DNA polymerase is an enzyme that synthesizes DNA molecules by adding nucleotides to the growing DNA strand. It was first discovered in 1956 by Arthur Kornberg, who described the DNA replication process. DNA polymerase works by reading existing DNA strands and creating two new, identical strands. It adds nucleotides one by one to the 3' end of the DNA strand. The enzyme has a conserved structure resembling a right hand and performs its function through thumb, finger, and palm domains.

1. DNA POLYMERASE
By- Robin Singh

2. CONTENT
 WHAT IS DNA POLYMERASE
 HISTORY
 FUNCTION
 STRUCTURE

3. DNA POLYMERASE
■ DNA polymerase is an enzymethat
synthesizes DNA molecules from deoxyribonucleotides, the
building blocks of DNA.
■ These enzymes are essential for DNA replication and usually
work in pairs to create two identical DNA strands from a single
original DNA molecule.
■ During this process, DNA polymerase "reads" the existing DNA
strands to create two new strands that match the existing ones.
■ DNA polymerase adds nucleotides to the three prime (3')-end of
a DNA strand, one nucleotide at a time.

4. HISTORY
 In 1956, Arthur Kornberg and colleagues discovered DNA polymerase I (Pol I), in Escherichia coli.
 They described the DNA replication process by which DNA polymerase copies the base sequence of a
template DNA strand.
 Kornberg was later awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1959 for this work.
 DNA polymerase II was also discovered by Thomas Kornberg (the son of Arthur Kornberg) and
Malcolm E. Gefter in 1970 while further elucidating the role of Pol I in E. coli DNA replication

5. FUNCTION
 to synthesize DNA from deoxyribonucleotides, the building blocks of
DNA.
 adds new, free nucleotides to the 3’ end of the newly-forming strand,
elongating it in a 5’ to 3’direction.
 DNA polymerase corrects the mistakes in the newly-synthesized DNA
by proofreading the newly-made strands.
 When an incorrect coupling is recognized, the DNApolymerase
reverses its direction by one base pair of DNA.
 he incorrect base pair is then excised and DNA polymerase tries to re-
insert the correct nucleotide before continuing forwards.

6. DNA POLYMERASE STRUCTURE
• The known DNA polymerases have highly conserved structure, which means that their overall
catalytic subunits vary very little from species to species, independent of their domain
structures.
• Conserved structures usually indicate important, irreplaceable functions of the cell, the
maintenance of which provides evolutionary advantages.
• The shape can be described as resembling a right hand with thumb, finger, and palm
domains.
• The palm domain appears to function in catalyzing the transfer of phosphoryl groups in the
phosphoryl transfer reaction. DNA is bound to the palm when the enzyme is active.
• The finger domain functions to bind the nucleoside triphosphates with the template base.
• The thumb domain plays a potential role in the processivity, translocation, and positioning of
the DNA.

8. Family Types of DNA polymerase Species Examples
A
Replicative and Repair
Polymerases
Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic
T7 DNA polymerase, Pol I, and
DNA Polymerase γ
B
Replicative and Repair
Polymerases
Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic Pol II, Pol B, Pol ζ, Pol α, δ, and
ε
C Replicative Polymerases Prokaryotic Pol III
D Replicative Polymerases Euryarchaeota Not well-characterized
X
Replicative and Repair
Polymerases
Eukaryotic
Pol β, Pol σ, Pol λ, Pol μ,
and Terminal
deoxynucleotidyl transferase
Y
Replicative and Repair
Polymerases
Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic Pol ι
[
(
1
i
5
o
]
ta),Pol κ (kappa), Pol η
(eta), Pol IV, and Pol V
RT
Replicative and Repair
Polymerases
Viruses, Retroviruses, and
Eukaryotic
Telomerase, Hepatitis B virus