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PLoS Genetics Sep 2019In all kingdoms of life, DNA is used to encode hereditary information. Propagation of the genetic material between generations requires timely and accurate duplication... (Review)
Review
In all kingdoms of life, DNA is used to encode hereditary information. Propagation of the genetic material between generations requires timely and accurate duplication of DNA by semiconservative replication prior to cell division to ensure each daughter cell receives the full complement of chromosomes. DNA synthesis of daughter strands starts at discrete sites, termed replication origins, and proceeds in a bidirectional manner until all genomic DNA is replicated. Despite the fundamental nature of these events, organisms have evolved surprisingly divergent strategies that control replication onset. Here, we discuss commonalities and differences in replication origin organization and recognition in the three domains of life.
Topics: Biological Evolution; Cell Division; Chromosomes; DNA Replication; Evolution, Molecular; Replication Origin; Replicon
PubMed: 31513569
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1008320 -
Nature Reviews. Molecular Cell Biology Aug 2017Genome duplication is carried out by pairs of replication forks that assemble at origins of replication and then move in opposite directions. DNA replication ends when... (Review)
Review
Genome duplication is carried out by pairs of replication forks that assemble at origins of replication and then move in opposite directions. DNA replication ends when converging replication forks meet. During this process, which is known as replication termination, DNA synthesis is completed, the replication machinery is disassembled and daughter molecules are resolved. In this Review, we outline the steps that are likely to be common to replication termination in most organisms, namely, fork convergence, synthesis completion, replisome disassembly and decatenation. We briefly review the mechanism of termination in the bacterium Escherichia coli and in simian virus 40 (SV40) and also focus on recent advances in eukaryotic replication termination. In particular, we discuss the recently discovered E3 ubiquitin ligases that control replisome disassembly in yeast and higher eukaryotes, and how their activity is regulated to avoid genome instability.
Topics: DNA; DNA Replication; Escherichia coli; Genomic Instability; Saccharomyces cerevisiae
PubMed: 28537574
DOI: 10.1038/nrm.2017.42 -
Annual Review of Biochemistry 2010DNA replication is central to cell proliferation. Studies in the past six decades since the proposal of a semiconservative mode of DNA replication have confirmed the... (Review)
Review
DNA replication is central to cell proliferation. Studies in the past six decades since the proposal of a semiconservative mode of DNA replication have confirmed the high degree of conservation of the basic machinery of DNA replication from prokaryotes to eukaryotes. However, the need for replication of a substantially longer segment of DNA in coordination with various internal and external signals in eukaryotic cells has led to more complex and versatile regulatory strategies. The replication program in higher eukaryotes is under a dynamic and plastic regulation within a single cell, or within the cell population, or during development. We review here various regulatory mechanisms that control the replication program in eukaryotes and discuss future directions in this dynamic field.
Topics: Animals; Chromosomes; DNA Replication; Humans; Replication Origin; S Phase
PubMed: 20373915
DOI: 10.1146/annurev.biochem.052308.103205 -
Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in... Jul 2013The accurate copying of genetic information in the double helix of DNA is essential for inheritance of traits that define the phenotype of cells and the organism. The... (Review)
Review
The accurate copying of genetic information in the double helix of DNA is essential for inheritance of traits that define the phenotype of cells and the organism. The core machineries that copy DNA are conserved in all three domains of life: bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes. This article outlines the general nature of the DNA replication machinery, but also points out important and key differences. The most complex organisms, eukaryotes, have to coordinate the initiation of DNA replication from many origins in each genome and impose regulation that maintains genomic integrity, not only for the sake of each cell, but for the organism as a whole. In addition, DNA replication in eukaryotes needs to be coordinated with inheritance of chromatin, developmental patterning of tissues, and cell division to ensure that the genome replicates once per cell division cycle.
Topics: Archaea; Bacteria; DNA Damage; DNA Replication; Eukaryota; Models, Genetic
PubMed: 23818497
DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a010108 -
Cell Aug 2017Conflicts between transcription and replication are a potent source of DNA damage. Co-transcriptional R-loops could aggravate such conflicts by creating an additional...
Conflicts between transcription and replication are a potent source of DNA damage. Co-transcriptional R-loops could aggravate such conflicts by creating an additional barrier to replication fork progression. Here, we use a defined episomal system to investigate how conflict orientation and R-loop formation influence genome stability in human cells. R-loops, but not normal transcription complexes, induce DNA breaks and orientation-specific DNA damage responses during conflicts with replication forks. Unexpectedly, the replisome acts as an orientation-dependent regulator of R-loop levels, reducing R-loops in the co-directional (CD) orientation but promoting their formation in the head-on (HO) orientation. Replication stress and deregulated origin firing increase the number of HO collisions leading to genome-destabilizing R-loops. Our findings connect DNA replication to R-loop homeostasis and suggest a mechanistic basis for genome instability resulting from deregulated DNA replication, observed in cancer and other disease states.
Topics: DNA Damage; DNA Replication; DNA Replication Timing; Genomic Instability; HEK293 Cells; Humans; Plasmids; Transcription, Genetic
PubMed: 28802045
DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2017.07.043 -
Methods in Enzymology 2017Understanding the mechanisms of replication stress response following genotoxic stress induction is rapidly emerging as a central theme in cell survival and human... (Review)
Review
Understanding the mechanisms of replication stress response following genotoxic stress induction is rapidly emerging as a central theme in cell survival and human disease. The DNA fiber assay is one of the most powerful tools to study alterations in replication fork dynamics genome-wide at single-molecule resolution. This approach relies on the ability of many organisms to incorporate thymidine analogs into replicating DNA and is widely used to study how genotoxic agents perturb DNA replication. Here, we review different approaches available to prepare DNA fibers and discuss important limitations of each approach. We also review how DNA fiber analysis can be used to shed light upon several replication parameters including fork progression, restart, termination, and new origin firing. Next, we discuss a modified DNA fiber protocol to monitor the presence of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) gaps on ongoing replication forks. ssDNA gaps are very common intermediates of several replication stress response mechanisms, but they cannot be detected by standard DNA fiber approaches due to the resolution limits of this technique. We discuss a novel strategy that relies on the use of an ssDNA-specific endonuclease to nick the ssDNA gaps and generate shorter DNA fibers that can be used as readout for the presence of ssDNA gaps. Finally, we describe a follow-up DNA fiber approach that can be used to study how ssDNA gaps are repaired postreplicatively.
Topics: DNA; DNA Replication; Mutagens
PubMed: 28645379
DOI: 10.1016/bs.mie.2017.03.019 -
Seminars in Cell & Developmental Biology May 2021DNA replication is laden with obstacles that slow, stall, collapse, and break DNA replication forks. At each obstacle, there is a decision to be made whether to bypass... (Review)
Review
DNA replication is laden with obstacles that slow, stall, collapse, and break DNA replication forks. At each obstacle, there is a decision to be made whether to bypass the lesion, repair or restart the damaged fork, or to protect stalled forks from further demise. Each "decision" draws upon multitude of proteins participating in various mechanisms that allow repair and restart of replication forks. Specific functions for many of these proteins have been described and an understanding of how they come together in supporting replication forks is starting to emerge. Many questions, however, remain regarding selection of the mechanisms that enable faithful genome duplication and how "normal" intermediates in these mechanisms are sometimes funneled into "rogue" processes that destabilize the genome and lead to cancer, cell death, and emergence of chemotherapeutic resistance. In this review we will discuss molecular mechanisms of DNA damage bypass and replication fork protection and repair. We will specifically focus on the key players that define which mechanism is employed including: PCNA and its control by posttranslational modifications, translesion synthesis DNA polymerases, molecular motors that catalyze reversal of stalled replication forks, proteins that antagonize fork reversal and protect reversed forks from nucleolytic degradation, and the machinery of homologous recombination that helps to reestablish broken forks. We will also discuss risks to genome integrity inherent in each of these mechanisms.
Topics: DNA Damage; DNA Replication; Humans
PubMed: 33967572
DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2020.10.001 -
International Journal of Molecular... Sep 2022DNA replication is a tightly regulated fundamental process allowing the correct duplication and transfer of the genetic information from the parental cell to the... (Review)
Review
DNA replication is a tightly regulated fundamental process allowing the correct duplication and transfer of the genetic information from the parental cell to the progeny. It involves the coordinated assembly of several proteins and protein complexes resulting in replication fork licensing, firing and progression. However, the DNA replication pathway is strewn with hurdles that affect replication fork progression during S phase. As a result, cells have adapted several mechanisms ensuring replication completion before entry into mitosis and segregating chromosomes with minimal, if any, abnormalities. In this review, we describe the possible obstacles that a replication fork might encounter and how the cell manages to protect DNA replication from S to the next G1.
Topics: DNA Repair; DNA Replication; Mitosis; S Phase
PubMed: 36232633
DOI: 10.3390/ijms231911331 -
Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in... Mar 2013Adenoviruses have attracted much attention as probes to study biological processes such as DNA replication, transcription, splicing, and cellular transformation. More... (Review)
Review
Adenoviruses have attracted much attention as probes to study biological processes such as DNA replication, transcription, splicing, and cellular transformation. More recently these viruses have been used as gene-transfer vectors and oncolytic agents. On the other hand, adenoviruses are notorious pathogens in people with compromised immune functions. This article will briefly summarize the basic replication strategy of adenoviruses and the key proteins involved and will deal with the new developments since 2006. In addition, we will cover the development of antivirals that interfere with human adenovirus (HAdV) replication and the impact of HAdV on human disease.
Topics: Adenoviridae; Adenovirus Infections, Human; Antiviral Agents; DNA Polymerase beta; DNA Replication; DNA, Viral; Genetic Vectors; Humans; Models, Genetic; Phosphoproteins; Protein Precursors; Viral Proteins
PubMed: 23388625
DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a013003 -
Advances in Protein Chemistry and... 2019Cancer is still one of the major causes of death worldwide. Radiation therapy and chemotherapy remain the main treatment modalities in cancer. These therapies exert... (Review)
Review
Cancer is still one of the major causes of death worldwide. Radiation therapy and chemotherapy remain the main treatment modalities in cancer. These therapies exert their effect mainly through interference with DNA replication and induction of DNA damage. It is believed that one way of improving the efficacy of cancer treatment will be to inhibit the replication stress and DNA damage responses and promote mitotic catastrophe of cancer cells. So far, the majority of the efforts have focused central players of checkpoint responses, such as ATR and CHK1, and DNA damage repair, such as PARPs. Being a key player in the replication stress response, checkpoint activation, and the DNA damage response, Claspin constitutes an attractive therapeutic target in cancer, namely for radio- and chemo-sensitization. In this review, we will go through Claspin functions in the replication stress and DNA damage responses and will discuss how Claspin can be targeted in cancer treatment, as well as the effects of Claspin inhibition.
Topics: Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; Antineoplastic Agents; DNA Damage; DNA Replication; Humans; Neoplasms; Stress, Physiological
PubMed: 30798932
DOI: 10.1016/bs.apcsb.2018.10.007