Showing results for helicase. Search instead for heliast.

helicase

American

[hel-i-kays, hee-li-] / ˈhɛl ɪˌkeɪs, ˈhi lɪ- /

noun

Biochemistry.

any of the enzymes that use the energy derived from the hydrolysis of nucleoside triphosphates to unwind the double-stranded helical structure of nucleic acids.

RNA and DNA helicases.

Etymology

Origin of helicase

helic- + -ase

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

helicase

These exposed regions attract the BIR machinery, including PIF1, a helicase that is essential for BIR to operate.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 27, 2025

It would be difficult to create safe drugs that target the domains of the enzyme needed for protease or helicase functions, as human cells have many similar molecules.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 8, 2023

The enzyme helicase opens up the DNA at the point where hydrogen bonds connect the strands, resulting in the formation of a Y-shaped replication fork.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

Researchers are investigating drugs that block the coronavirus helicase, leaving the virus’s genes in a tangled mess.

From New York Times ● Dec. 7, 2021

Cryo-EM structures of the eukaryotic replicative helicase bound to a translocation substrate.

From Nature ● Feb. 27, 2018

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023