The origin recognition complex (ORC) specifies replication origin location. The Saccharomyces cerevisiae ORC recognizes the ARS (autonomously replicating sequence) consensus sequence (ACS), but only a subset of potential genomic sites are bound, suggesting other chromosomal features influence ORC binding. Using high-throughput sequencing to map ORC binding and nucleosome positioning, we show that yeast origins are characterized by an asymmetric pattern of positioned nucleosomes flanking the ACS. The origin sequences are sufficient to maintain a nucleosome-free origin; however, ORC is required for the precise positioning of nucleosomes flanking the origin. These findings identify local nucleosomes as an important determinant for origin selection and function. Initiation of DNA replication occurs at multiple genomic loci, termed origins of replication. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, replication origins were originally identified as short (;150-base-pair [bp]) autonomously replicating sequence (ARS) elements that were sufficient for the maintenance of episomes. The origin recognition complex (ORC) binds the ARS consensus sequence (ACS), an 11-bp T-rich sequence that is necessary but not sufficient for origin activity. During G1, ORC coordinates the recruitment of several additional replication factors to load the replicative DNA helicase, the Mcm2-7 complex, onto origin DNA to form the prereplicative complex (pre-RC) (for review, see Sclafani and Holzen 2007).The S. cerevisiae genome contains, by various metrics, 6000-40,000 potential ACS sequence matches, of which only a few hundred are bound specifically by ORC. Although active transcription of a sequence has been shown to prevent ORC binding and pre-RC formation (Mori and Shirahige 2007), the large majority of potential ACS matches are intergenic, suggesting that additional chromosomal features are required to define the subset of these sites that are bound by ORC and act as replication origins.All cellular events involving genomic DNA must operate within their chromosomal context. Nucleosomes are the most basic elements of chromatin structure. Nearly 80% of S. cerevisiae DNA is incorporated into stable nucleosomes, and their position relative to regulatory elements is a critical component of gene regulation. Significant regions of the genome are not in complex with nucleosomes, and are referred to as nucleosome-free regions (NFRs). NFRs represent particularly accessible parts of the genome that are frequently the site of multiprotein assemblies that regulate or perform key DNA templated processes (for review, see Rando and Chang 2009).The DNA replication program has been shown to be regulated by the local chromatin environment (Donaldson 2005). Although progress has been made in establishing that chromatin modifications impact the activation of replication origins (Vogelauer et al. 2002;Knott et al. 2009), it has also been shown that nucleosome positioning is critical for origin function. Early nucleosome mapping experiments on a plasmid containing the ARS1 origi...

The dynein-related AAA ATPase Rea1 is a preribosomal factor that triggers an unknown maturation step in 60S subunit biogenesis. Using electron microscopy, we show that Rea1's motor domain is docked to the pre-60S particle and its tail-like structure, harboring a metal ion-dependent adhesion site (MIDAS), protrudes from the preribosome. Typically, integrins utilize a MIDAS to bind extracellular ligands, an interaction that is strengthened under applied tensile force. Likewise, the Rea1 MIDAS binds the preribosomal factor Rsa4, which is located on the pre-60S subunit at a site that is contacted by the flexible Rea1 tail. The MIDAS-Rsa4 interaction is essential for ATP-dependent dissociation of a group of non-ribosomal factors from the pre-60S particle. Thus, Rea1 aligns with its interacting partners on the preribosome to effect a necessary step on the path to the export-competent 60S subunit.

Summary Activation of the eukaryotic replicative DNA helicase, the Mcm2-7 complex, requires phosphorylation by Cdc7/Dbf4 (Dbf4-dependent kinase or DDK), which, in turn, depends on prior phosphorylation of Mcm2-7 by an unknown kinase(s). We identified DDK phosphorylation sites on Mcm4 and Mcm6 and found that phosphorylation of either subunit suffices for cell proliferation. Importantly, prior phosphorylation of either S/T-P or S/T-Q motifs on these subunits is required for DDK phosphorylation of Mcm2-7 and for normal S phase passage. Phosphomimetic mutations of DDK target sites bypass both DDK function and mutation of the priming phosphorylation sites. Mrc1 facilitates Mec1 phosphorylation of the S/T-Q motifs of chromatin-bound Mcm2-7 during S phase to activate replication. Genetic interactions between priming site mutations and MRC1 or TOF1 deletion support a role for these modifications in replication fork stability. These findings identify new mechanisms to modulate origin firing and replication fork assembly during cell cycle progression.

Despite the importance of the blood-brain barrier in maintaining normal brain physiology and in understanding neurodegeneration and CNS drug delivery, human cerebrovascular cells remain poorly characterized due to their sparsity and dispersion. Here, we perform the first single-cell characterization of the human cerebrovasculature using both ex vivo fresh-tissue experimental enrichment and post mortem in silico sorting of human cortical tissue samples. We capture 31,812 cerebrovascular cells across 17 subtypes, including three distinct subtypes of perivascular fibroblasts as well as vasculature-coupled neurons and glia. We uncover human-specific expression patterns along the arteriovenous axis and determine previously uncharacterized cell type-specific markers. We use our newly discovered human-specific signatures to study changes in 3,945 cerebrovascular cells of Huntington's disease patients, which reveal an activation of innate immune signaling in vascular and vasculature-coupled cell types and the concomitant reduction to proteins critical for maintenance of BBB integrity. Finally, our study provides a comprehensive resource molecular atlas of the human cerebrovasculature to guide future biological and therapeutic studies.

In yeast, two aminoacyl‐tRNA synthetases, MetRS and GluRS, are associated with Arc1p. We have studied the mechanism of this complex formation and found that the non‐catalytic N‐terminally appended domains of MetRS and GluRS are necessary and sufficient for binding to Arc1p. Similarly, it is the N‐terminal domain of Arc1p that contains distinct but overlapping binding sites for MetRS and GluRS. Localization of Arc1p, MetRS and GluRS in living cells using green fluorescent protein showed that these three proteins are cytoplasmic and largely excluded from the nucleus. However, when their assembly into a complex is inhibited, significant amounts of MetRS, GluRS and Arc1p can enter the nucleus. We suggest that the organization of aminoacyl‐tRNA synthetases into a multimeric complex not only affects catalysis, but is also a means of segregating the tRNA‐ aminoacylation machinery mainly to the cytoplasmic compartment.

Rea1, the largest predicted protein in the yeast genome, is a member of the AAA ؉ family of ATPases and is associated with pre-60 S ribosomes. Here we report that Rea1 is required for maturation and nuclear export of the pre-60 S subunit. Rea1 exhibits a predominantly nucleoplasmic localization and is present in a late pre-60 S particle together with members of the Rix1 complex. To study the role of Rea1 in ribosome biogenesis, we generated a repressible GAL::REA1 strain and temperaturesensitive rea1 alleles. In vivo depletion of Rea1 results in the significant reduction of mature 60 S subunits concomitant with defects in pre-rRNA processing and late pre-60 S ribosome stability following ITS2 cleavage and prior to the generation of mature 5.8 S rRNA. Strains depleted of the components of the Rix1 complex (Rix1, Ipi1, and Ipi3) showed similar defects. Using an in vivo 60 S subunit export assay, a strong accumulation of the large subunit reporter Rpl25-GFP (green fluorescent protein) in the nucleus and at the nuclear periphery was seen in rea1 mutants at restrictive conditions.The synthesis of ribosomes is one of the major and most energy-consuming processes in the cell. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, ribosome biogenesis begins in the nucleolus with the transcription of two rRNA precursors, the 35 S and the pre-5 S RNA, by RNA polymerases I and III, respectively. The 35 S pre-rRNA contains the sequences for the mature 18 S, 5.8 S, and 25 S rRNAs, two external transcribed spacers (ETS) 1 and two internal transcribed spacers (ITS). During the maturation process, the pre-rRNA has to undergo a number of modifications and is subjected to cleavages and trimming events. At least 170 accessory proteins including putative RNA helicases, endo-and exonucleases, and putative GTPases and AAAATPases as well as small nucleolar ribonucleoprotein particles are involved in the maturation of rRNA and its assembly into ribosomal subunits (1, 2).Concomitant with rRNA processing, ribosomal and non-ribosomal proteins are assembled on the pre-35 S rRNA, giving rise to a large 90 S pre-ribosomal particle (see Fig. 6B) (3, 4). The initial cleavages at sites A 0 -A 2 separate the two subunits. The pre-40 S subunit is exported relatively rapidly to the cytoplasm, where it undergoes further processing. In contrast, the maturation of the large subunit continues in the nucleoplasm with recruitment of 60 S-specific biogenesis factors and further processing of the 27 S pre-rRNA. This includes the late cleavage and processing in the ITS2 region, which generates mature 5.8 S and 25 S rRNA.In the last few years, the maturation of 40 S and 60 S pre-ribosomes has been extensively analyzed by purification of pre-ribosomal particles (5-10). Interestingly, a large number of non-ribosomal proteins were identified in pre-60 S particles without an assigned function in RNA metabolism. In contrast to the pre-40 S particles, the nascent 60 S particles contain several putative GTPases and AAA-type ATPases (2, 11).To understand the events of ribosome biogenesis, w...

Analyses of isolated pre-ribosomes yielded biochemical "snapshots" of the dynamic, nascent 60S and 40S subunits during their path from the nucleolus to the cytoplasm. Here, we present the structure of a pre-60S ribosomal intermediate located in the nucleoplasm. A huge dynein-related AAA-type ATPase (Rea1) and the Rix1 complex (Rix1-Ipi1-Ipi3) are components of an extended (approximately 45 nm long) pre-60S particle. Antibody crosslinking in combination with electron microscopy revealed that the Rea1 localizes to the "tail" region and ribosomal proteins to the "head" region of the elongated "tadpole-like" structure. Furthermore, in vitro treatment with ATP induces dissociation of Rea1 from the pre-60S subunits. Rea1 and the Rix1 complex could mediate ATP-dependent remodeling of 60S subunits and subsequent export from the nucleoplasm to the cytoplasm.

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