Identification of double Holliday junctions as intermediates in meiotic recombination.
During meiosis, branched DNA molecules containing information from both parental chromosomes occur in vivo at loci where meiosis-specific double-stranded breaks occur. We demonstrate here that these joint molecules are recombination intermediates: they contain single strands that have undergone exchange of information. Moreover, these joint molecules are resolved into both parental and recombinant duplexes when treated in vitro with Holliday junction-resolving endonucleases RuvC or T4 endo VII. Taken together with previous observations, these results strongly suggest that joint molecules are double Holliday junctions.
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
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Schwacha
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Kleckner
D000429:Alcohol Oxidoreductases; D000619:Aminohydrolases; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D003434:Crossing Over, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D004271:DNA, Fungal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004277:DNA, Single-Stranded / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D004706:Endodeoxyribonucleases; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D005363:Ficusin; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D008540:Meiosis / Q000235:genetics*; D008957:Models, Genetic; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D009692:Nucleic Acid Heteroduplexes / Q000235:genetics; D011755:Pyrophosphatases; D011995:Recombination, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics
D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D004271:DNA, Fungal; D004277:DNA, Single-Stranded; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D005656:Fungal Proteins; D009692:Nucleic Acid Heteroduplexes; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C069806:ruvC protein, E coli; D000429:Alcohol Oxidoreductases; C092116:HIS4 protein, S cerevisiae; D004706:Endodeoxyribonucleases; C035571:endodeoxyribonuclease VII; D000619:Aminohydrolases; D011755:Pyrophosphatases; D005363:Ficusin