Escherichia coli helicase II (urvD gene product) translocates unidirectionally in a 3' to 5' direction.

Escherichia coli helicase II, product of the uvrD gene, is a single-stranded DNA-dependent nucleoside 5'-triphosphatase with helicase activity. As a DNA-dependent ATPase, helicase II translocates processively along single-stranded DNA (S. W. Matson, unpublished results). The direction of translocation has been determined using a helicase assay that directly measures the ability of helicase II to catalyze the displacement of a labeled DNA fragment from one end of a single-stranded linear DNA molecule. The translocation of helicase II along single-stranded DNA is unidirectional and in the 3' to 5' direction with respect to the DNA strand on which the enzyme is bound. A kinetic analysis of the displacement of a labeled DNA fragment annealed to a linear single-stranded DNA molecule is also consistent with unidirectional translocation in the 3' to 5' direction. These results are contrary to results previously obtained using an indirect helicase assay (Kuhn, B., Abdel-Monem, M., Krell, H., and Hoffmann-Berling, H. (1979) J. Biol. Chem. 254, 11343-11350).