Maturase K (matK) is a plant plastidial gene.[1] The protein it encodes is an organelle intron maturase, a protein that splicesGroup II introns. It is essential for in vivo splicing of Group II introns.[2] Amongst other maturases, this protein retains only a well conserved domain X and remnants of a reverse transcriptase domain.[3]
Location of the matK gene in the chloroplast genome of Arabidopsis thaliana. matK is one of the protein-coding genes involved in functions other than photosynthetic reactions (red boxes). matK maps at the 2–3.5 kb coordinates.
LtrA, an open reading frame found in the Lactococcus lactis group II introns LtrB. It is an intron-encoded protein, with three subdomains, one of which is a reverse-transcriptase/maturase.