StepsinDNAReplicationinProkaryotes:E.

coli
Initiation
1.OriginalDNAmolecule.Theparentstrandsandareshowninred.

2.Initiatorproteinsattachtoaspecificinitiationsite,recognizedasaparticularsequenceofDNA
nucleotides.
3.DNAHelicaseattachesatinitiationsite.OtherproteinscalledSSB(singlestrandbindingproteins),
preventreannealingoftheDNA.
DNAHelicaseisanenzymethatunravelstheDNAdoublehelixandbreaksthehydrogenbonds.

4.Replicationforkformation.
Replicationfork.ThereplicationforkreferstotheregionontheDNAthatistheleadingedgeofDNA
replicationastheDNAunzipsinaparticularregion.Atthisstagethereplicationforkhasacomplexof
proteinsincludingtheenzymehelicaseandanotherenzyme,DNAprimase.
DNAprimaseisanenzymethatgeneratesanRNAsequencethatservesasastartingpoint
orprimerforsynthesisofthenewDNAchain.

5.StartofDNAsynthesisonleadingstrandofDNAusingDNApolymerases.
DNApolymerasesareenzymesthatsynthesizeacomplementaryDNAstrandusingatheoriginal
strandasatemplate.InDNAsynthesisthenewstrandgrows5'to3'.

Elongation
1.ProductionofnewDNAhalffromparental
leadingstrandasatemplate.RememberthatDNA
synthesisisin3'>5'directionoftheparental
strand.Leadingstrandsynthesisiscontinuous
fromtheprimertothereplicationfork.
MeanwhileanotherRNAprimase(Lightbrown)
hasattachedanRNAprimer(Purple)totheupper
parentalstrand.Thisothernewstrandisthe
laggingstrand.It'ssynthesisisdiscontinuous.