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Updated: Jul 19, 2026

Real-time Observation of the DNA Strand Exchange Reaction Mediated by Rad51
Published on: February 13, 2019
Rad4-Rad23 interaction with SWI/SNF links ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling with nucleotide excision repair
Feng Gong1, Deirdre Fahy, Michael J Smerdon
1Biochemistry and Biophysics, School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164-4660, USA.
Abstract:
Chromatin rearrangement occurs during nucleotide excision repair (NER). Here we show that Snf6 and Snf5, two subunits of the SWI/SNF chromatin-remodeling complex in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, copurify with the NER damage-recognition heterodimer Rad4-Rad23. This interaction between SWI/SNF and Rad4-Rad23 is stimulated by UV irradiation. We demonstrate that NER in the transcriptionally silent, nucleosome-loaded HML locus is reduced in yeast cells lacking functional SWI/SNF. In addition, using a restriction enzyme accessibility assay, we observed UV-induced nucleosome rearrangement at the silent HML locus. Notably, this rearrangement is markedly attenuated when SWI/SNF is inactivated. These results indicate that the SWI/SNF chromatin-remodeling complex is recruited to DNA lesions by damage-recognition proteins to increase DNA accessibility for NER in chromatin.
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