Helicases are in the spotlight of DNA metabolism and are critical for DNA repair in all domains of life. At their biochemical core, they bind and hydrolyze ATP, converting this energy to translocate unidirectionally, with different strand polarities and substrate binding specificities, along one strand of a nucleic acid. In doing so, DNA and RNA helicases separate duplex strands or remove nucleoprotein complexes, affecting DNA repair and the architecture of replication forks. In this review, we focus on recent advances on the roles and regulations of DNA helicases in homologous recombination repair, a critical pathway for mending damaged chromosomes and for ensuring genome integrity.

解旋酶是 DNA 代谢的焦点，对生命各个领域的 DNA 修复至关重要。在它们的生化核心，它们结合并水解 ATP，将这种能量转化为单向易位，具有不同的链极性和底物结合特异性，沿着一条核酸链。在此过程中，DNA 和 RNA 解旋酶分离双链或去除核蛋白复合物，影响 DNA 修复和复制叉的结构。在这篇综述中，我们重点关注 DNA 解旋酶在同源重组修复中的作用和调控的最新进展，这是修复受损染色体和确保基因组完整性的关键途径。