Regulation of Telomerase Activity by the Thermodynamic Stability of a DNA⋅RNA Hybrid

Abstract

Slide or stick: The thermodynamic stability of a hybrid composed of substrate DNA and template RNA derived from telomerase was investigated under dilute and molecular-crowding conditions. Destabilization of the hybrid by cosolutes of low molecular weight (MW) leads to an easier sliding of telomerase along the telomeric DNA (see picture). In contrast, telomerase tends to stick to the telomeric DNA when the hybrid is stabilized by high-MW cosolutes.