Characterization of an unusual bipolar helicase encoded by bacteriophage T5.

ABSTRACT: Bacteriophage T5 has a 120 kb double-stranded linear DNA genome encoding most of the genes required for its own replication. This lytic bacteriophage has a burst size of ∼500 new phage particles per infected cell, demonstrating that it is able to turn each infected bacterium into a highly efficient DNA manufacturing machine. To begin to understand DNA replication in this prodigious bacteriophage, we have characterized a putative helicase encoded by gene D2. We show that bacteriophage T5 D2 protein is the first viral helicase to be described with bipolar DNA unwinding activities that require the same core catalytic residues for unwinding in either direction. However, unwinding of partially single- and double-stranded DNA test substrates in the 3'-5' direction is more robust and can be disti

SUBMITTER: Wong IN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3632103 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature