Bacterial topoisomerases and the control of DNA supercoiling

Abstract

DNA in bacterial cells is under negative superhelical tension, a feature that facilitates many of the activities of DNA. Supercoiling is introduced enzymatically by DNA gyrase, and the accumulation of excessively high levels is prevented by the relaxing activity of DNA topoisomerase I. Among the factors likely to influence supercoiling are topoisomerase gene expression, the ratio of ATP to ADP concentration, and processes such as transcription that unwind DNA and then translocate along it.