Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 9, 2026
14:23
Recombineering Homologous Recombination Constructs in Drosophila
Published on: July 13, 2013
Plant DNA recombinases: a long way to go
Rajani Kant Chittela1, Jayashree K Sainis
1Plant Biochemistry Section, Molecular Biology Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Trombay, Mumbai 400 085, India.
Journal of Nucleic Acids
|August 28, 2010
Summary
Homologous recombination in plants is crucial for genetic diversity and crop breeding. This paper reviews eukaryotic recombinases, focusing on recent advances in plant Rad51 and Dmc1 proteins.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Genetics
- Plant Science
Background:
- Homologous recombination is a vital DNA repair and genetic diversity mechanism involving DNA recombinases.
- Prokaryotic Recombinase A (RecA) is well-studied, with eukaryotic counterparts Rad51 and Dmc1 mediating recombination in yeast and higher eukaryotes.
- Understanding plant homologous recombination is essential for crop improvement but remains less developed than in other eukaryotes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the properties of eukaryotic recombinases.
- To highlight recent developments in plant Rad51 and Dmc1 recombinases.
- To underscore the importance of homologous recombination in plant breeding.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of eukaryotic and plant recombinase research.
- Focus on biochemical and structural properties of Rad51 and Dmc1.
- Analysis of current understanding and recent advancements in plant homologous recombination.
Main Results:
- Eukaryotic recombinases Rad51 and Dmc1 play key roles in homologous recombination.
- Significant progress has been made in understanding yeast and human recombinases.
- Research on plant recombinases is emerging, with Rad51 and Dmc1 as key targets.
Conclusions:
- Eukaryotic recombinase mechanisms are critical for genomic integrity and diversity.
- Further research into plant Rad51 and Dmc1 is needed to leverage homologous recombination for crop breeding.
- This review provides insights into eukaryotic recombinases and advances in plant systems.
Related Concept Videos
02:31Homologous Recombination
The basic reaction of homologous recombination (HR) involves two chromatids that contain DNA sequences sharing a significant stretch of identity. One of these sequences uses a strand from another as a template to synthesize DNA in an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. The final product is a novel amalgamation of the two substrates. To ensure an accurate recombination of sequences, HR is restricted to the S and G2 phases of the cell cycle. At these stages, the DNA has been replicated already and the...
02:31Homologous Recombination
The basic reaction of homologous recombination (HR) involves two chromatids that contain DNA sequences sharing a significant stretch of identity. One of these sequences uses a strand from another as a template to synthesize DNA in an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. The final product is a novel amalgamation of the two substrates. To ensure an accurate recombination of sequences, HR is restricted to the S and G2 phases of the cell cycle. At these stages, the DNA has been replicated already and the...
02:53Conservative Site-specific Recombination and Phase Variation
Because the DNA segments are cut and reorganized in a direction-specific manner, site-specific recombination has emerged as an efficient genetic engineering technique. Flippase and Cyclization recombinases or Flp and Cre, respectively, are two members of the tyrosine recombinase family derived from bacteriophages, that are used to mediate site-specific DNA insertions, deletions, and targeted expression of proteins in mammalian cell lines.
The recognition sites for Cre recombinase called LoxP...
The recognition sites for Cre recombinase called LoxP...
03:01The Replisome
DNA replication is carried out by a large complex of proteins that act in a coordinated matter to achieve high-fidelity DNA replication. Together this complex is known as the DNA replication machinery or the replisome.
The synthesis of the leading and lagging strands is a highly coordinated process. To explain this, the “Trombone model” was proposed by Bruce Alberts in 1980. The DNA loop formation starts when a primer is synthesized on the parent lagging strand. The loop grows with the...
The synthesis of the leading and lagging strands is a highly coordinated process. To explain this, the “Trombone model” was proposed by Bruce Alberts in 1980. The DNA loop formation starts when a primer is synthesized on the parent lagging strand. The loop grows with the...
03:01The Replisome
DNA replication is carried out by a large complex of proteins that act in a coordinated matter to achieve high-fidelity DNA replication. Together this complex is known as the DNA replication machinery or the replisome.
The synthesis of the leading and lagging strands is a highly coordinated process. To explain this, the “Trombone model” was proposed by Bruce Alberts in 1980. The DNA loop formation starts when a primer is synthesized on the parent lagging strand. The loop grows with the...
The synthesis of the leading and lagging strands is a highly coordinated process. To explain this, the “Trombone model” was proposed by Bruce Alberts in 1980. The DNA loop formation starts when a primer is synthesized on the parent lagging strand. The loop grows with the...
02:37Restarting Stalled Replication Forks
DNA replication is initiated at sites containing predefined DNA sequences known as origins of replication. DNA is unwound at these sites by the minichromosome maintenance (MCM) helicase and other factors such as Cdc45 and the associated GINS complex.The unwound single strands are protected by replication protein A (RPA) until DNA polymerase starts synthesizing DNA at the 5’ end of the strand in the same direction as the replication fork. To prevent the replication fork from falling apart, a...