DNA Helicases and DNA Motor Proteins Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology

In recent years, a number of groundbreaking structural and mechanistic studies deepened our understanding of helicase mechanisms and established new approaches for their analyses. Many fundamental mechanistic questions ranging from the mechanism of force generation, mechanochemical coupling to distinct mechanisms by which the same enzyme translocates on DNA removing obstacles, unwinds DNA and/or remodels nucleoprotein complexes, however, remain to be answered. It is even less understood how the helicase motors are incorporated into a wide range of genome maintenance and repair machines. The field has reached a stage when the studies of molecular mechanisms and basic biology of helicases can and shall be integrated with the studies of development, cancer and longevity. The objective of this book is to provide the first systematic overview of structure, function and regulation of DNA helicases and related molecular motors. By integrating the knowledge obtained through the diverse technical approaches ranging from single-molecule biophysics to cellular and molecular biological studies the editors aim to provide a unified view on how helicases function in the cell, are regulated in response to different cellular stresses and are integrated into large macromolecular assemblies to form a complex and adaptive living system. Front Matter....Pages i-xii Overview: What Are Helicases?....Pages 1-16 Structure and Mechanisms of SF1 DNA Helicases....Pages 17-46 Structure and Mechanisms of SF2 DNA Helicases....Pages 47-73 Structure and Mechanism of Hexameric Helicases....Pages 75-95 Helicases at the Replication Fork....Pages 97-121 DNA Helicases Associated with Genetic Instability, Cancer, and Aging....Pages 123-144 The Helicase–Primase Complex as a Target for Effective Herpesvirus Antivirals....Pages 145-159 RecQ Helicases: Conserved Guardians of Genomic Integrity....Pages 161-184 Roles of DNA Helicases in the Mediation and Regulation of Homologous Recombination....Pages 185-202 DNA Helicases in NER, BER, and MMR....Pages 203-224 Roles for Helicases as ATP-Dependent Molecular Switches....Pages 225-244 The FtsK Family of DNA Pumps....Pages 245-262 ATP-Dependent Chromatin Remodeling....Pages 263-295 Structure and Mechanisms of SF1 DNA Helicases....Pages E1-E1 Back Matter....Pages 297-299 "The objective of this book is to provide the first systematic overview of structure, function and regulation of DNA helicases and related molecular motors. By integrating the knowledge obtained through the diverse technical approaches ranging from single-molecule biophysics to cellular and molecular biological studies the editors aim to provide a unified view on how helicases function in the cell, are regulated in response to different cellular stresses and are integrated into large macromolecular assemblies to form a complex and adaptive living system."--Publisher