Molecular Mechanisms of RAD52-Mediated Homologous Recombination

同源重组是基因组稳定的重要机制。为了了解潜在的分子机制，用x射线晶体学解决了rad52 -单链DNA复合物的三维结构。与RAD52结合的单链DNA具有典型的右旋螺旋结构，碱基暴露在溶剂中。这种结构似乎适合于同源DNA序列的高效搜索。目前的结构提供了DNA同源性搜索如何发生的第一个清晰的视图。

Homologous recombination is an important mechanism for genomic stability. To understand the underlying molecular mechanisms, three-dimensional structures of RAD52-single-stranded DNA complexes were solved by X-ray crystallography. The single-stranded DNA bound to RAD52 has a characteristic, right-handed helical structure, with bases exposed to the solvent. This structure appears suitable for the efficient search of homologous DNA sequences. The present structure provides the first clear view of how DNA homology search takes place.