What are the functions of DNA ligase?
Posted March 26, 2024
Answer
This enzyme serves several important functions.
- It plays a crucial role in DNA replication, DNA recombination, and DNA repair, helping to join the nicks and form a phosphodiester bond between the nucleotides. This helps to maintain genomic integrity.
- Researchers use DNA ligase with restriction endonuclease enzyme in order to insert DNA segments, often genes, into the plasmid.
- DNA ligases that are purified from various organisms are used in gene cloning to join DNA molecules together with the aim of generating recombinant DNA.
- E. coli DNA ligases are particularly useful for high-efficiency cloning of full-length cDNA.
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