topoisomeraz
Topoisomeraz, commonly written as topoisomerase, refers to a family of enzymes that regulate the topology of DNA. They achieve this by creating transient breaks in the DNA backbone to add or remove supercoils, relieving torsional stress generated during replication, transcription, recombination, and chromatin remodeling. Topoisomerases are essential for proper DNA metabolism and chromosome maintenance, and they are found in all domains of life. They are traditionally classified into two main types, based on their mechanism and the number of DNA strands they cut.
Type I topoisomerases cut a single strand of DNA and change the linking number by increments of
Biological roles include enabling smooth progression of replication forks, aiding transcription by removing supercoils ahead of
Overall, topoisomeraz/topoisomerases are central to maintaining DNA topology and genome stability across organisms.