Abstract
The replication, transcription, recombination, and repair of DNA are essential processes in the propagation, utilization, and upkeep of genetic information. Numerous different enzymes have evolved to catalyze the synthesis, digestion, unwinding, and unlinking of nucleic acids that are central to genomic maintenance. The development of single molecule techniques has allowed researchers to study the activity of nucleic acid enzymes at an unprecedented level of detail. This chapter will review the various experimental methods used and will discuss the type of information obtained by the study of nucleic acid enzymes at the single molecule level.