Common and unique features of viral RNA-dependent polymerases

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

165 Scopus citations

Abstract

Eukaryotes and bacteria can be infected with a wide variety of RNA viruses. On average, these pathogens share little sequence similarity and use different replication and transcription strategies. Nevertheless, the members of nearly all RNA virus families depend on the activity of a virally encoded RNA-dependent polymerase for the condensation of nucleotide triphosphates. This review provides an overview of our current understanding of the viral RNA-dependent polymerase structure and the biochemistry and biophysics that is involved in replicating and transcribing the genetic material of RNA viruses.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)4403-4420
Number of pages18
JournalCellular and Molecular Life Sciences
Volume71
Issue number22
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 24 2014
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Molecular Medicine
  • Molecular Biology
  • Pharmacology
  • Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
  • Cell Biology

Keywords

  • Dynamics
  • RNA virus
  • RdRp
  • Retrovirus
  • Reverse transcriptase

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Common and unique features of viral RNA-dependent polymerases'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this