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Review
. 2020 Jan 8;11(1):71.
doi: 10.3390/genes11010071.

Resolvases, Dissolvases, and Helicases in Homologous Recombination: Clearing the Road for Chromosome Segregation

Pedro A San-Segundo  1 , Andrés Clemente-Blanco  1
Affiliations
Review

Resolvases, Dissolvases, and Helicases in Homologous Recombination: Clearing the Road for Chromosome Segregation

Pedro A San-Segundo et al. Genes (Basel). .

Abstract

The execution of recombinational pathways during the repair of certain DNA lesions or in the meiotic program is associated to the formation of joint molecules that physically hold chromosomes together. These structures must be disengaged prior to the onset of chromosome segregation. Failure in the resolution of these linkages can lead to chromosome breakage and nondisjunction events that can alter the normal distribution of the genomic material to the progeny. To avoid this situation, cells have developed an arsenal of molecular complexes involving helicases, resolvases, and dissolvases that recognize and eliminate chromosome links. The correct orchestration of these enzymes promotes the timely removal of chromosomal connections ensuring the efficient segregation of the genome during cell division. In this review, we focus on the role of different DNA processing enzymes that collaborate in removing the linkages generated during the activation of the homologous recombination machinery as a consequence of the appearance of DNA breaks during the mitotic and meiotic programs. We will also discuss about the temporal regulation of these factors along the cell cycle, the consequences of their loss of function, and their specific role in the removal of chromosomal links to ensure the accurate segregation of the genomic material during cell division.

Keywords: DSB repair; dissolvases; helicases; homologous recombination; meiosis; mitosis; resolvases.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of the role of different helicases, dissolvases and resolvases in the repair of mitotic/meiotic DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). The diagram represents some of the more relevant DNA structures generated in response to a DSB during the execution of homologous recombination (HR) and the final outcomes produced after repair. Black lettering represents overlapping roles for a specific complex in both the mitotic and meiotic processing of the DSB. Green lettering represents meiosis-specific features. SDSA: Synthesis-Dependent Strand Annealing, DSBR: Double Strand Break Repair.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Temporal regulation of DNA-processing complexes involved in the removal of recombinant structures in the mitotic cycle. The diagraph represents the temporal activation (green bars) and inactivation (red bars) of each complex along the cell cycle. Regulation of distinctive enzymatic activities by phosphorylation (P), SUMOylation (S) and ubiquitylation (U) is depicted. Grey bar indicates that the mechanistic details of the temporal regulation are still unknown.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Schematic representation of the temporal regulation of enzymatic complexes involved in the processing of recombinant structures in the meiotic program. The diagraph represents the temporal activation (green bars) and inactivation (red bars) of each complex during meiosis. Different post-translational modifications, such as phosphorylation (P), SUMOylation (S) and ubiquitylation (U) are portrayed. Green and red bars represent active and inactive states, respectively. Grey bar denotes lack of information related to the temporal regulation of the enzymatic complex.
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