Exodeoxyribonuclease (lambda-induced) (EC 3.1.11.3, lambda exonuclease, phage lambda-induced exonuclease, ''Escherichia coli'' exonuclease IV, ''E. coli'' exonuclease IV, exodeoxyribonuclease IV, exonuclease IV) is an
exonuclease
Exonucleases are enzymes that work by cleaving nucleotides one at a time from the end (exo) of a polynucleotide chain. A hydrolyzing reaction that breaks phosphodiester bonds at either the 3′ or the 5′ end occurs. Its close relative is th ...
. This enzyme
catalyses the following
chemical reaction
A chemical reaction is a process that leads to the chemistry, chemical transformation of one set of chemical substances to another. When chemical reactions occur, the atoms are rearranged and the reaction is accompanied by an Gibbs free energy, ...
: Exonucleolytic cleavage in the 5′- to 3′-direction to yield nucleoside 5′-phosphates
This enzyme has preference for double-stranded
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
(dsDNA). This means that it degrades a single strand of
dsDNA, primarily any strand which has a
phosphate
Phosphates are the naturally occurring form of the element phosphorus.
In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthop ...
at its
5' end
Directionality, in molecular biology and biochemistry, is the end-to-end chemical orientation of a single strand of nucleic acid. In a single strand of DNA or RNA, the chemical convention of naming carbon atoms in the nucleotide pentose-sugar-r ...
.
References
External links
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EC 3.1.11