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Related Concept Videos

Replication in Prokaryotes01:32

Replication in Prokaryotes

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DNA replication has three main steps: initiation, elongation, and termination. Replication in prokaryotes begins when initiator proteins bind to the single origin of replication (ori) on the cell's circular chromosome. Replication then proceeds around the entire circle of the chromosome in each direction from the two replication forks, resulting in two DNA molecules.
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Replication in Eukaryotes01:29

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In eukaryotic cells, DNA replication is highly conserved and tightly regulated. Multiple linear chromosomes must be duplicated with high fidelity before cell division, so there are many proteins that fulfill specialized roles in the replication process. Replication occurs in three phases: initiation, elongation, and termination, and ends with two complete sets of chromosomes in the nucleus.
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The DNA Replication Fork01:02

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An organism’s genome needs to be duplicated in an efficient and error-free manner for its growth and survival. The replication fork is a Y-shaped active region where two strands of DNA are separated and replicated continuously. The coupling of DNA unzipping and complementary strand synthesis is a characteristic feature of a replication fork.   Organisms with small circular DNA, such as E. coli, often have a single origin of replication; therefore, they have only two replication...
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DNA replication involves the separation of the two strands of the double helix, with each strand serving as a template from which the new complementary strand is copied.  After replication, each double-stranded DNA includes one parental or “old” strand and one “new” strand. This is known as semiconservative replication. The resulting DNA molecules have the same sequence and are divided equally into the two daughter cells.
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The cell cycle is a series of events leading to DNA duplication followed by the division of cell content to form two daughter cells. The cell cycle progresses in four stages—the cell increases in size (gap 1 or G1-phase), duplicates its DNA (synthesis or S-phase), prepares to divide (gap 2 or G2-phase), and divides (mitosis or M-phase).
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Before a cell can divide, it must accurately replicate all of its chromosomes, including the DNA and its associated histone and non-histone proteins.  This process begins at numerous origins of replication during the S phase of the cell cycle in each of a cell’s chromosomes simultaneously. Certain nucleotides can act as origins of replication, but these sequences are not well defined - especially in complex, multi-cellular, eukaryotic species. The length of DNA that spans an origin...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 10, 2025

Determination of the Optimal Chromosomal Locations for a DNA Element in Escherichia coli Using a Novel Transposon-mediated Approach
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How bacteria initiate DNA replication comes into focus.

Fahad Rashid1, James M Berger1

  • 1Department of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

Bioessays : News and Reviews in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology
|October 11, 2024
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Summary

Bacterial DNA replication initiation involves the DnaA protein binding to the oriC region. New structural data reveals how DnaA interacts with melted DNA at the origin, showing evolutionary links to other life domains.

Keywords:
AAA+ ATPaseDNA replicationDnaAORCreplication origin

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Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Structural Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • DNA replication initiation is essential for cell proliferation across all life forms.
  • In bacteria, the ATP-dependent DnaA protein initiates replication by binding and unwinding the replication origin (oriC).
  • The precise mechanism of DnaA's recognition and unwinding of oriC has been a long-standing question.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To provide novel structural insights into the mechanism of DnaA-oriC interaction in Bacillus subtilis.
  • To elucidate how DnaA utilizes specific sequence features within oriC to engage melted DNA.
  • To compare bacterial replication origin engagement with that of archaeal and eukaryotic systems.

Main Methods:

  • X-ray crystallography to determine the structure of DnaA bound to its cognate oriC.
  • Structural comparison with known replication initiator complexes from other domains of life (e.g., Orc-family proteins).

Main Results:

  • Detailed structural information showing how Bacillus subtilis DnaA recognizes and binds to melted DNA at the oriC.
  • Identification of specific sequence features in oriC that facilitate DnaA binding.
  • Structural similarities observed in origin engagement between bacterial DnaA and archaeal/eukaryotic Orc proteins.

Conclusions:

  • The study provides a mechanistic understanding of bacterial replication initiation at the structural level.
  • Findings reveal conserved principles of origin engagement by initiator proteins across different domains of life.
  • The research highlights the evolutionary history of DNA replication initiation mechanisms.