Recombinase

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An enzyme that catalyzes the rearrangement of DNA sequences by cutting and rejoining specific segments to facilitate genetic recombination and integration
2. A protein facilitating the exchange or restructuring of DNA strands by mediating site-specific cleavage and ligation during genetic recombination processes
3. A biological catalyst responsible for directing the precise breaking and joining of DNA molecules to enable the rearrangement of genetic material within cells

Etymology: Recombinase is a fairly modern coinage, built in a straightforward way: the prefix "re-" meaning "again" or "back," attached to "combine," with the suffix "-ase" added to name a class of enzymes. The "-ase" ending has a traceable pedigree of its own. It was taken from "diastase," the name given in the 1830s to an enzyme that breaks down starch, itself coined from Greek roots meaning "to stand apart." Chemists then began using "-ase" for enzymes generally, so anything ending in it announces itself as an enzyme. "Recombine" was formed in English from "re-" and "combine," which came into English through Old French from Latin "combinare," meaning "to join two things together." Combining the two parts gives the sense of joining things together again in a new arrangement, which is exactly what these enzymes do to DNA: they cut strands of genetic material and splice them into different configurations. The word was made for this purpose in the scientific vocabulary of molecular biology rather than inherited from older usage.

Synonyms: recombination enzyme