymerase that replicates their genome doesn’t proofread the copies as effectively as DNA polymerases do.
—Quanta Magazine, 11 Jan. 2022
This lets the RNA polymerase travel all the way along the DNA strand, making the sample fluoresce green.
—Susan Cosier, Scientific American, 23 Nov. 2020
Those two bindings allow an enzyme called RNA polymerase to glom onto the gene and make a copy of it.
—Alla Katsnelson and Casey Rentz, Discover Magazine, 3 May 2019
For the current study, Zhu and his graduate student Yuan Xu set out to synthesize a mirror-image version of a workhorse enzyme used in molecular biology labs worldwide to synthesize long RNA strands, the T7 RNA polymerase.
—Byrobert F. Service, science.org, 27 Oct. 2022
Amatoxins work by blocking a key enzyme involved in making new proteins, called RNA polymerase type II.
—Beth Mole, Ars Technica, 13 Oct. 2022
Paxlovid blocks the virus’ enzyme protease, whereas VV116 and remdesivir inhibit the enzyme RNA polymerase.
—Mary Hui, Quartz, 6 July 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'RNA polymerase.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1961, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near RNA polymerase
Cite this Entry
“RNA polymerase.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/RNA%20polymerase. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
Medical Definition
RNA polymerase
noun
: any of a group of enzymes that promote the synthesis of RNA using DNA or RNA as a template
More from Merriam-Webster on RNA polymerase
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about RNA polymerase
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