polymerase

/pəˌlɪməˈreɪz/

Definitions of polymerase

1. noun

   an enzyme that catalyzes the formation of new DNA and RNA from an existing strand of DNA or RNA
   types:

   DNA polymerase

   the enzyme responsible for DNA replication

   RNA polymerase, transcriptase

   the enzyme that copies DNA into RNA

   reverse transcriptase

   a polymerase that catalyzes the formation of DNA using RNA as a template; found especially in retroviruses

   type of:

   enzyme

   any of several complex proteins that are produced by cells and act as catalysts in specific biochemical reactions