RPA–ssDNA co-phase separation facilitates RAD51 enrichment during homologous recombination

Clicks: 1
ID: 317090
2026
Free PDF
Article Quality & Performance Metrics
Overall Quality
Not rated
Combines reader engagement with the AI quality analysis. This article has not been analysed, so there is no overall score — reader engagement is measured and shown alongside.
AI Quality Assessment
Not analyzed
Readership in this journal

Ranked #1,209 of 1,214 articles by views in Nucleic Acids Research

Most read Least read

Bar heights use a square-root scale. Only the 120 most-read articles are drawn; the journal has 1,214 in total.

Mint this article as an NFT
Not yet minted

Create a permanent, verifiable on-chain record of this article on the Scimatic Network. The NFT is held in your Journament account, and you can withdraw it to your own wallet at any time.

5 SUSD one-off · no wallet required
Sign in to mint
Abstract
Homologous recombination (HR) is pivotal for the maintenance of genome integrity. During HR, replacing replication protein A (RPA) with the recombinase RAD51 on single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) is crucial in forming the presynaptic complex for homology search. However, how RAD51 identifies legitimate RPA-coated ssDNA involved in HR to prepare for the replacement remains elusive. Here, we develop an innovative approach to generate ssDNA for the single-molecule measurements of this transaction. We find that human RPA can undergo phase separation and co-condense with coated ssDNA, a process primarily mediated by the N-terminal DNA-binding domain of RPA70 (RPA70N). The resulting RPA-ssDNA co-condensates form stable nucleoprotein assemblies that withstand disruptive forces of tens of piconewtons. Intriguingly, both in vitro and in vivo evidence indicates that these co-condensates act as hubs for the local enrichment of RAD51. Consequently, deletion or sequestration of RPA70N readily suppresses the phase separation ability of RPA, reduces RAD51 enrichment, and ultimately compromises DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair. Our work defines the key determinants underlying RPA-mediated recombinase enrichment during the early stage of HR-directed DSB repair.
Reference Key
openalex_W7164306982 Use this key to autocite in the manuscript while using SciMatic Manuscript Manager or Thesis Manager
Authors Yanan Li, Y ZHAO, Yuehua Chen, Teng Wang, Lulu Bi, Yanling Bao, Le Chen, Xi Zhang, Bingkai Cheng, Meng Hu, Shengli Jing, Chao Liu, Wei Li, Bo Sun
Journal Nucleic Acids Research
Year 2026
DOI
10.1093/nar/gkag586
URL
https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkag586
Keywords Keywords not found

Citations

No citations found. To add a citation, contact the admin at info@scimatic.org

Comments

No comments yet. Be the first to comment on this article.