scholarly journals Indirect and direct evidence for DNA double–strand breaks in hypermutating immunoglobulin genes

2001 ◽  
Vol 356 (1405) ◽  
pp. 119-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heinz Jacobs ◽  
Klaus Rajewsky ◽  
Yosho Fukita ◽  
Linda Bross
Keyword(s):  
Somatic Hypermutation ◽  
Gene Segment ◽  
Point Mutations ◽  
Antigen Receptor ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Mouse Strains ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Receptor Repertoire ◽  
Igh Locus

The generation of a diverse antigen receptor repertoire is fundamental for the functionality of the adaptive immune system. While the V(D)J recombination process that generates the primary antigen receptor repertoire is understood in great detail, it is still unclear by which mechanism immunoglobulin (Ig) genes are further diversified by somatic hypermutation. Using mouse strains that carry a non–functional, predefined V H D H J H gene segment in their IgH locus we demonstrate DNA double–strand breaks (DSBs) in and around V H D H J H in B cells undergoing somatic hypermutation. The generation of these DSBs depends on transcriptional activity, and their distribution along the V H D H J H segment parallels that of point mutations in the hypermutation domain. Furthermore, similar to hot spots of somatic hypermutation, 50–60% of all DSBs occur preferentially at RGYW motifs. DSBs may transiently dissociate the Ig promoter from the intronic enhancer to block further transcription and to initiate an error–prone nonhomologous DSB repair pathway. In accord with this model large deletions are frequently produced, along with point mutations, in a V H D H J H segment inserted together with its promoter into the IgH locus in inverted orientation. Our data suggest that DSBs are reaction intermediates of the mechanism underlying somatic hypermutation.

scholarly journals The ATPase activity of MLH1 is required to orchestrate DNA double-strand breaks and end processing during class switch recombination

2012 ◽  
Vol 209 (4) ◽  
pp. 671-678 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Chahwan ◽  
Johanna M.M. van Oers ◽  
Elena Avdievich ◽  
Chunfang Zhao ◽  
Winfried Edelmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Atpase Activity ◽  
Somatic Hypermutation ◽  
Cytidine Deaminase ◽  
Point Mutations ◽  
Class Switch Recombination ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Atpase Domain ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Class Switch

Antibody diversification through somatic hypermutation (SHM) and class switch recombination (CSR) are similarly initiated in B cells with the generation of U:G mismatches by activation-induced cytidine deaminase but differ in their subsequent mutagenic consequences. Although SHM relies on the generation of nondeleterious point mutations, CSR depends on the production of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) and their adequate recombination through nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ). MLH1, an ATPase member of the mismatch repair (MMR) machinery, is emerging as a likely regulator of whether a U:G mismatch progresses toward mutation or DSB formation. We conducted experiments on cancer modeled ATPase-deficient MLH1G67R knockin mice to determine the function that the ATPase domain of MLH1 mediates in SHM and CSR. Mlh1GR/GR mice displayed a significant decrease in CSR, mainly attributed to a reduction in the generation of DSBs and diminished accumulation of 53BP1 at the immunoglobulin switch regions. However, SHM was normal in these mice, which distinguishes MLH1 from upstream members of the MMR pathway and suggests a very specific role of its ATPase-dependent functions during CSR. In addition, we show that the residual switching events still taking place in Mlh1GR/GR mice display unique features, suggesting a role for the ATPase activity of MLH1 beyond the activation of the endonuclease functions of its MMR partner PMS2. A preference for switch junctions with longer microhomologies in Mlh1GR/GR mice suggests that through its ATPase activity, MLH1 also has an impact in DNA end processing, favoring canonical NHEJ downstream of the DSB. Collectively, our study shows that the ATPase domain of MLH1 is important to transmit the CSR signaling cascade both upstream and downstream of the generation of DSBs.

scholarly journals TOPOVIBL-REC114 interaction regulates meiotic DNA double-strand breaks

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Nore ◽  
Ariadna B Juarez-Martinez ◽  
Julie AJ Clement ◽  
Christine Brun ◽  
Bouboub Diagouraga ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Cleavage ◽  
Point Mutations ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Catalytic Complex ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Dna Cleavage Activity ◽  
Meiotic Dsbs

Meiosis requires the formation of programmed DNA double strand breaks (DSBs), essential for fertility and for generating genetic diversity. In male and female meiotic cells, DSBs are induced by the catalytic activity of the TOPOVIL complex formed by SPO11 and TOPOVIBL. To ensure genomic integrity, DNA cleavage activity is tightly regulated, and several accessory factors (REC114, MEI4, IHO1, and MEI1) are needed for DSB formation in mice. How and when these proteins act is not understood. Here, we show that REC114 is a direct partner of TOPOVIBL, and identified their conserved interacting domains by structural analysis. We then analysed the role of this interaction by monitoring meiotic DSBs in female and male mice carrying point mutations in TOPOVIBL that decrease or disrupt its binding to REC114. In these mutants, DSB activity was strongly reduced genome-wide in oocytes, but only in sub-telomeric regions in spermatocytes. In addition, in mutant spermatocytes, DSB activity was delayed in autosomes. These results provide evidence that REC114 is a key member of the TOPOVIL catalytic complex, and that the REC114/TOPOVIBL interaction ensures the efficiency and timing of DSB activity by integrating specific chromosomal features.

scholarly journals Restrictions Limiting the Generation of DNA Double Strand Breaks during Chromosomal V(D)J Recombination

2002 ◽  
Vol 195 (3) ◽  
pp. 309-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert E. Tillman ◽  
Andrea L. Wooley ◽  
Maureen M. Hughes ◽  
Tara D. Wehrly ◽  
Wojciech Swat ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Cleavage ◽  
Receptor Gene ◽  
Antigen Receptor ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Recombination Reaction ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Recombination Signal Sequences ◽  
Dna Dsbs ◽  
Cleavage Step

Antigen receptor loci are composed of numerous variable (V), diversity (D), and joining (J) gene segments, each flanked by recombination signal sequences (RSSs). The V(D)J recombination reaction proceeds through RSS recognition and DNA cleavage steps making it possible for multiple DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) to be introduced at a single locus. Here we use ligation-mediated PCR to analyze DNA cleavage intermediates in thymocytes from mice with targeted RSS mutations at the endogenous TCRβ locus. We show that DNA cleavage does not occur at individual RSSs but rather must be coordinated between RSS pairs flanking gene segments that ultimately form coding joins. Coordination of the DNA cleavage step occurs over great distances in the chromosome and favors intra- over interchromosomal recombination. Furthermore, through several restrictions imposed on the generation of both nonpaired and paired DNA DSBs, this requirement promotes antigen receptor gene integrity and genomic stability in developing lymphocytes undergoing V(D)J recombination.

scholarly journals Genetic evidence for the involvement of mismatch repair proteins, PMS2 and MLH3, in a late step of homologous recombination

2020 ◽  
Vol 295 (51) ◽  
pp. 17460-17475
Author(s):  
Md Maminur Rahman ◽  
Mohiuddin Mohiuddin ◽  
Islam Shamima Keka ◽  
Kousei Yamada ◽  
Masataka Tsuda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Homologous Recombination ◽  
Mismatch Repair ◽  
Ectopic Expression ◽  
Point Mutations ◽  
Sister Chromatid Exchanges ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Γ Irradiation ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Homologous Sequences

Homologous recombination (HR) repairs DNA double-strand breaks using intact homologous sequences as template DNA. Broken DNA and intact homologous sequences form joint molecules (JMs), including Holliday junctions (HJs), as HR intermediates. HJs are resolved to form crossover and noncrossover products. A mismatch repair factor, MLH3 endonuclease, produces the majority of crossovers during meiotic HR, but it remains elusive whether mismatch repair factors promote HR in nonmeiotic cells. We disrupted genes encoding the MLH3 and PMS2 endonucleases in the human B cell line, TK6, generating null MLH3−/− and PMS2−/− mutant cells. We also inserted point mutations into the endonuclease motif of MLH3 and PMS2 genes, generating endonuclease death MLH3DN/DN and PMS2EK/EK cells. MLH3−/− and MLH3DN/DN cells showed a very similar phenotype, a 2.5-fold decrease in the frequency of heteroallelic HR-dependent repair of restriction enzyme–induced double-strand breaks. PMS2−/− and PMS2EK/EK cells showed a phenotype very similar to that of the MLH3 mutants. These data indicate that MLH3 and PMS2 promote HR as an endonuclease. The MLH3DN/DN and PMS2EK/EK mutations had an additive effect on the heteroallelic HR. MLH3DN/DN/PMS2EK/EK cells showed normal kinetics of γ-irradiation–induced Rad51 foci but a significant delay in the resolution of Rad51 foci and a 3-fold decrease in the number of cisplatin-induced sister chromatid exchanges. The ectopic expression of the Gen1 HJ re-solvase partially reversed the defective heteroallelic HR of MLH3DN/DN/PMS2EK/EK cells. Taken together, we propose that MLH3 and PMS2 promote HR as endonucleases, most likely by processing JMs in mammalian somatic cells.

scholarly journals MRN complex function in the repair of chromosomal Rag-mediated DNA double-strand breaks

2009 ◽  
Vol 206 (3) ◽  
pp. 669-679 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beth A. Helmink ◽  
Andrea L. Bredemeyer ◽  
Baeck-Seung Lee ◽  
Ching-Yu Huang ◽  
Girdhar G. Sharma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Receptor Gene ◽  
Complex Function ◽  
Antigen Receptor ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
G1 Phase ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Mrn Complex ◽  
Dna Dsbs ◽  
Complex Functions

The Mre11–Rad50–Nbs1 (MRN) complex functions in the repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) by homologous recombination (HR) at postreplicative stages of the cell cycle. During HR, the MRN complex functions directly in the repair of DNA DSBs and in the initiation of DSB responses through activation of the ataxia telangiectasia-mutated (ATM) serine-threonine kinase. Whether MRN functions in DNA damage responses before DNA replication in G0/G1 phase cells has been less clear. In developing G1-phase lymphocytes, DNA DSBs are generated by the Rag endonuclease and repaired during the assembly of antigen receptor genes by the process of V(D)J recombination. Mice and humans deficient in MRN function exhibit lymphoid phenotypes that are suggestive of defects in V(D)J recombination. We show that during V(D)J recombination, MRN deficiency leads to the aberrant joining of Rag DSBs and to the accumulation of unrepaired coding ends, thus establishing a functional role for MRN in the repair of Rag-mediated DNA DSBs. Moreover, these defects in V(D)J recombination are remarkably similar to those observed in ATM-deficient lymphocytes, suggesting that ATM and MRN function in the same DNA DSB response pathways during lymphocyte antigen receptor gene assembly.

scholarly journals DNA Double-Strand Breaks in Immunoglobulin Genes Undergoing Somatic Hypermutation

Immunity ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 589-597 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Bross ◽  
Yosho Fukita ◽  
Fraser McBlane ◽  
Corinne Démollière ◽  
Klaus Rajewsky ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Somatic Hypermutation ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Immunoglobulin Genes ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Strand Breaks

scholarly journals CRISPR base editing applications for identifying cancer-driving mutations

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Pal ◽  
Marco J. Herold
Keyword(s):  
Point Mutations ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Functional Screening ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Base Editing ◽  
Dna Base ◽  
Damage Response ◽  
Dna Template

CRISPR base editing technology is a promising genome editing tool as (i) it does not require a DNA template to introduce mutations and (ii) it avoids creating DNA double-strand breaks, which can lead to unintended chromosomal alterations or elicit an unwanted DNA damage response. Given many cancers originate from point mutations in cancer-driving genes, the application of base editing for either modelling tumour development, therapeutic editing, or functional screening is of great promise. In this review, we summarise current DNA base editing technologies and will discuss recent advancements and existing hurdles for its usage in cancer research.

scholarly journals DNA Double-Strand Breaks

2002 ◽  
Vol 195 (9) ◽  
pp. 1187-1192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Bross ◽  
Masamichi Muramatsu ◽  
Kazuo Kinoshita ◽  
Tasuku Honjo ◽  
Heinz Jacobs
Keyword(s):  
B Cells ◽  
Somatic Hypermutation ◽  
Excision Repair ◽  
Cytidine Deaminase ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Dna Breaks ◽  
Similar Frequency ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Substrate Model

The activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) is required for somatic hypermutation (SHM) and class-switch recombination (CSR) of immunoglobulin (Ig) genes, both of which are associated with DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). As AID is capable of deaminating deoxy-cytidine (dC) to deoxy-uracil (dU), it might induce nicks (single strand DNA breaks) and also DNA DSBs via a U-DNA glycosylase-mediated base excision repair pathway (‘DNA-substrate model’). Alternatively, AID functions like its closest homologue Apobec1 as a catalytic subunit of a RNA editing holoenzyme (‘RNA-substrate model’). Although rearranged Vλ genes are preferred targets of SHM we found that germinal center (GC) B cells of AID-proficient and -deficient Vλ1-expressing GC B cells display a similar frequency, distribution, and sequence preference of DSBs in rearranged and also in germline Vλ1 genes. The possible roles of DSBs in relation to AID function and SHM are discussed.

Repair pathway choice for double-strand breaks

2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (5) ◽  
pp. 765-777 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yixi Xu ◽  
Dongyi Xu
Keyword(s):  
Cell Cycle ◽  
Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Homologous Region ◽  
Gene Repair ◽  
Repair Pathway ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Environmental Radiation ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
Dna End Resection ◽  
End Resection

Abstract Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is at a constant risk of damage from endogenous substances, environmental radiation, and chemical stressors. DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) pose a significant threat to genomic integrity and cell survival. There are two major pathways for DSB repair: nonhomologous end-joining (NHEJ) and homologous recombination (HR). The extent of DNA end resection, which determines the length of the 3′ single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) overhang, is the primary factor that determines whether repair is carried out via NHEJ or HR. NHEJ, which does not require a 3′ ssDNA tail, occurs throughout the cell cycle. 53BP1 and the cofactors PTIP or RIF1-shieldin protect the broken DNA end, inhibit long-range end resection and thus promote NHEJ. In contrast, HR mainly occurs during the S/G2 phase and requires DNA end processing to create a 3′ tail that can invade a homologous region, ensuring faithful gene repair. BRCA1 and the cofactors CtIP, EXO1, BLM/DNA2, and the MRE11–RAD50–NBS1 (MRN) complex promote DNA end resection and thus HR. DNA resection is influenced by the cell cycle, the chromatin environment, and the complexity of the DNA end break. Herein, we summarize the key factors involved in repair pathway selection for DSBs and discuss recent related publications.

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