Bucka A, Stasiak A
Laboratoire d'Analyse Ultrastructurale, Université de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne-Dorigny, Switzerland.
Nucleic Acids Res. 2001 Jun 15;29(12):2464-70. doi: 10.1093/nar/29.12.2464.
RecA protein in bacteria and its eukaryotic homolog Rad51 protein are responsible for initiation of strand exchange between homologous DNA molecules. This process is crucial for homologous recombination, the repair of certain types of DNA damage and for the reinitiation of DNA replication on collapsed replication forks. We show here, using two different types of in vitro assays, that in the absence of ATP hydrolysis RecA-mediated strand exchange traverses small substitutional heterologies between the interacting DNAs, whereas small deletions or insertions block the ongoing strand exchange. We discuss evolutionary implications of RecA selectivity against insertions and deletions and propose a molecular mechanism by which RecA can exert this selectivity.
细菌中的RecA蛋白及其真核同源物Rad51蛋白负责启动同源DNA分子之间的链交换。这一过程对于同源重组、某些类型DNA损伤的修复以及在坍塌的复制叉上重新启动DNA复制至关重要。我们在此使用两种不同类型的体外试验表明,在没有ATP水解的情况下,RecA介导的链交换能够跨越相互作用DNA之间的小的替换性异源序列,而小的缺失或插入则会阻断正在进行的链交换。我们讨论了RecA对插入和缺失的选择性的进化意义,并提出了一种RecA能够发挥这种选择性的分子机制。