scholarly journals Influence of Origin Recognition Complex Proteins on the Copy Numbers of Three Chromosomes in Haloferax volcanii

2018 ◽  
Vol 200 (17) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katharina Ludt ◽  
Jörg Soppa

ABSTRACT Replication initiation in archaea involves a protein named ORC, Cdc6, or ORC1/Cdc6, which is homologous to the eukaryotic origin recognition complex (ORC) proteins and to the eukaryotic Cdc6. Archaeal replication origins are comprised of origin repeat regions and adjacent orc genes. Some archaea contain a single replication origin and a single orc gene, while others have more than one of each. Haloferax volcanii is exceptional because it contains, in total, six replication origins on three chromosomes and 16 orc genes. Phylogenetic trees were constructed that showed that orc gene duplications occurred at very different times in evolution. To unravel the influence of the ORC proteins on chromosome copy number and cellular fitness, it was attempted to generate deletion mutants of all 16 genes. A total of 12 single-gene deletion mutants could be generated, and only three orc gene turned out to be essential. For one gene, the deletion analysis failed. Growth analyses revealed that no deletion mutant had a growth defect, but some had a slight growth advantage compared to the wild type. Quantification of the chromosome copy numbers in the deletion mutants showed that all 12 ORC proteins influenced the copy numbers of one, two, or all three chromosomes. The lack of an ORC led to an increase or decrease of chromosome copy number. Therefore, chromosome copy numbers in Hfx. volcanii are regulated by an intricate network of ORC proteins. This is in contrast to other archaea, in which ORC proteins typically bind specifically to the adjacent origin. IMPORTANCE The core origins of archaea are comprised of a repeat region and an adjacent gene for an origin recognition complex (ORC) protein, which is homologous to eukaryotic ORC proteins. Haloferax volcanii is exceptional because it contains six replication origins on three chromosomes and an additional 10 orc genes that are not adjacent to an origin. This unique ORC protein repertoire was used to unravel the importance of core origin orc genes and of origin-remote orc genes. Remarkably, all ORC proteins influenced the copy number of at least one chromosome. Some of them influenced those of all three chromosomes, showing that cross-regulation in trans exists in Hfx. volcanii. Furthermore, the evolution of the archaeal ORC protein family was analyzed.

2017 ◽  
Vol 200 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Maurer ◽  
Katharina Ludt ◽  
Jörg Soppa

ABSTRACT Haloferax volcanii is polyploid and contains about 20 genome copies under optimal conditions. However, the chromosome copy number is highly regulated and ranges from two during phosphate starvation to more than 40 under conditions of phosphate surplus. The aim of this study was the characterization of the influence of two replication origins on the genome copy number. The origin repeats and the genes encoding origin recognition complex (ORC) proteins were deleted. The core origin oriC1-orc1 (ori1) deletion mutant had a lower genome copy number and a higher level of fitness than the wild type, in stark contrast to the oriC2-orc5 (ori2) deletion mutant. The genes adjacent to ori1 could not be deleted, and thus, at least two of them are probably essential, while deletion of the genes adjacent to ori2 was possible. Various fragments of and around the origins were cloned into a suicide plasmid to generate haloarchaeal artificial chromosomes (HACs). The copy number of the oriC1-orc1 HAC was much higher than that of the oriC2-orc5 HAC. The addition of adjacent genes influenced both the HAC copy number and the chromosome copy number. The results indicate that the origins of H. volcanii are not independent but that the copy number is regulated via a network of genes around the origins. IMPORTANCE Several species of archaea have more than one origin of replication on their major chromosome and are thus the only known prokaryotic species that allow the analysis of the evolution of multiorigin replication. The widely studied Haloferax volcanii H26 strain has a major chromosome with four origins of replication. Two origins, ori1 and ori2, were chosen for an in-depth analysis using deletion mutants and haloarchaeal artificial chromosomes. The analysis was not restricted to the core origin regions; origin-adjacent genes were also included. Because H. volcanii is polyploid, the effects on the chromosome copy number were of specific importance. The results revealed extreme differences between the two origins.


2006 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 1955-1966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristopher H. McConnell ◽  
Philipp Müller ◽  
Catherine A. Fox

ABSTRACT The HMR-E silencer is a DNA element that directs the formation of silent chromatin at the HMR a locus in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Sir1p is one of four Sir proteins required for silent chromatin formation at HMR a. Sir1p functions by binding the origin recognition complex (ORC), which binds to HMR-E, and recruiting the other Sir proteins (Sir2p to -4p). ORCs also bind to hundreds of nonsilencer positions distributed throughout the genome, marking them as replication origins, the sites for replication initiation. HMR-E also acts as a replication origin, but compared to many origins in the genome, it fires extremely inefficiently and late during S phase. One postulate to explain this observation is that ORC's role in origin firing is incompatible with its role in binding Sir1p and/or the formation of silent chromatin. Here we examined a mutant HMR-E silencer and fusions between robust replication origins and HMR-E for HMR a silencing, origin firing, and replication timing. Origin firing within HMR a and from the HMR-E silencer itself could be significantly enhanced, and the timing of HMR a replication during an otherwise normal S phase advanced, without a substantial reduction in SIR1-dependent silencing. However, although the robust origin/silencer fusions silenced HMR a quite well, they were measurably less effective than a comparable silencer containing HMR-E's native ORC binding site.


2001 ◽  
Vol 21 (8) ◽  
pp. 2790-2801 ◽  
Author(s):  
James F. Theis ◽  
Carol S. Newlon

ABSTRACT While many of the proteins involved in the initiation of DNA replication are conserved between yeasts and metazoans, the structure of the replication origins themselves has appeared to be different. As typified by ARS1, replication origins inSaccharomyces cerevisiae are <150 bp long and have a simple modular structure, consisting of a single binding site for the origin recognition complex, the replication initiator protein, and one or more accessory sequences. DNA replication initiates from a discrete site. While the important sequences are currently less well defined, metazoan origins appear to be different. These origins are large and appear to be composed of multiple, redundant elements, and replication initiates throughout zones as large as 55 kb. In this report, we characterize two S. cerevisiae replication origins, ARS101 and ARS310, which differ from the paradigm. These origins contain multiple, redundant binding sites for the origin recognition complex. Each binding site must be altered to abolish origin function, while the alteration of a single binding site is sufficient to inactivate ARS1. This redundant structure may be similar to that seen in metazoan origins.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. 3481
Author(s):  
Afaf Eladl ◽  
Yudai Yamaoki ◽  
Shoko Hoshina ◽  
Haruka Horinouchi ◽  
Keiko Kondo ◽  
...  

Origin recognition complex (ORC) binds to replication origins in eukaryotic DNAs and plays an important role in replication. Although yeast ORC is known to sequence-specifically bind to a replication origin, how human ORC recognizes a replication origin remains unknown. Previous genome-wide studies revealed that guanine (G)-rich sequences, potentially forming G-quadruplex (G4) structures, are present in most replication origins in human cells. We previously suggested that the region comprising residues 413–511 of human ORC subunit 1, hORC1413–511, binds preferentially to G-rich DNAs, which form a G4 structure in the absence of hORC1413–511. Here, we investigated the interaction of hORC1413-511 with various G-rich DNAs derived from human c-myc promoter and telomere regions. Fluorescence anisotropy revealed that hORC1413–511 binds preferentially to DNAs that have G4 structures over ones having double-stranded structures. Importantly, circular dichroism (CD) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) showed that those G-rich DNAs retain the G4 structures even after binding with hORC1413–511. NMR chemical shift perturbation analyses revealed that the external G-tetrad planes of the G4 structures are the primary binding sites for hORC1413–511. The present study suggests that human ORC1 may recognize replication origins through the G4 structure.


2001 ◽  
Vol 21 (17) ◽  
pp. 5767-5777 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amit Vas ◽  
Winnie Mok ◽  
Janet Leatherwood

ABSTRACT Cdc2 kinase is a master regulator of cell cycle progression in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Our data indicate that Cdc2 phosphorylates replication factor Orp2, a subunit of the origin recognition complex (ORC). Cdc2 phosphorylation of Orp2 appears to be one of multiple mechanisms by which Cdc2 prevents DNA rereplication in a single cell cycle. Cdc2 phosphorylation of Orp2 is not required for Cdc2 to activate DNA replication initiation. Phosphorylation of Orp2 appears first in S phase and becomes maximal in G2 and M when Cdc2 kinase activity is required to prevent reinitiation of DNA replication. A mutant lacking Cdc2 phosphorylation sites in Orp2 (orp2-T4A) allowed greater rereplication of DNA than congenic orp2 wild-type strains when the limiting replication initiation factor Cdc18 was deregulated. Thus, Cdc2 phosphorylation of Orp2 may be redundant with regulation of Cdc18 for preventing reinitiation of DNA synthesis. Since Cdc2 phosphorylation sites are present in Orp2 (also known as Orc2) from yeasts to metazoans, we propose that cell cycle-regulated phosphorylation of the ORC provides a safety net to prevent DNA rereplication and resulting genetic instability.


2018 ◽  
Vol 84 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Oscar van Mastrigt ◽  
Marcel M. A. N. Lommers ◽  
Yorick C. de Vries ◽  
Tjakko Abee ◽  
Eddy J. Smid

ABSTRACTLactic acid bacteria can carry multiple plasmids affecting their performance in dairy fermentations. The expression of plasmid-borne genes and the activity of the corresponding proteins are severely affected by changes in the numbers of plasmid copies. We studied the impact of growth rate on the dynamics of plasmid copy numbers at high growth rates in chemostat cultures and down to near-zero growth rates in retentostat cultures. Five plasmids of the dairy strainLactococcus lactisFM03-V1 were selected, and these varied in size (3 to 39 kb), in replication mechanism (theta or rolling circle), and in putative (dairy-associated) functions. The copy numbers ranged from 1.5 to 40.5, and the copy number of theta-type replicating plasmids was negatively correlated to the plasmid size. Despite the extremely wide range of growth rates (0.0003 h−1to 0.6 h−1), the copy numbers of the five plasmids were stable and only slightly increased at near-zero growth rates, showing that the plasmid replication rate was strictly controlled. One low-copy-number plasmid, carrying a large exopolysaccharide gene cluster, was segregationally unstable during retentostat cultivations, reflected in a complete loss of the plasmid in one of the retentostat cultures. The copy number of the five plasmids was also hardly affected by varying the pH value, nutrient limitation, or the presence of citrate (maximum 2.2-fold), signifying the stability in copy number of the plasmids.IMPORTANCELactococcus lactisis extensively used in starter cultures for dairy fermentations. Important traits for the growth and survival ofL. lactisin dairy fermentations are encoded by genes located on plasmids, such as genes involved in lactose and citrate metabolism, protein degradation, oligopeptide uptake, and bacteriophage resistance. Because the number of plasmid copies could affect the expression of plasmid-borne genes, it is important to know the factors that influence the plasmid copy numbers. We monitored the plasmid copy numbers ofL. lactisat near-zero growth rates, characteristic for cheese ripening. Moreover, we analyzed the effects of pH, nutrient limitation, and the presence of citrate. This showed that the plasmid copy numbers were stable, giving insight into plasmid copy number dynamics in dairy fermentations.


2018 ◽  
Vol 62 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Samaly Santos Souza ◽  
Mariangela L'Episcopia ◽  
Carlo Severini ◽  
Venkatachalam Udhayakumar ◽  
Naomi W. Lucchi

ABSTRACTPiperaquine is an important partner drug used in artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs). An increase in theplasmepsin 2and3gene copy numbers has been associated with decreased susceptibility ofPlasmodium falciparumto piperaquine in Cambodia. Here, we developed a photo-induced electron transfer real-time PCR (PET-PCR) assay to quantify the copy number of theP. falciparumplasmepsin 2gene (PfPM2) that can be used in countries whereP. falciparumis endemic to enhance molecular surveillance.


2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 933-944 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katharina Ludt ◽  
Jörg Soppa

AbstractAll analyzed haloarachea are polyploid. In addition, haloarchaea contain more than one type of chromosome, and thus the gene dosage can be regulated independently on different replicons. Haloarchaea and several additional archaea have more than one replication origin on their major chromosome, in stark contrast with bacteria, which have a single replication origin. Two of these replication origins of Haloferax volcanii have been studied in detail and turned out to have very different properties. The chromosome copy number appears to be regulated in response to growth phases and environmental factors. Archaea typically contain about two Origin Recognition Complex (ORC) proteins, which are homologous to eukaryotic ORC proteins. However, haloarchaea are the only archaeal group that contains a multitude of ORC proteins. All 16 ORC protein paralogs from H. volcanii are involved in chromosome copy number regulation. Polyploidy has many evolutionary advantages for haloarchaea, e.g. a high resistance to desiccation, survival over geological times, and the relaxation of cell cycle-specific replication control. A further advantage is the ability to grow in the absence of external phosphate while using the many genome copies as internal phosphate storage polymers. Very efficient gene conversion operates in haloarchaea and results in the unification of genome copies. Taken together, haloarchaea are excellent models to study many aspects of genome biology in prokaryotes, exhibiting properties that have not been found in bacteria.


2012 ◽  
Vol 287 (15) ◽  
pp. 11891-11898 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyung Yong Lee ◽  
Sung Woong Bang ◽  
Sang Wook Yoon ◽  
Seung-Hoon Lee ◽  
Jong-Bok Yoon ◽  
...  

During the late M to the G1 phase of the cell cycle, the origin recognition complex (ORC) binds to the replication origin, leading to the assembly of the prereplicative complex for subsequent initiation of eukaryotic chromosome replication. We found that the cell cycle-dependent phosphorylation of human ORC2, one of the six subunits of ORC, dissociates ORC2, -3, -4, and -5 (ORC2–5) subunits from chromatin and replication origins. Phosphorylation at Thr-116 and Thr-226 of ORC2 occurs by cyclin-dependent kinase during the S phase and is maintained until the M phase. Phosphorylation of ORC2 at Thr-116 and Thr-226 dissociated the ORC2–5 from chromatin. Consistent with this, the phosphomimetic ORC2 protein exhibited defective binding to replication origins as well as to chromatin, whereas the phosphodefective protein persisted in binding throughout the cell cycle. These results suggest that the phosphorylation of ORC2 dissociates ORC from chromatin and replication origins and inhibits binding of ORC to newly replicated DNA.


1997 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 553-563 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Zou ◽  
J Mitchell ◽  
B Stillman

The CDC45 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was isolated by complementation of the cold-sensitive cdc45-1 mutant and shown to be essential for cell viability. Although CDC45 genetically interacts with a group of MCM genes (CDC46, CDC47, and CDC54), the predicted sequence of its protein product reveals no significant sequence similarity to any known Mcm family member. Further genetic characterization of the cdc45-1 mutant demonstrated that it is synthetically lethal with orc2-1, mcm2-1, and mcm3-1. These results not only reveal a functional connection between the origin recognition complex (ORC) and Cdc45p but also extend the CDC45-MCM genetic interaction to all known MCM family members that were shown to be involved in replication initiation. Initiation of DNA replication in cdc45-1 cells was defective, causing a delayed entry into S phase at the nonpermissive temperature, as well as a high plasmid loss rate which could be suppressed by tandem copies of replication origins. Furthermore, two-dimensional gels directly showed that chromosomal origins fired less frequently in cdc45-1 cells at the nonpermissive temperature. These findings suggest that Cdc45p, ORC, and Mcm proteins act in concert for replication initiation throughout the genome.


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