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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
By 1989, other researchers had found a way to utilise PCR to generate mRNA from scratch, by amplifying DNA strands and using an enzyme called RNA polymerase to create mRNA molecules from these strands. David Cox, WIRED, 2 Dec. 2020 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

Word History

First Known Use

1961, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of RNA polymerase was in 1961

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 24 Dec. 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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!