title: DNA helicase from mammalian mitochondria.
abstract: In spite of the fact that a DNA helicase is clearly required for the predominantly leading-strand synthesis occurring during mammalian mtDNA replication, no such activity has heretofore been identified. We report the characterization of a mammalian mitochondrial DNA helicase isolated from bovine brain tissue. The sucrose gradient-purified mitochondria in which the activity was detected had less than 1 part in 2500 nuclear contamination according to Western blot analysis using nuclear- and mitochondrial-specific probes. Mitochondrial protein fractionation by DEAE-Sephacel chromatography yielded a DNA helicase activity dependent upon hydrolysis of ATP or dATP but not other NTPs or dNTPs. The mitochondrial helicase unwound 15- and 20-base oligonucleotides but was unable to unwind 32-base or longer oligonucleotides, and the polarity of the unwinding is 3'-to-5' with respect to the single-stranded portion of the partial duplex DNA substrate. This direction of unwinding would place the bovine mitochondrial helicase on the template strand ahead of DNA polymerase gamma during mtDNA replication, a situation analogous to that of the Rep helicase of Escherichia coli during leading-strand DNA synthesis of certain bacteriophages.
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunology, University of Florida, Gainesville 32610.
authors.forename: G L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Hehman
authors.forename: W W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Hauswirth
mesh_terms: D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001921:Brain / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002417:Cattle; D002458:Cell Fractionation; D004265:DNA Helicases / Q000378:metabolism*; D004261:DNA Replication; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000378:metabolism*; D003838:Deoxyadenine Nucleotides / Q000378:metabolism; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000201:enzymology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides / Q000737:chemistry; D013379:Substrate Specificity
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D003838:Deoxyadenine Nucleotides; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides; D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate; D004265:DNA Helicases