scholarly journals Human RECQ1 and RECQ4 Helicases Play Distinct Roles in DNA Replication Initiation

2010 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 1382-1396 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saravanabhavan Thangavel ◽  
Ramiro Mendoza-Maldonado ◽  
Erika Tissino ◽  
Julia M. Sidorova ◽  
Jinhu Yin ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Cellular and biochemical studies support a role for all five human RecQ helicases in DNA replication; however, their specific functions during this process are unclear. Here we investigate the in vivo association of the five human RecQ helicases with three well-characterized human replication origins. We show that only RECQ1 (also called RECQL or RECQL1) and RECQ4 (also called RECQL4) associate with replication origins in a cell cycle-regulated fashion in unperturbed cells. RECQ4 is recruited to origins at late G1, after ORC and MCM complex assembly, while RECQ1 and additional RECQ4 are loaded at origins at the onset of S phase, when licensed origins begin firing. Both proteins are lost from origins after DNA replication initiation, indicating either disassembly or tracking with the newly formed replisome. Nascent-origin DNA synthesis and the frequency of origin firing are reduced after RECQ1 depletion and, to a greater extent, after RECQ4 depletion. Depletion of RECQ1, though not that of RECQ4, also suppresses replication fork rates in otherwise unperturbed cells. These results indicate that RECQ1 and RECQ4 are integral components of the human replication complex and play distinct roles in DNA replication initiation and replication fork progression in vivo.

2008 ◽  
Vol 19 (10) ◽  
pp. 4374-4382 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ling Yin ◽  
Alexandra Monica Locovei ◽  
Gennaro D'Urso

In the fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, blocks to DNA replication elongation trigger the intra-S phase checkpoint that leads to the activation of the Cds1 kinase. Cds1 is required to both prevent premature entry into mitosis and to stabilize paused replication forks. Interestingly, although Cds1 is essential to maintain the viability of mutants defective in DNA replication elongation, mutants defective in DNA replication initiation require the Chk1 kinase. This suggests that defects in DNA replication initiation can lead to activation of the DNA damage checkpoint independent of the intra-S phase checkpoint. This might result from reduced origin firing that leads to an increase in replication fork stalling or replication fork collapse that activates the G2 DNA damage checkpoint. We refer to the Chk1-dependent, Cds1-independent phenotype as the rid phenotype (for replication initiation defective). Chk1 is active in rid mutants, and rid mutant viability is dependent on the DNA damage checkpoint, and surprisingly Mrc1, a protein required for activation of Cds1. Mutations in Mrc1 that prevent activation of Cds1 have no effect on its ability to support rid mutant viability, suggesting that Mrc1 has a checkpoint-independent role in maintaining the viability of mutants defective in DNA replication initiation.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana B.A. Wallis ◽  
Conrad A. Nieduszynski

Background: Understanding DNA replication initiation is essential to understand the mis-regulation of replication seen in cancer and other human disorders. DNA replication initiates from DNA replication origins. In eukaryotes, replication is dependent on cell cycle kinases which function during S phase. Dbf4-dependent kinase (DDK) and cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) act to phosphorylate the DNA helicase (composed of mini chromosome maintenance proteins: Mcm2-7) and firing factors to activate replication origins. It has recently been found that Rif1 can oppose DDK phosphorylation. Rif1 can recruit protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) to dephosphorylate MCM and restricts origin firing. In this study, we investigate a potential role for another phosphatase, protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), in regulating DNA replication initiation. The PP2A regulatory subunit Rts1 was previously identified in a large-scale genomic screen to have a genetic interaction with ORC2 (a DNA replication licensing factor). Deletion of RTS1 synthetically rescued the temperature-sensitive (ts-) phenotype of ORC2 mutants. Methods: We deleted RTS1 in multiple ts-replication factor Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains, including ORC2.  Dilution series assays were carried out to compare qualitatively the growth of double mutant ∆rts1 ts-replication factor strains relative to the respective single mutant strains.   Results: No synthetic rescue of temperature-sensitivity was observed. Instead we found an additive phenotype, indicating gene products function in separate biological processes. These findings are in agreement with a recent genomic screen which found that RTS1 deletion in several ts-replication factor strains led to increased temperature-sensitivity. Conclusions: We find no evidence that Rts1 is involved in the dephosphorylation of DNA replication initiation factors.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu-Hung Chen ◽  
Sarah Keegan ◽  
Malik Kahli ◽  
Peter Tonzi ◽  
David Fenyö ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThe locations of active DNA replication origins in the human genome, and the determinants of origin activation, remain controversial. Additionally, neither the predominant sites of replication termination nor the impact of transcription on replication-fork mobility have been defined. We demonstrate that replication initiation occurs preferentially in the immediate vicinity of the transcription start site of genes occupied by high levels of RNA polymerase II, ensuring co-directional replication of the most highly transcribed genes. Further, we demonstrate that dormant replication origin firing represents the global activation of pre-existing origins. We also show that DNA replication naturally terminates at the polyadenylation site of transcribed genes. During replication stress, termination is redistributed to gene bodies, generating a global reorientation of replication relative to transcription. Our analysis provides a unified model for the coupling of transcription with replication initiation and termination in human cells.


2011 ◽  
Vol 195 (3) ◽  
pp. 387-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seiji Matsumoto ◽  
Motoshi Hayano ◽  
Yutaka Kanoh ◽  
Hisao Masai

Cdc7/Hsk1 is a conserved kinase required for initiation of DNA replication that potentially regulates timing and locations of replication origin firing. Here, we show that viability of fission yeast hsk1Δ cells can be restored by loss of mrc1, which is required for maintenance of replication fork integrity, by cds1Δ, or by a checkpoint-deficient mutant of mrc1. In these mutants, normally inactive origins are activated in the presence of hydroxyurea and binding of Cdc45 to MCM is stimulated. mrc1Δ bypasses hsk1Δ more efficiently because of its checkpoint-independent inhibitory functions. Unexpectedly, hsk1Δ is viable at 37°C. More DNA is synthesized, and some dormant origins fire in the presence of hydroxyurea at 37°C. Furthermore, hsk1Δ bypass strains grow poorly at 25°C compared with higher temperatures. Our results show that Hsk1 functions for DNA replication can be bypassed by different genetic backgrounds as well as under varied physiological conditions, providing additional evidence for plasticity of the replication program in eukaryotes.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarina Y. Porcella ◽  
Natasha C. Koussa ◽  
Colin P. Tang ◽  
Daphne N. Kramer ◽  
Priyanka Srivastava ◽  
...  

AbstractDuring eukaryotic DNA replication, DNA polymerase alpha/primase (Pol α) initiates synthesis on both the leading and lagging strands. It is unknown whether leading- and lagging-strand priming are mechanistically identical, and whether Pol α associates processively or distributively with the replisome. Here, we titrate cellular levels of Pol α in S. cerevisiae and analyze Okazaki fragments to study both replication initiation and ongoing lagging-strand synthesis in vivo. We observe that both Okazaki fragment initiation and the productive firing of replication origins are sensitive to Pol α abundance, and that both processes are disrupted at similar Pol α concentrations. When the replisome adaptor protein Ctf4 is absent or cannot interact with Pol α, lagging-strand initiation is impaired at Pol α concentrations that still support normal origin firing. Additionally, we observe that activation of the checkpoint becomes essential for viability upon severe depletion of Pol α. Using strains in which the Pol α-Ctf4 interaction is disrupted, we demonstrate that this checkpoint requirement is not solely caused by reduced lagging-strand priming. Our results suggest that Pol α recruitment for replication initiation and ongoing lagging-strand priming are distinctly sensitive to the presence of Ctf4. We propose that the global changes we observe in Okazaki fragment length and origin firing efficiency are consistent with distributive association of Pol α at the replication fork, at least when Pol α is limiting.Author summaryHalf of each eukaryotic genome is replicated continuously as the leading strand, while the other half is synthesized discontinuously as Okazaki fragments on the lagging strand. The bulk of DNA replication is completed by DNA polymerases ε and δ on the leading and lagging strand respectively, while synthesis on each strand is initiated by DNA polymerase α-primase (Pol α). Using the model eukaryote S. cerevisiae, we modulate cellular levels of Pol α and interrogate the impact of this perturbation on both replication initiation on DNA synthesis and cellular viability. We observe that Pol α can associate dynamically at the replication fork for initiation on both strands. Although the initiation of both strands is widely thought to be mechanistically similar, we determine that Ctf4, a hub that connects proteins to the replication fork, stimulates lagging-strand priming to a greater extent than leading-strand initiation. We also find that decreased leading-strand initiation results in a checkpoint response that is necessary for viability when Pol α is limiting. Because the DNA replication machinery is highly conserved from budding yeast to humans, this research provides insights into how DNA replication is accomplished throughout eukaryotes.


1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 547-555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takayo Sasaki ◽  
Tomoyuki Sawado ◽  
Masamitsu Yamaguchi ◽  
Tomoyuki Shinomiya

ABSTRACT In the early stage of Drosophila embryogenesis, DNA replication initiates at unspecified sites in the chromosome. In contrast, DNA replication initiates in specified regions in cultured cells. We investigated when and where the initiation regions are specified during embryogenesis and compared them with those observed in cultured cells by two-dimensional gel methods. In the DNA polymerase α gene (DNApolα) locus, where an initiation region,oriDα, had been identified in cultured Kc cells, repression of origin activity in the coding region was detected after formation of cellular blastoderms, and the range of the initiation region had become confined by 5 h after fertilization. During this work we identified other initiation regions between oriDα and the Drosophila E2F gene (dE2F) downstream of DNApolα. At least four initiation regions showing replication bubbles were identified in the 65-kbDNApolα-dE2F locus in 5-h embryos, but only two were observed in Kc cells. These results suggest that the specification levels of origin usage in 5-h embryos are in the intermediate state compared to those in more differentiated cells. Further, we found a spatial correlation between the active promoter regions fordE2F and the active initiation zones of replication. In 5-h embryos, two known transcripts differing in their first exons were expressed, and two regions close to the respective promoter regions for both transcripts functioned as replication origins. In Kc cells, only one transcript was expressed and functional replication origins were observed only in the region including the promoter region for this transcript.


2006 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 308-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Prasanta K. Patel ◽  
Benoit Arcangioli ◽  
Stephen P. Baker ◽  
Aaron Bensimon ◽  
Nicholas Rhind

DNA replication initiates at discrete origins along eukaryotic chromosomes. However, in most organisms, origin firing is not efficient; a specific origin will fire in some but not all cell cycles. This observation raises the question of how individual origins are selected to fire and whether origin firing is globally coordinated to ensure an even distribution of replication initiation across the genome. We have addressed these questions by determining the location of firing origins on individual fission yeast DNA molecules using DNA combing. We show that the firing of replication origins is stochastic, leading to a random distribution of replication initiation. Furthermore, origin firing is independent between cell cycles; there is no epigenetic mechanism causing an origin that fires in one cell cycle to preferentially fire in the next. Thus, the fission yeast strategy for the initiation of replication is different from models of eukaryotic replication that propose coordinated origin firing.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison W. McClure ◽  
John F.X. Diffley

SummaryThe Rad53 DNA checkpoint protein kinase plays multiple roles in the budding yeast cell response to DNA replication stress. Key amongst these is its enigmatic role in safeguarding DNA replication forks. Using DNA replication reactions reconstituted with purified proteins, we show Rad53 phosphorylation of Sld3/7 or Dbf4-dependent kinase blocks replication initiation whilst phosphorylation of Mrc1 or Mcm10 slows elongation. Mrc1 phosphorylation is necessary and sufficient to slow replication forks in complete reactions; Mcm10 phosphorylation can also slow replication forks, but only in the absence of unphosphorylated Mrc1. Mrc1 stimulates the unwinding rate of the replicative helicase, CMG, and Rad53 phosphorylation of Mrc1 prevents this. We show that a phosphorylation-mimicking Mrc1 mutant cannot stimulate replication in vitro and partially rescues the sensitivity of a rad53 null mutant to genotoxic stress in vivo. Our results show that Rad53 protects replication forks in part by antagonising Mrc1 stimulation of CMG unwinding.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilia Puig Lombardi ◽  
Madalena Tarsounas

ABSTRACTTopologically associating domains (TADs) are units of the genome architecture defined by binding sites for the CTCF transcription factor and cohesin-mediated loop extrusion. Genomic regions containing DNA replication initiation sites have been mapped in the proximity of TAD boundaries. However, the factors that determine this positioning have not been identified. Moreover, the impact of TADs on the directionality of replication fork progression remains unknown. Here we use EdU-seq technology to map origin firing sites at 10 kb resolution and to monitor replication fork progression after restart from hydroxyurea arrest. We show that origins firing in early/mid S-phase within TAD boundaries map to two distinct peaks flanking the centre of the boundary, which is occupied by CTCF and cohesin. When transcription is inhibited chemically or deregulated by oncogene overexpression, replication origins become repositioned to the centre of the TAD. Furthermore, we demonstrate the strikingly asymmetric fork progression initiating from origins located within TAD boundaries. Divergent CTCF binding sites and neighbouring TADs with different replication timing (RT) cause fork stalling in regions external to the TAD. Thus, our work assigns for the first time a role to transcription within TAD boundaries in promoting replication origin firing and demonstrates how genomic regions adjacent to the TAD boundaries could restrict replication progression.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (24) ◽  
pp. 9484
Author(s):  
Milena Denkiewicz-Kruk ◽  
Malgorzata Jedrychowska ◽  
Shizuko Endo ◽  
Hiroyuki Araki ◽  
Piotr Jonczyk ◽  
...  

The CMG complex (Cdc45, Mcm2–7, GINS (Psf1, 2, 3, and Sld5)) is crucial for both DNA replication initiation and fork progression. The CMG helicase interaction with the leading strand DNA polymerase epsilon (Pol ε) is essential for the preferential loading of Pol ε onto the leading strand, the stimulation of the polymerase, and the modulation of helicase activity. Here, we analyze the consequences of impaired interaction between Pol ε and GINS in Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells with the psf1-100 mutation. This significantly affects DNA replication activity measured in vitro, while in vivo, the psf1-100 mutation reduces replication fidelity by increasing slippage of Pol ε, which manifests as an elevated number of frameshifts. It also increases the occurrence of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) gaps and the demand for homologous recombination. The psf1-100 mutant shows elevated recombination rates and synthetic lethality with rad52Δ. Additionally, we observe increased participation of DNA polymerase zeta (Pol ζ) in DNA synthesis. We conclude that the impaired interaction between GINS and Pol ε requires enhanced involvement of error-prone Pol ζ, and increased participation of recombination as a rescue mechanism for recovery of impaired replication forks.


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