Repair and tolerance of DNA damage at the replication fork: A structural perspective

The replication machinery frequently encounters DNA damage and other structural impediments that inhibit progression of the replication fork. Replication-coupled processes that remove or bypass the barrier and restart stalled forks are essential for completion of replication and for maintenance of genome stability. Errors in replication-repair pathways lead to mutations and aberrant genetic rearrangements and are associated with human diseases. This review highlights recent structures of enzymes involved in three replication-repair pathways: trans -lesion synthesis, template switching and fork reversal, and interstrand crosslink repair.

Automated summary

The replication machinery frequently encounters obstacles that hinder the replication fork. Replication-coupled processes that remove or bypass these barriers are crucial for replication completion and genome stability. Errors in replication-repair pathways lead to genetic mutations and human diseases.