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Multiple Holliday junction resolving enzyme activities in the Crenarchaeota and Euryarchaeota
Author(s) -
Kvaratskhelia Mamuka,
Wardleworth Benjamin N,
White Malcolm F
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/s0014-5793(01)02200-1
Subject(s) - holliday junction , crenarchaeota , sulfolobus , euryarchaeota , archaea , biology , homologous recombination , genetics , enzyme , pyrococcus furiosus , computational biology , three domain system , evolutionary biology , biochemistry , bacteria , gene
Holliday junction resolving enzymes are required by all life forms that catalyse homologous recombination, including all cellular organisms and many bacterial and eukaryotic viruses. Here we report the identification of three distinct Holliday junction resolving enzyme activities present in two highly divergent archaeal species. Both Sulfolobus and Pyrococcus share the Hjc activity, and in addition possess unique secondary activities (Hje and Hjr). We propose by analogy with the two other domains of life that the latter enzymes are viral in origin, suggesting the widespread existence of archaeal viruses that rely on homologous recombination as part of their life cycle.