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Related Concept Videos

DNA Helicases00:55

DNA Helicases

DNA unwinding helicase enzymes are a type of motor protein. Motor proteins can translocate along filaments or polymers using energy generated from ATP hydrolysis. Helicases are involved in all the important cellular processes where DNA unwinding is required, such as DNA replication, repair, recombination, and transcription. They are present in all living organisms, but vary in their structure, function, and mechanism of action. For example, in prokaryotes, DnaB helicase binds and translocates...
Homologous Recombination02:31

Homologous Recombination

The basic reaction of homologous recombination (HR) involves two chromatids that contain DNA sequences sharing a significant stretch of identity. One of these sequences uses a strand from another as a template to synthesize DNA in an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. The final product is a novel amalgamation of the two substrates. To ensure an accurate recombination of sequences, HR is restricted to the S and G2 phases of the cell cycle. At these stages, the DNA has been replicated already and the...
Homologous Recombination02:31

Homologous Recombination

The basic reaction of homologous recombination (HR) involves two chromatids that contain DNA sequences sharing a significant stretch of identity. One of these sequences uses a strand from another as a template to synthesize DNA in an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. The final product is a novel amalgamation of the two substrates. To ensure an accurate recombination of sequences, HR is restricted to the S and G2 phases of the cell cycle. At these stages, the DNA has been replicated already and the...
Animal Mitochondrial Genetics02:59

Animal Mitochondrial Genetics

Among all the organelles in an animal cell, only mitochondria have their own independent genomes. Animal mitochondrial DNA is a double-stranded, closed-circular molecule with around 20,000 base pairs. Mitochondrial DNA is unique in that one of its two strands, the heavy, or H, -strand is guanine rich, whereas the complementary strand is cytosine rich and called the light, or L, -strand. Compared to nuclear DNA, mitochondrial DNA has a very low percentage of non-coding regions and is marked by...
Chromosome Replication02:31

Chromosome Replication

Before a cell can divide, it must accurately replicate all of its chromosomes, including the DNA and its associated histone and non-histone proteins.  This process begins at numerous origins of replication during the S phase of the cell cycle in each of a cell’s chromosomes simultaneously. Certain nucleotides can act as origins of replication, but these sequences are not well defined - especially in complex, multi-cellular, eukaryotic species. The length of DNA that spans an origin of...
Replication in Eukaryotes01:29

Replication in Eukaryotes

In eukaryotic cells, DNA replication is highly conserved and tightly regulated. Multiple linear chromosomes must be duplicated with high fidelity before cell division, so there are many proteins that fulfill specialized roles in the replication process. Replication occurs in three phases: initiation, elongation, and termination, and ends with two complete sets of chromosomes in the nucleus.
Many Proteins Orchestrate Replication at the Origin
Eukaryotic replication follows many of the same...

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High-Throughput Image-Based Quantification of Mitochondrial DNA Synthesis and Distribution
10:47

High-Throughput Image-Based Quantification of Mitochondrial DNA Synthesis and Distribution

Published on: May 5, 2023

Human mitochondrial DNA replication.

Ian J Holt1, Aurelio Reyes

  • 1MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit, Cambridge, United Kingdom. ih@mrc-mbu.cam.ac.uk

Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Biology
|November 13, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Mitochondrial DNA replication is more complex than previously thought, challenging the simple strand-displacement model. New evidence suggests bidirectional replication, indicating a sophisticated process vital for human health.

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Visualization of Mitochondrial DNA Replication in Individual Cells by EdU Signal Amplification
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In Situ Labeling of Mitochondrial DNA Replication in Drosophila Adult Ovaries by EdU Staining

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Last Updated: May 17, 2026

High-Throughput Image-Based Quantification of Mitochondrial DNA Synthesis and Distribution
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Visualization of Mitochondrial DNA Replication in Individual Cells by EdU Signal Amplification
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In Situ Labeling of Mitochondrial DNA Replication in Drosophila Adult Ovaries by EdU Staining
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Area of Science:

  • Mitochondrial biology
  • Molecular genetics
  • DNA replication mechanisms

Background:

  • Mitochondrial genome maintenance was considered simplified compared to nuclear DNA.
  • Mammalian mitochondria were thought to lack DNA repair and recombination, with only one DNA polymerase (Polγ).
  • The established model proposed a single, strand-displacement mechanism for mitochondrial DNA replication.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the complexities of mitochondrial DNA replication.
  • To challenge the long-held, simplified model of mitochondrial DNA maintenance.
  • To explore alternative mechanisms and regulation in mitochondrial DNA replication.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing literature on mitochondrial DNA replication.
  • Analysis of documented mitochondrial DNA molecules.
  • Comparison of proposed replication models.

Main Results:

  • Evidence suggests mitochondrial DNA replication is not solely a strand-displacement process.
  • Mitochondrial DNA molecules exhibiting features of bidirectional replication have been observed.
  • RNA, rather than protein, may coat the displaced strand during replication.

Conclusions:

  • Mitochondrial DNA replication is a more complex process than previously understood.
  • The regulation of mitochondrial DNA replication is intricate and significant for human health and longevity.
  • Further research is needed to fully elucidate mitochondrial DNA replication pathways.