scholarly journals A Rad51-Independent Pathway Promotes Single-Strand Template Repair in Gene Editing

Author(s):  
Danielle N. Gallagher ◽  
Nhung Pham ◽  
Annie M. Tsai ◽  
Abigail N. Janto ◽  
Jihyun Choi ◽  
...  

AbstractThe Rad51/RecA family of recombinases perform a critical function in typical repair of double-strand breaks (DSBs): strand invasion of a resected DSB end into a homologous double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) template sequence to facilitate repair. However, repair of a DSB using single stranded DNA (ssDNA) as a template, a common method of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene editing, is Rad51-independent. We have analyzed the genetic requirements for these Rad51-independent events in Saccharomyces cerevisiae in two different assays. Gene editing events were carried out either by creating a DSB with the site-specific HO endonuclease and repairing the DSB with 80-nt single-stranded oligonucleotides (ssODNs) or by using a bacterial retron system that produces ssDNA templates in vivo in combination with DSBs created by Cas9. We show that single strand template repair (SSTR), is dependent on Rad52, Rad59, Srs2 and the Mre11-Rad50-Xrs2 (MRX) complex, but not Rad51, Rad54 or Rad55. Srs2 acts to prevent overloading of Rad51 on the ssDNA filament, whereas Rad59 appears to alleviate the inhibition of Rad51 on Rad52’s strand annealing activity; thus, deletion of RAD51 suppresses both the srs2Δ and rad59Δ phenotypes. This same suppression by rad51Δ of rad59Δ is found in another DSB repair pathway, single strand annealing (SSA). In contrast, gene targeting using an 80-bp dsDNA template of the same sequence is Rad51-dependent. We also examined SSTR events in which the ssODN carried several mismatches. In the absence of the mismatch repair protein, Msh2, we found that the fate of mismatches carried on the ssDNA template are very different at the 3’ end, which can anneal directly to the resected DSB end, compared to the 5’ end. We also find that DNA polymerase Polδ’s 3’ to 5’ proofreading activity frequently excises a mismatch close to the 3’ end of the template, similar to its removal of heterologies close to the 3’ invading end of the DSB. We further report that SSTR is accompanied by a 600-fold increase in mutations in a region adjacent to the sequences directly undergoing repair. These DNA polymerase ζ-dependent mutations may compromise the accuracy of gene editing.

Genetics ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 159 (2) ◽  
pp. 515-525 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison P Davis ◽  
Lorraine S Symington

Abstract The yeast RAD52 gene is essential for homology-dependent repair of DNA double-strand breaks. In vitro, Rad52 binds to single- and double-stranded DNA and promotes annealing of complementary single-stranded DNA. Genetic studies indicate that the Rad52 and Rad59 proteins act in the same recombination pathway either as a complex or through overlapping functions. Here we demonstrate physical interaction between Rad52 and Rad59 using the yeast two-hybrid system and co-immunoprecipitation from yeast extracts. Purified Rad59 efficiently anneals complementary oligonucleotides and is able to overcome the inhibition to annealing imposed by replication protein A (RPA). Although Rad59 has strand-annealing activity by itself in vitro, this activity is insufficient to promote strand annealing in vivo in the absence of Rad52. The rfa1-D288Y allele partially suppresses the in vivo strand-annealing defect of rad52 mutants, but this is independent of RAD59. These results suggest that in vivo Rad59 is unable to compete with RPA for single-stranded DNA and therefore is unable to promote single-strand annealing. Instead, Rad59 appears to augment the activity of Rad52 in strand annealing.


2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (35) ◽  
pp. E8286-E8295 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liwei An ◽  
Chao Dong ◽  
Junshi Li ◽  
Jie Chen ◽  
Jingsong Yuan ◽  
...  

Unrestrained 53BP1 activity at DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) hampers DNA end resection and upsets DSB repair pathway choice. RNF169 acts as a molecular rheostat to limit 53BP1 deposition at DSBs, but how this fine balance translates to DSB repair control remains undefined. In striking contrast to 53BP1, ChIP analyses of AsiSI-induced DSBs unveiled that RNF169 exhibits robust accumulation at DNA end-proximal regions and preferentially targets resected, RPA-bound DSBs. Accordingly, we found that RNF169 promotes CtIP-dependent DSB resection and favors homology-mediated DSB repair, and further showed that RNF169 dose-dependently stimulates single-strand annealing repair, in part, by alleviating the 53BP1-imposed barrier to DSB end resection. Our results highlight the interplay of RNF169 with 53BP1 in fine-tuning choice of DSB repair pathways.


2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (16) ◽  
pp. 4308-4313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seiji N. Sugiman-Marangos ◽  
Yoni M. Weiss ◽  
Murray S. Junop

Accurate pairing of DNA strands is essential for repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). How cells achieve accurate annealing when large regions of single-strand DNA are unpaired has remained unclear despite many efforts focused on understanding proteins, which mediate this process. Here we report the crystal structure of a single-strand annealing protein [DdrB (DNA damage response B)] in complex with a partially annealed DNA intermediate to 2.2 Å. This structure and supporting biochemical data reveal a mechanism for accurate annealing involving DdrB-mediated proofreading of strand complementarity. DdrB promotes high-fidelity annealing by constraining specific bases from unauthorized association and only releases annealed duplex when bound strands are fully complementary. To our knowledge, this mechanism provides the first understanding for how cells achieve accurate, protein-assisted strand annealing under biological conditions that would otherwise favor misannealing.


2006 ◽  
Vol 26 (20) ◽  
pp. 7645-7657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Storici ◽  
Joyce R. Snipe ◽  
Godwin K. Chan ◽  
Dmitry A. Gordenin ◽  
Michael A. Resnick

ABSTRACT The repair of chromosomal double-strand breaks (DSBs) is essential to normal cell growth, and homologous recombination is a universal process for DSB repair. We explored DSB repair mechanisms in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae using single-strand oligonucleotides with homology to both sides of a DSB. Oligonucleotide-directed repair occurred exclusively via Rad52- and Rad59-mediated single-strand annealing (SSA). Even the SSA domain of human Rad52 provided partial complementation for a null rad52 mutation. The repair did not involve Rad51-driven strand invasion, and moreover the suppression of strand invasion increased repair with oligonucleotides. A DSB was shown to activate targeting by oligonucleotides homologous to only one side of the break at large distances (at least 20 kb) from the break in a strand-biased manner, suggesting extensive 5′ to 3′ resection, followed by the restoration of resected DNA to the double-strand state. We conclude that long resected chromosomal DSB ends are repaired by a single-strand DNA oligonucleotide through two rounds of annealing. The repair by single-strand DNA can be conservative and may allow for accurate restoration of chromosomal DNAs with closely spaced DSBs.


mSphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen-Wei Zhang ◽  
Greg Matlashewski

ABSTRACT CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing relies on an efficient double-strand DNA break (DSB) and repair. Contrary to mammalian cells, the protozoan parasite Leishmania lacks the most efficient nonhomologous end-joining pathway and uses microhomology-mediated end joining (MMEJ) and, occasionally, homology-directed repair to repair DSBs. Here, we reveal that Leishmania predominantly uses single-strand annealing (SSA) (>90%) instead of MMEJ (<10%) for DSB repair (DSBR) following CRISPR targeting of the miltefosine transporter gene, resulting in 9-, 18-, 20-, and 29-kb sequence deletions and multiple gene codeletions. Strikingly, when targeting the Leishmania donovani LdBPK_241510 gene, SSA even occurred by using direct repeats 77 kb apart, resulting in the codeletion of 15 Leishmania genes, though with a reduced frequency. These data strongly indicate that DSBR is not efficient in Leishmania, which explains why more than half of DSBs led to cell death and why the CRISPR gene-targeting efficiency is low compared with that in other organisms. Since direct repeat sequences are widely distributed in the Leishmania genome, we predict that many DSBs created by CRISPR are repaired by SSA. It is also revealed that DNA polymerase theta is involved in both MMEJ and SSA in Leishmania. Collectively, this study establishes that DSBR mechanisms and their competence in an organism play an important role in determining the outcome and efficacy of CRISPR gene targeting. These observations emphasize the use of donor DNA templates to improve gene editing specificity and efficiency in Leishmania. In addition, we developed a novel Staphylococcus aureus Cas9 constitutive expression vector (pLdSaCN) for gene targeting in Leishmania. IMPORTANCE Due to differences in double-strand DNA break (DSB) repair mechanisms, CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing efficiency can vary greatly in different organisms. In contrast to mammalian cells, the protozoan parasite Leishmania uses microhomology-mediated end joining (MMEJ) and, occasionally, homology-directed repair (HDR) to repair DSBs but lacks the nonhomologous end-joining pathway. Here, we show that Leishmania predominantly uses single-strand annealing (SSA) instead of MMEJ for DSB repairs (DSBR), resulting in large deletions that can include multiple genes. This strongly indicates that the overall DSBR in Leishmania is inefficient and therefore can influence the outcome of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, highlighting the importance of using a donor DNA to improve gene editing fidelity and efficiency in Leishmania.


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 1292-1303
Author(s):  
J Fishman-Lobell ◽  
N Rudin ◽  
J E Haber

HO endonuclease-induced double-strand breaks in Saccharomyces cerevisiae can undergo recombination by two distinct and competing pathways. In a plasmid containing a direct repeat, in which one repeat is interrupted by an HO endonuclease cut site, gap repair yields gene conversions while single-strand annealing produces deletions. Consistent with predictions of the single-strand annealing mechanism, deletion formation is not accompanied by the formation of a reciprocal recombination product. Deletions are delayed 60 min when the distance separating the repeats is increased by 4.4 kb. Moreover, the rate of deletion formation corresponds to the time at which complementary regions become single stranded. Gap repair processes are independent of distance but are reduced in rad52 mutants and in G1-arrested cells.


2001 ◽  
Vol 75 (15) ◽  
pp. 6923-6932 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao-Dan Yao ◽  
David H. Evans

ABSTRACT Replicating poxviruses catalyze high-frequency recombination reactions by a process that is not well understood. Using transfected DNA substrates we show that these viruses probably use a single-strand annealing recombination mechanism. Plasmids carrying overlapping portions of a luciferase gene expression cassette and luciferase assays were first shown to provide an accurate method of assaying recombinant frequencies. We then transfected pairs of DNAs into virus-infected cells and monitored the efficiencies of linear-by-linear, linear-by-circle, and circle-by-circle recombination. These experiments showed that vaccinia virus recombination systems preferentially catalyze linear-by-linear reactions much more efficiently than circle-by-circle reactions and catalyze circle-by-circle reactions more efficiently than linear-by-circle reactions. Reactions involving linear substrates required surprisingly little sequence identity, with only 16-bp overlaps still permitting ∼4% recombinant production. Masking the homologies by adding unrelated DNA sequences to the ends of linear substrates inhibited recombination in a manner dependent upon the number of added sequences. Circular molecules were also recombined by replicating viruses but at frequencies 15- to 50-fold lower than are linear substrates. These results are consistent with mechanisms in which exonuclease or helicase processing of DNA ends permits the forming of recombinants through annealing of complementary single strands. Our data are not consistent with a model involving strand invasion reactions, because such reactions should favor mixtures of linear and circular substrates. We also noted that many of the reaction features seen in vivo were reproduced in a simple in vitro reaction requiring only purified vaccinia virus DNA polymerase, single-strand DNA binding protein, and pairs of linear substrates. The 3′-to-5′ exonuclease activity of poxviral DNA polymerases potentially catalyzes recombination in vivo.


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