= RNA polymerase IV
{c}
= Pol IV
{c}
{synonym}
<RNA polymerase IV> is a specialized <plant> nuclear <RNA polymerase> required for major small-RNA-dependent silencing pathways. Its transcripts are used with an RNA-dependent polymerase to generate precursors of small interfering <RNAs>. These help guide <RNA-directed DNA methylation>, while <RNA polymerase V> contributes a distinct scaffold-transcript function. Mutating conserved catalytic motifs disrupts silencing, supporting a requirement for polymerase activity rather than only structural presence. <Metal A and metal B sites of nuclear RNA polymerases Pol IV and Pol V are required for siRNA-dependent DNA methylation and gene silencing by J. R. Haag and others>[Haag and others, 2009, catalytic metal-site mutations and siRNA-dependent silencing]{ref}
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