title: Minireview: DNA replication in plant mitochondria.
abstract: Higher plant mitochondrial genomes exhibit much greater structural complexity compared to most other organisms. Unlike well-characterized metazoan mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) replication, an understanding of the mechanism(s) and proteins involved in plant mtDNA replication remains unclear. Several plant mtDNA replication proteins, including DNA polymerases, DNA primase/helicase, and accessory proteins have been identified. Mitochondrial dynamics, genome structure, and the complexity of dual-targeted and dual-function proteins that provide at least partial redundancy suggest that plants have a unique model for maintaining and replicating mtDNA when compared to the replication mechanism utilized by most metazoan organisms.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology & Molecular Biology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, United States. Electronic address: john.cupp@usu.edu.
authors.forename: John D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Cupp
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology & Molecular Biology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, United States. Electronic address: brentnielsen@byu.edu.
authors.forename: Brent L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Nielsen
mesh_terms: D004261:DNA Replication; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D010944:Plants / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins; D010940:Plant Proteins
keywords: MtDNA polymerase; MtDNA replication; Plant mitochondrial genome; Plant mtDNA recombination; Twinkle primase/helicase