Bacterial Reverse Transcriptase and msDNA.

Reverse transcriptase at bacterial telomeres.

I n the past two decades, intense efforts have been devoted to uncovering the mechanisms responsible for the maintenance of telomeres in eukaryotic cells. These efforts have led to the identification of an unusual reverse transcriptase (RT), named telomerase, that uses an integral RNA subunit as template to synthesize a short reiterated sequence at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes (Fig. 1A) (...

Retrons, msDNA, and the bacterial genome.

Retrons are distinct DNA sequences that code for a reverse transcriptase (RT) similar to the RTs produced by retroviruses and other types of retroelements. Retron DNAs are commonly associated with prophage DNA and are found in the genomes of a wide variety of different bacteria. The retron RT is used to synthesize a strange satellite DNA known as msDNA. msDNA is actually a complex of DNA, RNA, ...

Reverse Transcriptase and Retroviral Replication

Within each viral particle, retroviruses package two copies of a single-stranded RNA genome of about 10 kb. All of the viral genomes contain three major genes, arranged in the order: 5 ́-gag–pol–env-3 ́, and some retroviruses may also have accessory genes (e.g. vif, vpr, tax, etc...). Structural proteins such as MA (matrix protein), CA (capsid protein) and NC (nucleocapsid protein) are encoded wi...

REVERSE TRANSCRIPTASE AND cDNA SYNTHESIS

Nucleotide Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors

4 Optimal HIV-1 suppression often is difficult to achieve and maintain with currently available antiretroviral drugs, and viral resistance eventually emerges to many drugs. Chronic antiretroviral therapy is also associated with complications such as body fat redistribution, hypertriglyceridemia and hypercholesterolemia, abnormal glucose metabolism, lactic acidosis, pancreatitis, avascular necro...