Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40966285›Full record

ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2025

Protein-mediated stabilization and nicking of the nontemplate DNA strand dramatically affect R-loop formation in vitro.

Ethan Holleman, Thomas E Catley, Tadas Sereiva, Stella R Hartono, Alice L B Pyne, Frédéric Chédin

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Protein-mediated stabilization and nicking of the nontemplate DNA strand dramatically affect R-loop formation in vitro.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Ethan HollemanDepartment of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616.ORCID 0009-0009-8621-1303
Thomas E CatleyDepartment of Chemical, Materials and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0002-8919-2701
Tadas SereivaDepartment of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616.
Stella R HartonoDepartment of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616.ORCID 0000-0001-6234-3445
Alice L B PyneDepartment of Chemical, Materials and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0002-2658-8987
Frédéric ChédinDepartment of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616.ORCID 0000-0002-1306-5335

Funding

Understanding the mechanisms underlying R-loop biogenesis and resolution in mammals.R35GM139549 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · PI Frederic Louis Chedin · 2021 to 2026
$4.4M
Cellular and Molecular Biology at MichiganT32GM145470 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR · PI John Chadwick Brenner · 2022 to 2026
$4.1M
Henry Royce Institute (THE ROYCE) EP/P02470X/1Henry Royce Institute (THE ROYCE) EP/P025285/1Henry Royce Institute (THE ROYCE) EP/R00661X/1Henry Royce Institute (THE ROYCE) EP/S019367/1National Science Foundation (NSF) NSF/DMS 2054347NIGMS NIH HHS R35 GM139549NIGMS NIH HHS T32 GM145470UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) MR/W00738X/1
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

R-loops are an important class of non-B DNA structures that form co-transcriptionally. Using in vitro transcription and unbiased quantitative sequencing readouts, we show that the addition of single-strand DNA binding proteins co-transcriptionally can drive a 3- to 5-fold increase of R-loop frequency without significant changes to R-loop distribution. We propose that this is caused by stabilizing and preventing the collapse of short nascent R-loops. This suggests that R-loop formation is highly dynamic and highlights single strand binding proteins as players in cellular R-loop regulation. We further show that nontemplate strand DNA nicks are powerful initiators of R-loop formation, increasing R-loop frequencies by up to two orders of magnitude. Atomic force microscopy revealed that the nontemplate strand in nick-initiated structures is often flayed away from the RNA:DNA hybrid and engaged in self-pairing, creating unique forked R-loop features. DNA nicks, one of the most frequent DNA lesions in cells, are therefore potential hotspots for opportunistic R-loop initiation and may cause the formation of a distinct class of R-loops. Overall, this work highlights the importance of the displaced single-strand on R-loop initiation and dynamics.

Indexed as

DNADNA-Binding ProteinsDNA, Single-StrandedR-Loop StructuresMicroscopy, Atomic ForceNucleic Acid ConformationTranscription, GeneticDNADNA-Binding ProteinsDNA, Single-Strandedatomic force microscopyDNA nicksR-loop formationsingle-stranded DNA binding proteins

Identifiers

PMID40966285
PMCPMC12478114

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.