UV Stimulation of Chromosomal Marker Exchange in Sulfolobus acidocaldarius: Implications for DNA Repair, Conjugation and Homologous Recombination at Extremely High Temperatures

Genetics ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 152 (4) ◽  
pp. 1407-1415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine J Schmidt ◽  
Kristen E Beck ◽  
Dennis W Grogan

Abstract The hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus acidocaldarius exchanges and recombines chromosomal markers by a conjugational mechanism, and the overall yield of recombinants is greatly increased by previous exposure to UV light. This stimulation was studied in an effort to clarify its mechanism and that of marker exchange itself. A variety of experiments failed to identify a significant effect of UV irradiation on the frequency of cell pairing, indicating that subsequent steps are primarily affected, i.e., transfer of DNA between cells or homologous recombination. The UV-induced stimulation decayed rather quickly in parental cells during preincubation at 75°, and the rate of decay depended on the incubation temperature. Preincubation at 75° decreased the yield of recombinants neither from unirradiated parental cells nor from parental suspensions subsequently irradiated. We interpret these results as evidence that marker exchange is stimulated by recombinogenic DNA lesions formed as intermediates in the process of repairing UV photoproducts in the S. acidocaldarius chromosome.

2015 ◽  
Vol 197 (18) ◽  
pp. 2941-2951 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marleen van Wolferen ◽  
Xiaoqing Ma ◽  
Sonja-Verena Albers

ABSTRACTTheupsoperon ofSulfolobusspecies is highly induced upon UV stress. Previous studies showed that the pili encoded by this operon are involved in cellular aggregation, which is essential for subsequent DNA exchange between cells, resulting in homologous recombination. The presence of this pilus system increases the fitness ofSulfolobuscells under UV light-induced stress conditions, as the transfer of DNA takes place in order to repair UV-induced DNA lesions via homologous recombination. Four conserved genes (saci_1497tosaci_1500) which encode proteins with putative DNA processing functions are present downstream of theupsoperon. In this study, we show that after UV treatment the cellular aggregation of strains withsaci_1497,saci_1498, andsaci_1500deletions is similar to that of wild-type strains; their survival rates, however, were reduced and similar to or lower than those of the pilus deletion strains, which could not aggregate anymore. DNA recombination assays indicated thatsaci_1498, encoding a ParB-like protein, plays an important role in DNA transfer. Moreover, biochemical analysis showed that the endonuclease III encoded bysaci_1497nicks UV-damaged DNA. In addition, RecQ-like helicase Saci_1500 is able to unwind homologous recombination intermediates, such as Holliday junctions. Interestingly, asaci_1500deletion mutant was more sensitive to UV light but not to the replication-stalling agents hydroxyurea and methyl methanesulfonate, suggesting that Saci_1500 functions specifically in the UV damage pathway. Together these results suggest a role of Saci_1497 to Saci_1500 in the repair or transfer of DNA that takes place after UV-induced damage to the genomic DNA ofSulfolobus acidocaldarius.IMPORTANCESulfolobalesspecies increase their fitness after UV stress by a UV-inducible pilus system that enables high rates of DNA exchange between cells. Downstream of the pilus operon, three genes that seem to play a role in the repair or transfer of the DNA betweenSulfolobuscells were identified, and their possible functions are discussed. Next to the previously described role of UV-inducible pili in the exchange of DNA, we have thereby increased our knowledge of DNA transfer at the level of DNA processing. This paper therefore contributes to the overall understanding of the DNA exchange mechanism amongSulfolobalescells.


2009 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis W. Grogan

HR (homologous recombination) is expected to play important roles in the molecular biology and genetics of archaea, but, so far, few functional properties of archaeal HR have been measured in vivo. In the extreme thermoacidophile Sulfolobus acidocaldarius, a conjugational mechanism of DNA transfer enables quantitative analysis of HR between chromosomal markers. Early studies of this system indicated that HR occurred frequently between closely spaced mutations within the pyrE gene, and this result was later supported by various analyses involving defined point mutations and deletions. These properties of intragenic HR suggested a non-reciprocal mechanism in which donor sequences become incorporated into the recipient genome as short segments. Because fragmentation of donor DNA during cell-to-cell transfer could not be excluded from contributing to this result, subsequent analyses have focused on electroporation of selectable donor DNA directly into recipient strains. For example, S. acidocaldarius was found to incorporate synthetic ssDNA (single-stranded DNA) of more than ∼20 nt readily into its genome. With respect to various molecular properties of the ssDNA substrates, the process resembled bacteriophage λRed-mediated ‘recombineering’ in Escherichia coli. Another approach used electroporation of a multiply marked pyrE gene to measure donor sequence tracts transferred to the recipient genome in individual recombination events. Initial results indicate multiple discontinuous tracts in the majority of recombinants, representing a relatively broad distribution of tract lengths. This pattern suggests that properties of the HR process could, in principle, account for many of the apparent peculiarities of intragenic recombination initiated by S. acidocaldarius conjugation.


Genetics ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 146 (3) ◽  
pp. 751-767 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Galitski ◽  
John R Roth

Homologous recombination pathways probably evolved primarily to accomplish chromosomal repair and the formation and resolution of duplications by sister-chromosome exchanges. Various DNA lesions initiate these events. Classical recombination assays, involving bacterial sex, focus attention on double-strand ends of DNA. Sexual exchanges, initiated at these ends, depend on the RecBCD pathway. In the absence of RecBCD function, mutation of the sbcB and sbcC genes activates the apparently cryptic RecF pathway. To provide a more general view of recombination, we describe an assay in which endogenous DNA damage initiates recombination between chromosomal direct repeats. The repeats flank markers conferring lactose utilization (Lac+) and ampicillin resistance (ApR); recombination generates Lac-ApS segregants. In this assay, the RecF pathway is not cryptic; it plays a major role without sbcBC mutations. Others have proposed that single-strand gaps are the natural substrate for RecF-dependent recombination. Supporting this view, recombination stimulated by a double-strand break (DSB) in a chromosomal repeat depended on RecB function, not RecF function. Without RecBCD function, sbcBC mutations modified the RecF pathway and allowed it to catalyze DSB-stimulated recombination. Sexual recombination assays overestimate the importance of RecBCD and DSBs, and underestimate the importance of the RecF pathway.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurent G Maloisel ◽  
Emilie Ma ◽  
Eric Coic

Bypass of DNA lesions that block replicative polymerases during DNA replication relies on several DNA damage tolerance pathways. The error-prone translesion synthesis (TLS) pathway involves specialized DNA polymerases that incorporate nucleotides in front of base lesions. The template switching and the homologous recombination (HR) pathways are mostly error-free because the bypass is performed by using typically the sister chromatid as a template. This is promoted by the Rad51 recombinase that forms nucleoprotein filaments on single-strand DNA (ssDNA). The balance between error-prone and error-free pathways controls the level of mutagenesis. In yeast, the Rad55-Rad57 complex of Rad51 paralogs is required for Rad51 filament formation and stability, notably by counteracting the Srs2 antirecombinase. Several reports showed that Rad55-Rad57 promotes HR at stalled replication forks more than at DNA double-strand breaks (DSB), suggesting that this complex is more efficient at ssDNA gaps and thus, could control the recruitment of TLS polymerases. To address this point, we studied the interplay between Rad55-Rad57 and the TLS polymerases Polζ and Polη following UV radiation. We confirmed that Rad55-Rad57 protects Rad51 filaments from Srs2 dismantling activity but we found that it is also essential for the promotion of UV-induced HR independently of Srs2. In addition, we observed that cell UV sensitivity, but not DSB sensitivity, is synergistically increased when Rad55 and Polζ deletions are combined. Moreover, we found that mutagenesis and HR frequency were increased in rad55∆ mutants and in TLS-deficient cells, respectively. Finally, UV-induced HR was partially restored in Rad55-deficient cells with mutated Polζ or Polη. Overall, our data suggest that the HR and TLS pathways compete for the same ssDNA substrates and that the Rad55-Rad57 complex of Rad51 paralogs prevents the recruitment of TLS polymerases and counterbalances mutagenesis.


2007 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 188
Author(s):  
A. Brero ◽  
D. Koehler ◽  
T. Cremer ◽  
E. Wolf ◽  
V. Zakhartchenko

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) are considered the most severe type of DNA lesions, because such lesions, if unrepaired, lead to a loss of genome integrity. Soon after induction of DSBs, chromatin surrounding the damage is modified by phosphorylation of the histone variant H2AX, generating so-called γH2AX, which is a hallmark of DSBs (Takahashi et al. 2005 Cancer Lett. 229, 171–179). γH2AX appears to be a signal for the recruitment of proteins constituting the DNA repair machinery. Depending on the type of damage and the cell cycle stage of the affected cell, DSBs are repaired either by nonhomologous end joining or by homologous recombination using the sister chromatid DNA as template (Hoeijmakers 2001 Nature 411, 366–374). We used immunofluorescence to analyze chromatin composition during bovine development and found γH2AX foci in both male and female pronuclei of IVF embryos. The number and size of foci varied considerably between embryos and between the male and female pronuclei. To test whether the observed γH2AX foci represented sites of active DNA repair, we co-stained IVF zygotes for γH2AX and 3 different proteins involved in homologous recombination repair of DSBs: NBS1 (phosphorylated at amino acid serine 343), 53BP1, and Rad51. We found co-localization of γH2AX foci with phosphorylated NBS1 as well as with Rad51 but did not observe the presence of 53BP1 at γH2AX foci in IVF zygotes. Our finding shows the presence of DSBs in IVF zygotes and suggests the capability of homologous recombination repair. The lack of 53BP1, a component of homologous recombination repair, which usually co-localizes with γH2AX foci at exogenously induced DSBs (Schultz et al. 2000 J. Cell. Biol. 151, 1381–1390) poses the possibility that the mechanism present in early embryos differs substantially from that involved in DNA repair of DSBs in somatic cells.


Genes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 1450
Author(s):  
Wojciech Strzałka ◽  
Piotr Zgłobicki ◽  
Ewa Kowalska ◽  
Aneta Bażant ◽  
Dariusz Dziga ◽  
...  

In their life cycle, plants are exposed to various unfavorable environmental factors including ultraviolet (UV) radiation emitted by the Sun. UV-A and UV-B, which are partially absorbed by the ozone layer, reach the surface of the Earth causing harmful effects among the others on plant genetic material. The energy of UV light is sufficient to induce mutations in DNA. Some examples of DNA damage induced by UV are pyrimidine dimers, oxidized nucleotides as well as single and double-strand breaks. When exposed to light, plants can repair major UV-induced DNA lesions, i.e., pyrimidine dimers using photoreactivation. However, this highly efficient light-dependent DNA repair system is ineffective in dim light or at night. Moreover, it is helpless when it comes to the repair of DNA lesions other than pyrimidine dimers. In this review, we have focused on how plants cope with deleterious DNA damage that cannot be repaired by photoreactivation. The current understanding of light-independent mechanisms, classified as dark DNA repair, indispensable for the maintenance of plant genetic material integrity has been presented.


Author(s):  
Yi Chieh Lim ◽  
Kathleen S Ensbey ◽  
Carolin Offenhäuser ◽  
Rochelle C J D’souza ◽  
Jason K Cullen ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Despite significant endeavor having been applied to identify effective therapies to treat glioblastoma (GBM), survival outcomes remain intractable. The greatest nonsurgical benefit arises from radiotherapy, though tumors typically recur due to robust DNA repair. Patients could therefore benefit from therapies with the potential to prevent DNA repair and synergize with radiotherapy. In this work, we investigated the potential of salinomycin to enhance radiotherapy and further uncover novel dual functions of this ionophore to induce DNA damage and prevent repair. Methods In vitro primary GBM models and ex vivo GBM patient explants were used to determine the mechanism of action of salinomycin by immunoblot, flow cytometry, immunofluorescence, immunohistochemistry, and mass spectrometry. In vivo efficacy studies were performed using orthotopic GBM animal xenograft models. Salinomycin derivatives were synthesized to increase drug efficacy and explore structure-activity relationships. Results Here we report novel dual functions of salinomycin. Salinomycin induces toxic DNA lesions and prevents subsequent recovery by targeting homologous recombination (HR) repair. Salinomycin appears to target the more radioresistant GBM stem cell–like population and synergizes with radiotherapy to significantly delay tumor formation in vivo. We further developed salinomycin derivatives which display greater efficacy in vivo while retaining the same beneficial mechanisms of action. Conclusion Our findings highlight the potential of salinomycin to induce DNA lesions and inhibit HR to greatly enhance the effect of radiotherapy. Importantly, first-generation salinomycin derivatives display greater efficacy and may pave the way for clinical testing of these agents.


2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (12) ◽  
pp. 6299-6314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jae-Hoon Ji ◽  
Sunwoo Min ◽  
Sunyoung Chae ◽  
Geun-Hyoung Ha ◽  
Yonghyeon Kim ◽  
...  

Abstract Histone H2AX undergoes a phosphorylation switch from pTyr142 (H2AX-pY142) to pSer139 (γH2AX) in the DNA damage response (DDR); however, the functional role of H2AX-pY142 remains elusive. Here, we report a new layer of regulation involving transcription-coupled H2AX-pY142 in the DDR. We found that constitutive H2AX-pY142 generated by Williams-Beuren syndrome transcription factor (WSTF) interacts with RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) and is associated with RNAPII-mediated active transcription in proliferating cells. Also, removal of pre-existing H2AX-pY142 by ATM-dependent EYA1/3 phosphatases disrupts this association and requires for transcriptional silencing at transcribed active damage sites. The following recovery of H2AX-pY142 via translocation of WSTF to DNA lesions facilitates transcription-coupled homologous recombination (TC-HR) in the G1 phase, whereby RAD51 loading, but not RPA32, utilizes RNAPII-dependent active RNA transcripts as donor templates. We propose that the WSTF-H2AX-RNAPII axis regulates transcription and TC-HR repair to maintain genome integrity.


2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaja Milanowska ◽  
Kristian Rother ◽  
Janusz M. Bujnicki

DNA is continuously exposed to many different damaging agents such as environmental chemicals, UV light, ionizing radiation, and reactive cellular metabolites. DNA lesions can result in different phenotypical consequences ranging from a number of diseases, including cancer, to cellular malfunction, cell death, or aging. To counteract the deleterious effects of DNA damage, cells have developed various repair systems, including biochemical pathways responsible for the removal of single-strand lesions such as base excision repair (BER) and nucleotide excision repair (NER) or specialized polymerases temporarily taking over lesion-arrested DNA polymerases during the S phase in translesion synthesis (TLS). There are also other mechanisms of DNA repair such as homologous recombination repair (HRR), nonhomologous end-joining repair (NHEJ), or DNA damage response system (DDR). This paper reviews bioinformatics resources specialized in disseminating information about DNA repair pathways, proteins involved in repair mechanisms, damaging agents, and DNA lesions.


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