DNA recombination articles from across Nature Portfolio

Srr1/Ber1 containing the SRR1-like domain and Skb1 the human protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) homolog cause gross chromosomal rearrangements at centromeres in the absence of Rad51 recombinase.

Comparisons within the human pangenome establish that homologous regions on short arms of heterologous human acrocentric chromosomes actively recombine, leading to the high rate of Robertsonian translocation breakpoints in these regions.

Exposure of a structure-forming sequence within a single-stranded gap creates a fragile site, resulting in large deletions. Gap filling drives disease-causing CAG repeat expansions, with direction of instability determined by the identity of the sequence on the template strand of the gap.

Using cryo-EM, the authors study the RecF–DNA, RecFR–DNA, RecOR–DNA and RecFOR–DNA complexes. Combining the information from these structures, they provide new insight in how the RecFOR proteins cooperate to recognize ss–ds junctions and promote bacterial recombination.

Cas9 nickases (nCas9s) produce nicks or single-strand breaks in the DNA. Here the authors analyse the on- and off-target nicks generated by these nickases, and show that nCas9 (H840A) but not nCas9 (D10A) can cleave both strands and produce unwanted DNA double-strand breaks.

Cryo-EM structures of Ty1 integrase-Pol III complexes reveal determinants of Ty1 targeting upstream of Pol III-transcribed genes, and a functional impact of the integrase on Pol III activity that may increase the probability of Ty1 integration.