Analysis of Organellar DNA Polymerases in Cyanidioschyzon merolae

Abstract

In plants and algae, it is thought that distant homologs of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I (Pol I) is involved in the replication of organellar genomes. So far, such enzymes have been identified in Arabidopsis, rice, and tobacco. The genome of the red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae contains the gene encoding a homolog of plant enzymes PolB, and the gene encoding PolA that has a higher homology to Pol I than to plant enzymes. We purified PolB from the cells of C. merolae and characterized the enzymatic properties.