The DNA damage response (DDR) preserves genomic integrity. Small non-coding RNAs termed DDRNAs are generated at DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) and are critical for DDR activation. Here we show that active DDRNAs specifically localize to their damaged homologous genomic sites in a transcription-dependent manner. Upon DNA damage, RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) binds to the MRE11/RAD50/NBS1 complex, is recruited to DSBs and synthesizes damage-induced long non-coding RNAs (dilncRNAs) from and towards DNA ends. DilncRNAs act both as DDRNA precursors and by recruiting DDRNAs through RNA:RNA pairing. Together dilncRNAs and DDRNAs fuel DDR focus formation and associate with 53BP1. Accordingly, inhibition of RNAPII prevents DDRNA recruitment, DDR activation and DNA repair. Antisense oligonucleotides matching dilncRNAs and DDRNAs impair site-specific DDR focus formation and DNA repair. We propose that DDR signalling sites, in addition to sharing a common pool of proteins, individually host a unique set of site-specific RNAs necessary for DDR activation.

Damage-induced long non-coding RNAs (dilncRNA) synthesized at DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) by RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) are necessary for DNA damage response (DDR) foci formation. We demonstrate that induction of DSBs results in the assembly of functional promoters that include a complete RNAPII pre-initiation complex (PIC), MED1 and CDK9. Absence or inactivation of these factors causes DDR foci reduction both in vivo and in an in vitro system that reconstitutes DDR events on nucleosomes. We also show that dilncRNAs drive molecular crowding of DDR proteins such as 53BP1 into foci that exhibit liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) condensate properties. We propose that the assembly of DSB-induced transcriptional promoters drives RNA synthesis which stimulates phase separation of DDR factors in the shape of foci. Users may view, print, copy, and download text and data-mine the content in such documents, for the purposes of academic research, subject always to the full Conditions of use:

ATR kinase activates the S-phase checkpoint when replication forks stall at sites of DNA damage. This event also causes phosphorylation of the Fanconi anemia (FA) protein FANCI, triggering its monoubiquitination of the key DNA repair factor FANCD2 by the FA core E3 ligase complex, thereby promoting this central pathway of DNA repair which permits replication to be restarted. However, the interplay between ATR and the FA pathway has been unclear. In this study, we present evidence that their action is directly linked, gaining insights into this relationship in a DT40 mutant cell line that is conditionally deficient in the critical ATR-binding partner protein ATRIP. Using this system, we showed that ATRIP was crucial for DNA damage-induced FANCD2 monoubiquitination and FANCI phosphorylation. ATR kinase phosphorylated recombinant FANCI protein in vitro, which was facilitated by the presence of FANCD2. Mechanistic investigations revealed that the RPA region but not the TopBP1 region of ATRIP was required for FANCD2 monoubiquitination, whereas Chk1 phosphorylation relied upon both domains. Together, our findings identify ATR as the kinase responsible for activating the FA pathway of DNA repair. Cancer Res; 72(5);

RSF1, a new player in the cellular responses to DNA double-strand breaks, sequentially recruits centromeric histone-like proteins and DNA repair proteins from the Fanconi anaemia pathway.

Extrachromosomal telomeric circles are commonly invoked as important players in telomere maintenance, but their origin has remained elusive. Using electron microscopy analysis on purified telomeres we show that, apart from known structures, telomeric repeats accumulate internal loops (i-loops) that occur in the proximity of nicks and single-stranded DNA gaps. I-loops are induced by single-stranded damage at normal telomeres and represent the majority of telomeric structures detected in ALT (Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres) tumor cells. Our data indicate that i-loops form as a consequence of the exposure of single-stranded DNA at telomeric repeats. Finally, we show that these damage-induced i-loops can be excised to generate extrachromosomal telomeric circles resulting in loss of telomeric repeats. Our results identify damage-induced i-loops as a new intermediate in telomere metabolism and reveal a simple mechanism that links telomere damage to the accumulation of extrachromosomal telomeric circles and to telomere erosion.

Until recently, DNA damage arising from physiological DNA metabolism was considered a detrimental by-product for cells. However, an increasing amount of evidence has shown that DNA damage could have a positive role in transcription activation. In particular, DNA damage has been detected in transcriptional elements following different stimuli. These physiological DNA breaks are thought to be instrumental for the correct expression of genomic loci through different mechanisms. In this regard, although a plethora of methods are available to precisely map transcribed regions and transcription start sites, commonly used techniques for mapping DNA breaks lack sufficient resolution and sensitivity to draw a robust correlation between DNA damage generation and transcription. Recently, however, several methods have been developed to map DNA damage at single-nucleotide resolution, thus providing a new set of tools to correlate DNA damage and transcription. Here, we review how DNA damage can positively regulate transcription initiation, the current techniques for mapping DNA breaks at high resolution, and how these techniques can benefit future studies of DNA damage and transcription.

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