superhelixn.
/ˈsuːpəˌhiːlɪks/, /ˈsjuːpəˌhiːlɪks/, U.S. /ˈsupərˌhilɪks/ Biochemistry.
A helix formed by the coiling of strands (of protein, DNA, etc.) which are themselves helices. Cf. supercoil n. 2.
ΚΠ
1952 F. H. C. Crick in Acta Crystallographica 4 386/1 Other possibilities, such as the rods being curved or kinked into a super helix, suggest themselves.
1980 Sci. Amer. July 100/1 In the chromatin..of higher organisms the DNA is wound around a core of protein to form a left-handed solenoidal superhelix.
1990 EMBO Jrnl. 9 3867/1 Each domain consists of five α-helices wound into a right-handed superhelix yielding a globular structure of ∼18 Å diameter.
2004 C. R. Calladine et al. Understanding DNA v. 110 One protein may prefer that the DNA should wrap around it as a left-handed superhelix, while another might prefer a right-handed superhelix.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2012; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1952