Work

Intersubunit allosteric communication mediated by a conserved loop in the MCM helicase

Year: 2009

Type: article

Abstract: The minichromosome maintenance (MCM) helicase is the presumptive replicative helicase in archaea and eukaryotes. The archaeal homomultimeric MCM has a two-tier structure. One tier contains the AAA+ motor domains of the proteins, and these are the minimal functional helicase domains. The second tier is formed by the N-terminal domains. These domains are not essential for MCM helicase activity but act to enhance the processivity of the helicase. We reveal that a conserved loop facilitates communication between processivity and motor tiers. Interestingly, this allostery seems to be mediated by interactions between, rather than within, individual protomers in the MCM ring.

Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0809192106

Authors: Elizabeth R. Barry, Janet E. Lovett, Alessandro Costa, Susan M. Lea, Stephen D. Bell

Institutions: University of Oxford, MRC Cancer Unit, Hutchison/MRC Research Centre

Language: English

Topic: DNA Repair Mechanisms

Subfield: Molecular Biology

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: University of Oxford, Medical Research Council, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

Awards: A Multidisciplinary Research Centre for Advanced Electron Paramagnetic Resonance, G6961470834