GO:0009307 / Biological Process

Data sourced from QuickGo

Nov. 3, 2025, 6:13 p.m.

GO:0009307

DNA restriction-modification system

A defense process found in many bacteria and archaea that protects the organism from invading foreign DNA by cleaving it with a restriction endonuclease. The organism's own DNA is protected by methylation of a specific nucleotide, which occurs immediately following replication, in the same target site as the restriction enzyme.