W. Wright, Biology student, Biology student, Astoria
Answered Feb 18, 2021
Okazaki fragments are DNA fragments of about 150-200 base pairs long in eukaryotes that are used to create a lagging strand, most especially during DNA replication. Although they are synthesized discontinuously, they can be linked together using an enzyme DNA ligase.
This method is used in creating Okazaki fragments for DNA replication. They are often used to form double-stranded DNA sections that are short. These fragments are separated by nucleotide RNA primers. These primers are then removed when an enzyme DNA ligase is added to connect the Okazaki fragments.
The addition of the enzyme DNA ligase is important since Okazaki fragments can only be created in installments. This will allow the Okazaki fragments to be created on a continuous chain on the lagging strand. While the enzymes that create Okazaki fragments can only work in one direction (5 to 3 direction), the lagging strand is discontinuous because it cannot occur in the same direction.
The DNA polymerase III will add some nucleotides going to the 5’ to 3’ direction. Okazaki fragments will normally form during DNA replication because DNA can only be synthesized in just one direction. DNA is also parallel. For every replication fork that will be encountered, there are two strands that are formed.
The first one is called the lagging strand that will be synthesized in the 5’ to 3’ direction and the second one is the leading strand that can be found in the 3’ to 5’ direction. Okazaki fragments are going to be important because they serve as the building blocks of the RNA primers.
Okazaki fragments are short sequences of DNA nucleotides 150 to 200 base pairs long in eukaryotes, which are synthesized and later connected by the enzyme DNA ligase to create the lingering strand developed during DNA replication.
Therefore, Okazaki fragments correspond to the lagging strand, which runs in the 5 to 3 direction. They form short double-stranded DNA sections that lie between 1,000 and 2,000 nucleotides in prokaryotes and eukaryotes.
Okazaki fragments appear in both groups. DNA molecules in eukaryotes differ from circular molecules of prokaryotes in that they are larger and typically have multiple sources of replication. They are formed as the lagging strand of DNA is copied.