Abstract
DNA exonucleases, enzymes that hydrolyze phosphodiester bonds in DNA from a free end, play important cellular roles in DNA repair, genetic recombination and mutation avoidance in all organisms. This article reviews the structure, biochemistry and biological functions of the 17 exonucleases currently identified in the bacterium
Escherichia coli
. These include the exonucleases associated with DNA polymerases I (
polA
), II (
polB
) and III (
dnaQ/mutD
), Exonucleases I (
xonA/sbcB
), III (
xthA
), IV, VII (
xseAB
), IX (
xni/xgdG
) and X (
exoX
), the RecBCD, RecJ, and RecE exonucleases, SbcCD endo/exonuclease, the DNA exonuclease activities of RNase T (
rnt
) and Endonuclease IV (
nfo
) and TatD. These enzymes are diverse in terms of substrate specificity and biochemical properties and have specialized biological roles. Most of these enzymes fall into structural families with characteristic sequence motifs, and members of many of these families can be found in all domains of life.