Crawling and wiggling on DNA: structural insights to the mechanism of DNA unwinding by helicases

Abstract

Crystal structures have recently been solved of the monomeric DNA helicase PcrA bound to forked DNA, and of the hexameric helicase domain of the bacteriophage T7 gene 4 protein, a replication fork DNA helicase/primase. These structures have led to the elaboration of the first molecular models to describe DNA helicase action.