Helicase
Helicases are a class of enzymes vital to all living organisms. Their main function is to unpackage an organism's genes. They are motor proteins that move directionally along a nucleic acid phosphodiester backbone, separating two annealed nucleic acid strands (i.e., DNA, RNA, or RNA-DNA hybrid) using energy derived from ATP hydrolysis. There are many helicases resulting from the great variety of processes in which strand separation must be catalyzed. Approximately 1% of eukaryotic genes code for helicases. The human genome codes for 95 non-redundant helicases: 64 RNA helicases and 31 DNA helicases. Many cellular processes, such as DNA replication, transcription, translation, recombination, DNA repair, and ribosome biogenesis involve the separation of nucleic acid strands that necessitates the use of helicases.
Function
Helicases are often used to separate strands of a DNA double helix or a self-annealed RNA molecule using the energy from ATP hydrolysis, a process characterized by the breaking of hydrogen bonds between annealed nucleotide bases. They also function to remove nucleic acid-associated proteins and catalyze homologous DNA recombination. Metabolic processes of RNA such as translation, transcription, ribosome biogenesis, RNA splicing, RNA transport, RNA editing, and RNA degradation are all facilitated by helicases. Helicases move incrementally along one nucleic acid strand of the duplex with a directionality and processivity specific to each particular enzyme.
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That's Life
by: HelixYou say you got your troubles
Well I got mine too
That's life
Got that right
That's life
Work your fingers to the bone
To get some money saved
Everyday you're closer
One step closer to your grave
Everybody wants some
But I just want a taste
It's hard to make a living
In this day-to-day rat race
Everybody's got their hand out
But as far as I can see
I'm giving and their takin'
Another piece of me
That's life
Hard to believe
That's life
Who said it would be easy
That's life
Work your fingers to the bone
To get some money saved
That's life
The whole world's goin' crazy
And there's hardly room to move
And everytime you turn around
You step on someone's shoes
People to the left of you
And people to your right
You're stuck in the middle
Not a very pretty sight
And the fat cats just get richer
All I want's an even shake
And everytime I turn around
Somebody's on the take
That's life
It'll bring you to your knees
That's life
Squeeze ya till ya bleed
That's life
Don't look now but I think that
Big brothers watching you
That's life
Huh! Ha-ha! Yeah!
Nothing for nothing
That's what you get
N-n-n-nothing
Without a little sweat
That's right
That's life
And you hate the place you work at
That's life
And your boss is one big jerk
That's life
Gas, ass, or grass
Nobody rides for free
That's life
Yeah, yeah, that' right
That's life
Stranger than fiction
That's life
Oh shit happens ya know
That's life
That's life
That's life (That's life)
Latest News for: helicase
Structural basis for dimerization and activation of UvrD-family helicases
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