Question

A scientist isolates a second restriction endonuclease from the strain DC3 of Helicobacter pyogenes. What would the scientist name it using the standard naming technique of restriction enzyme?

Hint:

The first letter is always capitalized, and the species name letters are lowercase. The Roman numeral indicates discovery order in that specific strain.

Answer 1

Step 1: Understand the naming rule of restriction enzymes.
Restriction endonucleases are named according to a standard scientific convention. The name is derived from:
• The first letter of the genus name (capitalized).
• The first two letters of the species name (lowercase).
• The strain name of the organism.
• A Roman numeral indicating the order of discovery of the enzyme from that organism.

Step 2: Apply the rule to the given organism.
The bacterium mentioned is Helicobacter pyogenes.
• First letter of genus (Helicobacter) → H
• First two letters of species (pyogenes) → py
So the base name becomes Hpy.

Step 3: Include the strain name.
The enzyme is isolated from strain DC3. According to the naming system, the strain identifier is added after the species abbreviation.

Step 4: Indicate the order of discovery.
Since this is the second restriction endonuclease isolated from this strain, the Roman numeral II is used.

Final Answer:
The scientist would name the restriction enzyme HpyDC3 II according to the standard naming system.