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Nature Communications Dec 2022During lagging strand synthesis, DNA Ligase 1 (Lig1) cooperates with the sliding clamp PCNA to seal the nicks between Okazaki fragments generated by Pol δ and Flap...
During lagging strand synthesis, DNA Ligase 1 (Lig1) cooperates with the sliding clamp PCNA to seal the nicks between Okazaki fragments generated by Pol δ and Flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1). We present several cryo-EM structures combined with functional assays, showing that human Lig1 recruits PCNA to nicked DNA using two PCNA-interacting motifs (PIPs) located at its disordered N-terminus (PIP) and DNA binding domain (PIP). Once Lig1 and PCNA assemble as two-stack rings encircling DNA, PIP is released from PCNA and only PIP is required for ligation to facilitate the substrate handoff from FEN1. Consistently, we observed that PCNA forms a defined complex with FEN1 and nicked DNA, and it recruits Lig1 to an unoccupied monomer creating a toolbelt that drives the transfer of DNA to Lig1. Collectively, our results provide a structural model on how PCNA regulates FEN1 and Lig1 during Okazaki fragments maturation.
Topics: Humans; DNA Replication; Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen; DNA Polymerase III; Ligases; DNA; Flap Endonucleases; DNA Ligase ATP
PubMed: 36539424
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-35475-z -
EMBO Reports Apr 2022DNA interstrand crosslinks (ICLs) are cytotoxic lesions that threaten genome integrity. The Fanconi anemia (FA) pathway orchestrates ICL repair during DNA replication,...
DNA interstrand crosslinks (ICLs) are cytotoxic lesions that threaten genome integrity. The Fanconi anemia (FA) pathway orchestrates ICL repair during DNA replication, with ubiquitylated FANCI-FANCD2 (ID2) marking the activation step that triggers incisions on DNA to unhook the ICL. Restoration of intact DNA requires the coordinated actions of polymerase ζ (Polζ)-mediated translesion synthesis (TLS) and homologous recombination (HR). While the proteins mediating FA pathway activation have been well characterized, the effectors regulating repair pathway choice to promote error-free ICL resolution remain poorly defined. Here, we uncover an indispensable role of SCAI in ensuring error-free ICL repair upon activation of the FA pathway. We show that SCAI forms a complex with Polζ and localizes to ICLs during DNA replication. SCAI-deficient cells are exquisitely sensitive to ICL-inducing drugs and display major hallmarks of FA gene inactivation. In the absence of SCAI, HR-mediated ICL repair is defective, and breaks are instead re-ligated by polymerase θ-dependent microhomology-mediated end-joining, generating deletions spanning the ICL site and radial chromosomes. Our work establishes SCAI as an integral FA pathway component, acting at the interface between TLS and HR to promote error-free ICL repair.
Topics: DNA; DNA Damage; DNA Repair; DNA Replication; Fanconi Anemia; Humans
PubMed: 35156773
DOI: 10.15252/embr.202153639 -
Biochemistry Apr 2022The linker histone H1 is a highly prevalent protein that compacts chromatin and regulates DNA accessibility and transcription. However, the mechanisms behind H1...
The linker histone H1 is a highly prevalent protein that compacts chromatin and regulates DNA accessibility and transcription. However, the mechanisms behind H1 regulation of transcription factor (TF) binding within nucleosomes are not well understood. Using fluorescence assays, we positioned fluorophores throughout human H1 and the nucleosome, then monitored the distance changes between H1 and the histone octamer, H1 and nucleosomal DNA, or nucleosomal DNA and the histone octamer to monitor the H1 movement during TF binding. We found that H1 remains bound to the nucleosome dyad, while the C terminal domain (CTD) releases the linker DNA during nucleosome partial unwrapping and TF binding. In addition, mutational studies revealed that a small 16 amino acid region at the beginning of the H1 CTD is largely responsible for altering nucleosome wrapping and regulating TF binding within nucleosomes. We then investigated physiologically relevant post-translational modifications (PTMs) in human H1 by preparing fully synthetic H1 using convergent hybrid phase native chemical ligation. Both individual PTMs and combinations of phosphorylation and citrullination of H1 had no detectable influence on nucleosome binding and nucleosome wrapping, and had only a minor impact on H1 regulation of TF occupancy within nucleosomes. This suggests that these H1 PTMs function by other mechanisms. Our results highlight the importance of the H1 CTD, in particular, the first 16 amino acids, in regulating nucleosome linker DNA dynamics and TF binding within the nucleosome.
Topics: Chromatin; DNA; Histones; Humans; Nucleosomes; Protein Binding; Transcription Factors
PubMed: 35377618
DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.2c00001 -
Nature Communications Feb 2024Nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ), the primary pathway of vertebrate DNA double-strand-break (DSB) repair, directly re-ligates broken DNA ends. Damaged DSB ends that...
Nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ), the primary pathway of vertebrate DNA double-strand-break (DSB) repair, directly re-ligates broken DNA ends. Damaged DSB ends that cannot be immediately re-ligated are modified by NHEJ processing enzymes, including error-prone polymerases and nucleases, to enable ligation. However, DSB ends that are initially compatible for re-ligation are typically joined without end processing. As both ligation and end processing occur in the short-range (SR) synaptic complex that closely aligns DNA ends, it remains unclear how ligation of compatible ends is prioritized over end processing. In this study, we identify structural interactions of the NHEJ-specific DNA Ligase IV (Lig4) within the SR complex that prioritize ligation and promote NHEJ fidelity. Mutational analysis demonstrates that Lig4 must bind DNA ends to form the SR complex. Furthermore, single-molecule experiments show that a single Lig4 binds both DNA ends at the instant of SR synapsis. Thus, Lig4 is poised to ligate compatible ends upon initial formation of the SR complex before error-prone processing. Our results provide a molecular basis for the fidelity of NHEJ.
Topics: DNA Ligase ATP; DNA Breaks, Double-Stranded; DNA End-Joining Repair; DNA Repair; DNA Ligases; DNA
PubMed: 38341432
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45553-z -
The Journal of Biological Chemistry 2021DNA ligase I (LIG1) completes the base excision repair (BER) pathway at the last nick-sealing step after DNA polymerase (pol) β gap-filling DNA synthesis. However, the...
DNA ligase I (LIG1) completes the base excision repair (BER) pathway at the last nick-sealing step after DNA polymerase (pol) β gap-filling DNA synthesis. However, the mechanism by which LIG1 fidelity mediates the faithful substrate-product channeling and ligation of repair intermediates at the final steps of the BER pathway remains unclear. We previously reported that pol β 8-oxo-2'-deoxyribonucleoside 5'-triphosphate insertion confounds LIG1, leading to the formation of ligation failure products with a 5'-adenylate block. Here, using reconstituted BER assays in vitro, we report the mutagenic ligation of pol β 8-oxo-2'-deoxyribonucleoside 5'-triphosphate insertion products and an inefficient ligation of pol β Watson-Crick-like dG:T mismatch insertion by the LIG1 mutant with a perturbed fidelity (E346A/E592A). Moreover, our results reveal that the substrate discrimination of LIG1 for the nicked repair intermediates with preinserted 3'-8-oxodG or mismatches is governed by mutations at both E346 and E592 residues. Finally, we found that aprataxin and flap endonuclease 1, as compensatory DNA-end processing enzymes, can remove the 5'-adenylate block from the abortive ligation products harboring 3'-8-oxodG or the 12 possible noncanonical base pairs. These findings contribute to the understanding of the role of LIG1 as an important determinant in faithful BER and how a multiprotein complex (LIG1, pol β, aprataxin, and flap endonuclease 1) can coordinate to prevent the formation of mutagenic repair intermediates with damaged or mismatched ends at the downstream steps of the BER pathway.
Topics: DNA; DNA Ligase ATP; DNA Polymerase beta; DNA Repair; DNA Replication; Flap Endonucleases; Humans; Mutagenesis; Mutagens; Mutation; Nucleotides; Oxidation-Reduction
PubMed: 33600799
DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2021.100427 -
FEBS Letters Feb 2023How life emerged from inanimate matter is one of the most intriguing questions posed to modern science. Central to this research are experimental attempts to build... (Review)
Review
How life emerged from inanimate matter is one of the most intriguing questions posed to modern science. Central to this research are experimental attempts to build systems capable of Darwinian evolution. RNA catalysts (ribozymes) are a promising avenue, in line with the RNA world hypothesis whereby RNA pre-dated DNA and proteins. Since evolution in living organisms relies on template-based replication, the identification of a ribozyme capable of replicating itself (an RNA self-replicase) has been a major objective. However, no self-replicase has been identified to date. Alternatively, autocatalytic systems involving multiple RNA species capable of ligation and recombination may enable self-reproduction. However, it remains unclear how evolution could emerge in autocatalytic systems. In this review, we examine how experimentally feasible RNA reactions catalysed by ribozymes could implement the evolutionary properties of variation, heredity and reproduction, and ultimately allow for Darwinian evolution. We propose a gradual path for the emergence of evolution, initially supported by autocatalytic systems leading to the later appearance of RNA replicases.
Topics: RNA, Catalytic; RNA; RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase; DNA; Catalysis; Evolution, Molecular; Origin of Life
PubMed: 36203246
DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.14507 -
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology... Jan 2022Undergraduate laboratory courses are essential to teaching core principles in STEM. This course, Quantitative Biological Methods, provides a unique approach to teaching...
Undergraduate laboratory courses are essential to teaching core principles in STEM. This course, Quantitative Biological Methods, provides a unique approach to teaching molecular biology research techniques to students, in a laboratory that is delivered in a sequence that parallels standard biomedical research laboratory protocols. Students attend a lecture where they are taught the essential principles of biomedical research, and a lab where they learn to use laboratory equipment, perform experiments, and purify and quantify DNA and proteins. The course begins with an introduction to laboratory safety, pipetting, centrifugation, spectrophotometry, and other basic laboratory techniques. Next, the lab focuses on the purification and analysis of glutathione S-transferase (GST) fused to green fluorescent protein (GFP) from an Escherichia coli lysate. Students study this GST-GFP fusion protein and perform protein quantification, enzyme assays, chromatography, fluorescent detection, normalization, SDS-PAGE, and western blotting. Students then learn recombinant DNA technology using the GST-GFP vector that was the source of the fusion protein in the prior labs, and perform ligation, transformation of E. coli cells, blue/white screening, DNA purification via a miniprep, PCR, DNA quantification, restriction enzyme digestion, and agarose gel electrophoresis. Students write laboratory reports to demonstrate an understanding of the principles of the laboratory methods, and they must present and critically analyze their data. The lab methods described herein aim to emphasize the core molecular biology principles and techniques, prepare students for work in a biomedical research laboratory, and introduce students to both GST and GFP, two versatile laboratory proteins.
Topics: Curriculum; DNA; Escherichia coli; Glutathione Transferase; Green Fluorescent Proteins; Humans; Molecular Biology
PubMed: 34699121
DOI: 10.1002/bmb.21585 -
MBio Aug 2021Circular Rep-encoding single-stranded DNA (CRESS-DNA) viruses infect members from all three domains of life (, , and ). The replicase (Rep) from these viruses is...
Circular Rep-encoding single-stranded DNA (CRESS-DNA) viruses infect members from all three domains of life (, , and ). The replicase (Rep) from these viruses is responsible for initiating rolling circle replication (RCR) of their genomes. Rep is a multifunctional enzyme responsible for nicking and ligating ssDNA and unwinding double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). We report the structure of porcine circovirus 2 (PCV2) Rep bound to ADP and single-stranded DNA (ssDNA), and Rep bound to ADP and double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). The structures demonstrate Rep to be a member of the superfamily 3 (SF3) of ATPases Associated with diverse cellular Activities (AAA) superfamily clade 4. At the Rep N terminus is an endonuclease domain () that is responsible for ssDNA nicking and ligation, in the center of Rep is an oligomerization domain () responsible for hexamerization, and at the C terminus is an ATPase domain () responsible for ssDNA/dsDNA interaction and translocation. The Rep binds to DNA such that the faces the replication fork. The six spiral around the DNA to interact with the backbone phosphates from four consecutive nucleotides. Three of the six are able to sense the backbone phosphates from the second strand of dsDNA. Heterogeneous classification of the data demonstrates the and to be mobile. Furthermore, we demonstrate that Rep exhibits basal nucleoside triphosphatase (NTPase) activity. CRESS-DNA viruses encompass a significant portion of the biosphere's virome. However, little is known about the structure of Rep responsible for initiating the RCR of CRESS-DNA viruses. We use cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to determine the structure of PCV2 Rep in complex with ADP and ss/dsDNA. Our structures demonstrate CRESS-DNA Reps to be SF3 members (clade 4) of the AAA+ superfamily. The structures further provide the mechanism by which CRESS-DNA virus Reps recognize DNA and translocate DNA for genome replication. Our structures also demonstrate the and of PCV2 Rep to be highly mobile. We propose the mobile nature of these domains to be necessary for proper functioning of Reps. We further demonstrate that Reps exhibit basal NTPase activity. Our studies also provide initial insight into the mechanism of RCR.
Topics: Adenosine Diphosphate; Circovirus; DNA, Single-Stranded; Translocation, Genetic; Viral Replicase Complex Proteins; Virus Replication
PubMed: 34311576
DOI: 10.1128/mBio.00763-21 -
PloS One 2014Here, we present an in silico, analytical procedure for designing and testing orthogonal DNA templates for multiplexing of the proximity ligation assay (PLA). PLA is a...
Here, we present an in silico, analytical procedure for designing and testing orthogonal DNA templates for multiplexing of the proximity ligation assay (PLA). PLA is a technology for the detection of protein interactions, post-translational modifications, and protein concentrations. To enable multiplexing of the PLA, the target information of antibodies was encoded within the DNA template of a PLA, where each template comprised four single-stranded DNA molecules. Our DNA design procedure followed the principles of minimizing the free energy of DNA cross-hybridization. To validate the functionality, orthogonality, and efficiency of the constructed template libraries, we developed a high-throughput solid-phase rolling-circle amplification assay and solid-phase PLA on a microfluidic platform. Upon integration on a microfluidic chip, 640 miniaturized pull-down assays for oligonucleotides or antibodies could be performed in parallel together with steps of DNA ligation, isothermal amplification, and detection under controlled microenvironments. From a large computed PLA template library, we randomly selected 10 template sets and tested all DNA combinations for cross-reactivity in the presence and absence of antibodies. By using the microfluidic chip application, we determined rapidly the false-positive rate of the design procedure, which was less than 1%. The combined theoretical and experimental procedure is applicable for high-throughput PLA studies on a microfluidic chip.
Topics: Computational Biology; DNA, Single-Stranded; Gene Library; Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; Nucleic Acid Hybridization; Protein Interaction Mapping; Protein Processing, Post-Translational; Software
PubMed: 25386748
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0112629 -
Biophysical Journal Nov 2022DNA self-assembly has emerged as a powerful strategy for constructing complex nanostructures. While the mechanics of individual DNA strands have been studied...
DNA self-assembly has emerged as a powerful strategy for constructing complex nanostructures. While the mechanics of individual DNA strands have been studied extensively, the deformation behaviors and structural properties of self-assembled architectures are not well understood. This is partly due to the small dimensions and limited experimental methods available. DNA crystals are macroscopic crystalline structures assembled from nanoscale motifs via sticky-end association. The large DNA constructs may thus be an ideal platform to study structural mechanics. Here, we investigate the fundamental mechanical properties and behaviors of ligated DNA crystals made of tensegrity triangular motifs. We perform coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations and confirm the results with nanoindentation experiments using atomic force microscopy. We observe various deformation modes, including untension, linear elasticity, duplex dissociation, and single-stranded component stretch. We find that the mechanical properties of a DNA architecture are correlated with those of its components. However, the structure shows complex behaviors which may not be predicted by components alone and the architectural design must be considered.
Topics: DNA; Nanostructures; Microscopy, Atomic Force; Molecular Dynamics Simulation; Elasticity; Nucleic Acid Conformation
PubMed: 36181269
DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2022.09.036