Dynamics: the missing link between structure and function of the viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase?
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Updated: Jun 18, 2026

Artificial RNA Polymerase II Elongation Complexes for Dissecting Co-transcriptional RNA Processing Events
Published on: May 13, 2019
Craig E Cameron1, Ibrahim M Moustafa, Jamie J Arnold
1Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, United States. cec9@psu.edu
Abstract:
The structural basis for nucleotide incorporation fidelity remains an open question for all nucleic acid polymerases. Addressing this question for the viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) is of particular, practical significance because it is a determinant of sensitivity to antiviral nucleosides and may be a determinant of viral virulence. All polymerases are thought to employ the same catalytic mechanism, but the rate of nucleotide incorporation can vary substantially. Here we review some of the recent work with the RdRp that leads us to suggest that structure provides only a partial understanding of RdRp function and dynamics may be the missing link.
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