Figure 5-58. The structure of the RecA and Rad51 protein–DNA filaments.

Figure 5-58The structure of the RecA and Rad51 protein–DNA filaments

(A) The Rad51 protein bound to a DNA single strand. Rad51 is a human homolog of the bacterial RecA protein; three successive monomers in this helical filament are colored. (B) A short section of the RecA filament, with the three-dimensional structure of the protein fitted to the image of the filament determined by electron microscopy. The two DNA–protein filaments appear to be quite similar. There are about six RecA monomers per turn of the helix, holding 18 nucleotides of single-stranded DNA that is stretched out by the protein. The exact path of the DNA in this structure is not known. (A, courtesy of Edward Egelman; B, from X. Yu et al., J. Mol. Biol. 283:985–992, 1998.)

From: General Recombination

Cover of Molecular Biology of the Cell
Molecular Biology of the Cell. 4th edition.
Alberts B, Johnson A, Lewis J, et al.
New York: Garland Science; 2002.
Copyright © 2002, Bruce Alberts, Alexander Johnson, Julian Lewis, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, and Peter Walter; Copyright © 1983, 1989, 1994, Bruce Alberts, Dennis Bray, Julian Lewis, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, and James D. Watson .

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