Different chromatographic forms of Neurospora crassa nucleases specific for single-stranded nucleic acids.

Abstract

Three fractions with single-strand-specific nuclease activity have been isolated by chromatography on phosphocellulose and hydroxyapatite from Neurospora crassa conidia. Two of the fractions containing, respectively, 9% and 7% of the total nuclease activity recovered had the same chromatographic and enzymological properties as the endonuclease and exonuclease previously reported. The third fraction, containing 84% of the total nuclease activity recovered, was shown to contain a mixture of single-strand-specific endonuclease and exonuclease activities enzymologically indistinguishable from the activities previously described. The two components of this fraction were resolved by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. A fraction with the same chromatographic properties was also isolated from N. crassa mycelia in which single-strand-specific endonuclease, but no exonuclease activity, was detected. The two mycelial endonuclease fractions were enzymologically indistinguishable. The results were shown not to be due to artifacts of chromatography. Different batches of N. crassa conidia have been found to be heterogeneous with respect to contents of endonuclease and exonuclease.