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The functional significance of DNA sequence structure in a site‐specific genetic recombination reaction.
Author(s) -
Umlauf S. W.,
Cox M. M.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
the embo journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 7.484
H-Index - 392
eISSN - 1460-2075
pISSN - 0261-4189
DOI - 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1988.tb03017.x
Subject(s) - biology , recombination , genetics , sequence (biology) , dna , site specific recombination , base sequence , evolutionary biology , dna sequencing , computational biology , gene , recombinase
A series of sequence changes in the spacer region of the FLP recombination target (FRT) site are presented which drastically reduce site function without affecting recognition by the FLP protein. The effects follow a pattern which indicates that two structural features of the FRT site are essential for site function: a pair of pyrimidine tracts arranged in a palindrome and a predominance of AT base pairs in the spacer. The FRT site represents a sequence that serves to facilitate unwinding of the DNA within the spacer region during recombination. The results provide a clear demonstration of a role for a DNA sequence element that is distinct from protein recognition.