Discovery of topoisomerase
Descubrimiento de la topoisomerasa
- Date
- 1971 · confidence high
- Place
- University of California, Berkeley, California, United States
- Credited to
- James C. Wang
- Field
- Life & health
What was discovered
Wang identified the first topoisomerase in Escherichia coli, an enzyme able to cut and rejoin DNA to change its topological state (relaxing or supercoiling the double helix), initially named the ω protein.
Topoisomerases are today the target of antibiotic (quinolone) and anticancer drugs.
What it led to
- Understanding of DNA supercoiling during replication and transcription
- Discovery of eukaryotic topoisomerases (Champoux and Dulbecco)
- Discovery of bacterial DNA gyrase (Gellert, 1976)