title: Atomic force microscopy of RecA--DNA complexes using a carbon nanotube tip.
abstract: We report high resolution images of RecA-double stranded (ds) DNA complexes obtained by atomic force microscopy (AFM). When a carbon nanotube (CNT) tip was used, AFM images visualized the 10-nm pitch of RecA-dsDNA complexes and RecA filaments as three-dimensional surface topography without reconstruction analysis. The depth of the notch between two pitches was less than 1 nm. When adsorbed on a soft surface covered with proteins, naked DNA, RecA monomers, RecA hexamers, and short RecA filaments were all clearly resolved in one image. The high resolution images with a CNT tip provided valuable information on the initiation process of RecA-dsDNA complex formation.
authors.affiliation: Joint Research Center for Atom Technology, 1-1-4 Higashi, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0046, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Umemura
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Komatsu
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Uchihashi
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ikawa
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nishinaka
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shibata
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakayama
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Katsura
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mizuno
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tokumoto
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kuroda
mesh_terms: D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D011938:Rec A Recombinases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure*
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D004247:DNA; D011938:Rec A Recombinases