Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Fellowship of the rings: the replication of kinetoplast DNA

2005; Elsevier BV; Volume: 21; Issue: 8 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.pt.2005.06.008

1471-5007

Beiyu Liu, Yanan Liu, Shawn A. Motyka, E.E.C. Agbo, Paul T. Englund,

ATP Synthase and ATPases Research

Kinetoplastid protozoa such as trypanosomes and Leishmania are important because they cause human disease. These parasites are named after one of their most unusual features, a mitochondrial DNA known as kinetoplast DNA (kDNA). Unlike all other DNA in nature, kDNA comprises a giant network of interlocked DNA rings with a topology resembling that of medieval chain mail. The replication of the kDNA network is more complex than previously thought, and the discovery of new proteins involved in this process is currently the best approach for illuminating the replication mechanism. Kinetoplastid protozoa such as trypanosomes and Leishmania are important because they cause human disease. These parasites are named after one of their most unusual features, a mitochondrial DNA known as kinetoplast DNA (kDNA). Unlike all other DNA in nature, kDNA comprises a giant network of interlocked DNA rings with a topology resembling that of medieval chain mail. The replication of the kDNA network is more complex than previously thought, and the discovery of new proteins involved in this process is currently the best approach for illuminating the replication mechanism.