DNA-binding proteins articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    In many bacteria and plasmids, DNA segregation is controlled by the ParABS system, an essential component of which is the formation of a nucleoprotein complex. Here, making use of recent discoveries, the authors develop a sliding and bridging model to predict the fine structure of this complex.

    • Lara Connolley
    • , Lucas Schnabel
    •  & Seán M. Murray

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Using single-molecule visualization and manipulation, Chang et al. show that the eukaryotic Smc5/6 complex preferentially binds to and stabilizes ssDNA-dsDNA junctions, which could serve as the molecular basis for its diverse roles in genome maintenance.

    • Jeremy T-H. Chang
    • , Shibai Li
    •  & Shixin Liu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The ComFC protein is essential for natural transformation, a process that plays a major role in the spread of antibiotic resistance genes. Here the authors show that ComFC is a membrane-associated protein that participates in the transport of DNA through the cell membrane and the handling of the single-stranded DNA once delivered into the cytoplasm.

    • Prashant P. Damke
    • , Louisa Celma
    •  & J. Pablo Radicella

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Many bacteria can take up exogenous DNA, in a process that often requires surface appendages composed of thousands of protein subunits called pilins. Here, Braus et al. show that a minor pilin binds directly to DNA and is important for DNA uptake in the pathogen Legionella pneumophila.

    • Sebastian A. G. Braus
    • , Francesca L. Short
    •  & Manuela K. Hospenthal

  • Article
    | Open Access

    UvrD is a model helicase from the non-hexameric Superfamily 1. Here, the authors use optical tweezers to measure directly the stepwise translocation of UvrD along a DNA hairpin, and propose a mechanism in which UvrD moves one base pair at a time, but sequesters the nascent single strands, releasing them after a variable number of ATP hydrolysis cycles.

    • Sean P. Carney
    • , Wen Ma
    •  & Yann R. Chemla

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Classical non-homologous end-joining (cNHEJ) is the dominant pathway used by human cells to repair DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) and maintain genome stability. Here the authors show that PARP1-driven chromatin expansion allows the recruitment of ZNF384, which in turn recruits Ku70/Ku80 to facilitate cNHEJ.

    • Jenny Kaur Singh
    • , Rebecca Smith
    •  & Haico van Attikum

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Biofilm formation in Bacillus subtilis requires expression of matrix production genes, which are upregulated by transcriptional activator RemA. Here, the authors show that RemA forms octameric rings with the potential to form a 16-meric superstructure, suggesting that the protein can wrap DNA through a LytTR-related domain.

    • Tamara Hoffmann
    • , Devid Mrusek
    •  & Gert Bange

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Type 2 DNA topoisomerases (Top2) regulates DNA topology during DNA replication, transcription, and chromosome segregation. Here the authors describe a complete structure of the catalytic core of the human Topo IIα bound to DNA and etoposide, providing insight into the regulation of Topo IIα activities and how opening of the DNA-gate is spatially connected to the ATPase domain.

    • Arnaud Vanden Broeck
    • , Christophe Lotz
    •  & Valérie Lamour

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The bacterial defense system McrBC is a two-component motor-driven nuclease complex that cleaves foreign DNA. Here, the authors present the structures of the GTP-specific AAA + motor protein McrB and two McrBC complexes and discuss the molecular mechanism of how McrC binding stimulates McrB GTP hydrolysis.

    • Yiming Niu
    • , Hiroshi Suzuki
    •  & Joshua S. Chappie

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Starvation induces cell aggregation and formation of spore-containing fruiting bodies in the bacterium Myxococcus xanthus. Here, the authors show that a different myxobacterial species produces a compound that inhibits the development of fruiting bodies in M. xanthus, by affecting the function of histidine kinases and major regulators.

    • Francisco Javier Marcos-Torres
    • , Carsten Volz
    •  & Rolf Müller

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cross-linking mass spectrometry (MS) is an important tool in structural biology, but its application to protein-DNA complexes has been hampered by low cross-linking efficiency. Here, the authors develop a femtosecond UV-laser induced cross-linking MS workflow to map protein-DNA interactions in vitro and in cells.

    • Alexander Reim
    • , Roland Ackermann
    •  & Michael Wierer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    WUSCHEL is a homeodomain transcription factor that is essential for stem cell maintenance in the plant shoot apical meristem. Here, via structural and biochemical approaches, Sloan et al. show that strong WUSCHEL binding to preferential target motifs can be attributed to dimer formation that stabilizes DNA binding.

    • Jeremy Sloan
    • , Jana P. Hakenjos
    •  & Jan U. Lohmann

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Some transcription factors have been proposed to functionally interact with RNA to facilitate proper regulation of gene expression. Here the authors demonstrate that human Sox2 interact directly and with high affinity to RNAs through its HMG DNA-binding domain.

    • Zachariah E. Holmes
    • , Desmond J. Hamilton
    •  & Robert T. Batey

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Genome dynamics allow cells to repair DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), which are highly toxic DNA lesions. Here the authors reveal that in S. cerevisiae, Rad52 DNA repair proteins assemble in liquid droplets that work with dynamic nuclear microtubules to relocalize lesions to the nuclear periphery for repair.

    • Roxanne Oshidari
    • , Richard Huang
    •  & Karim Mekhail

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bacterial DNA gyrase is the only type II DNA topoisomerase capable of introducing negative supercoils into DNA and is of interest as a drug target. Here the authors present the cryo-EM structure of the complete E. coli DNA gyrase bound to a 180 bp double-stranded DNA and the antibiotic gepotidacin, which reveals the connections between the functional domains and their spatial organization.

    • Arnaud Vanden Broeck
    • , Christophe Lotz
    •  & Valérie Lamour

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The transcriptional activator PafBC is a regulator of mycobacterial DNA damage response and upregulates genes involved in DNA repair. Here, the authors present the crystal structure of Arthrobacter aurescens PafBC and suggest that PafBC might be activated by binding of a nucleic acid ligand, and bioinformatics analysis shows that its central WYL domain is a widespread feature in bacterial transcription factors.

    • Andreas U. Müller
    • , Marc Leibundgut
    •  & Eilika Weber-Ban

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The Pseudomonas putida toxin GraT and antitoxin GraA form a type II toxin-antoxin module. Here the authors present the crystal structures of the GraA dimer, GraTA and GraA-DNA complexes and show that GraT contains a functionally important N-terminal intrinsic disordered region that prevents the binding of the GraTA complex to the operator.

    • Ariel Talavera
    • , Hedvig Tamman
    •  & Remy Loris

  • Article
    | Open Access

    UPF1 is a highly processive helicase that plays an essential role in nonsense-mediated mRNA decay. Here the authors use single molecule binding assays to establish a functionally important relationship between helicase grip to nucleic acids, binding lifetime and the duration of translocation.

    • Joanne Kanaan
    • , Saurabh Raj
    •  & Hervé Le Hir

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The potent antibacterial compound albicidin is synthesized by the plant-pathogenic bacterium Xanthomonas albilineans. Here the authors employ a multidisciplinary approach and provide structural and mechanistic insights into how the drug-binding protein AlbA confers albicidin resistance to Klebsiella oxytoca.

    • Lida Rostock
    • , Ronja Driller
    •  & Roderich D. Süssmuth

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Quantitative mass spectrometry enables the proteome-wide assessment of biomolecular binding affinities. While previous approaches mainly focused on protein–small molecule interactions, the authors here present a method to probe protein–DNA and protein–nucleosome binding affinities at proteome scale.

    • Matthew M. Makowski
    • , Cathrin Gräwe
    •  & Michiel Vermeulen

  • Article
    | Open Access

    BldC regulates the onset of differentiation in Streptomycetes by a yet unknown molecular mechanism. Using a combination of structural, biochemical and in vivo approaches, the authors show that BldC controls the transcription of several developmental regulators and unravel its DNA binding mode.

    • Maria A. Schumacher
    • , Chris D. den Hengst
    •  & Mark J. Buttner

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The laboratory-evolved polymerase Kod-RI catalyzes α-L-threose nucleic acid (TNA) synthesis. Here, the authors present Kod-RI crystal structures that give insights into how TNA triphosphates are selected and extended in a template-dependent manner, which will help to engineer improved TNA polymerases for synthetic genetics applications.

    • Nicholas Chim
    • , Changhua Shi
    •  & John C. Chaput

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The human shelterin complex protects telomere ends from being recognized as damaged DNA sites and regulates telomere length in conjunction with telomerase. Here the authors establish the stoichiometries of human shelterin complexes of various compositions and show shelterin provides dual pathways to stimulate telomerase processivity.

    • Ci Ji Lim
    • , Arthur J. Zaug
    •  & Thomas R. Cech

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cells infected with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) express the virus-encoded EBNA1, which is essential for viral genome maintenance but also highly antigenic. Here the authors implicate nucleolin as a host factor that mediates the repression of EBNA1-derived antigenic peptides through binding of the G4-quadruplex structure present within the EBNA1 mRNA.

    • María José Lista
    • , Rodrigo Prado Martins
    •  & Marc Blondel

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Structural Maintenance of Chromosomes (SMC) complexes maintain genome integrity by regulating the segregation of chromosomes. Here, Altet al. describe the structure of the heterodimeric Smc5/6-hinge from fission yeast and define functional features critical for Smc5/6’s cellular function.

    • Aaron Alt
    • , Hung Q. Dang
    •  & Antony W. Oliver

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Identification of the function of proteins is difficult when there are no structurally or biochemically characterized homologs. Here, the authors present an approach that allows the prediction of nucleic-acid binding proteins based on sequence alone, and they are able to experimentally validate their method.

    • Sapir Peled
    • , Olga Leiderman
    •  & Yanay Ofran

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Tardigrades are resistant to extreme environmental conditions including dehydration, radiation and the vacuum of space. Here the authors present a high-quality genome which displays minimal horizontal gene transfer, and identify the unique tardigrade protein Dsup which suppresses DNA damage.

    • Takuma Hashimoto
    • , Daiki D. Horikawa
    •  & Takekazu Kunieda

  • Article
    | Open Access

    BRCA2 is a well-characterized central player in homologous recombination in which it functions as the RAD51 loader. Here the authors identify an N-terminal region of BRCA2 that binds DNA and promotes efficient DNA repair.

    • Catharina von Nicolai
    • , Åsa Ehlén
    •  & Aura Carreira

  • Article
    | Open Access

    To modulate gene expression, the glucocorticoid receptor binds to response elements (RE) that vary in sequence. Here, the authors show that RE sequences can modulate glucocorticoid receptor structure and activity, which might provide regulatory specificity towards individual target genes.

    • Stefanie Schöne
    • , Marcel Jurk
    •  & Sebastiaan H. Meijsing

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