Oxidation of 5-methylcytosine
in DNA by ten-eleven translocation
(Tet) family of enzymes has been demonstrated to play a significant
role in epigenetic regulation in mammals. We found that Tet enzymes
also possess the activity of catalyzing the formation of 5-hydroxymethylcytidine
(5-hmrC) in RNA in vitro. In addition, the catalytic
domains of all three Tet enzymes as well as full-length Tet3 could
induce the formation of 5-hmrC in human cells. Moreover, 5-hmrC was
present at appreciable levels (∼1 per 5000 5-methylcytidine)
in RNA of mammalian cells and tissues. Our results suggest the involvement
of this oxidation in RNA biology.
Background: Because its N terminus adopts an APK motif, DDB2 might be ␣-N-methylated. Results: We examined the nature of DDB2 ␣-N-methylation, the enzyme involved in this methylation and its function in DNA repair. Conclusion: DDB2 could be ␣-N-methylated by NRMT, and this methylation facilitated the recruitment of DDB2 to DNA damage foci. Significance: This work expands the function of protein ␣-N-methylation to DNA repair.
Endogenous metabolism, environmental exposure, and treatment with some chemotherapeutic agents can all give rise to DNA alkylation, which can occur on the phosphate backbone as well as the ring nitrogen or exocyclic nitrogen and oxygen atoms of nucleobases. Previous studies showed that the minor-groove O2-alkylated thymidine (O2-alkyldT) lesions are poorly repaired and persist in mammalian tissues. In the present study, we synthesized oligodeoxyribonucleotides harboring seven O2-alkyldT lesions, with the alkyl group being a Me, Et, nPr, iPr, nBu, iBu or sBu, at a defined site and examined the impact of these lesions on DNA replication in Escherichia coli cells. Our results demonstrated that the replication bypass efficiencies of the O2-alkyldT lesions decreased with the chain length of the alkyl group, and these lesions directed promiscuous nucleotide misincorporation in E. coli cells. We also found that deficiency in Pol V, but not Pol II or Pol IV, led to a marked drop in bypass efficiencies for most O2-alkyldT lesions. We further showed that both Pol IV and Pol V were essential for the misincorporation of dCMP opposite these minor-groove DNA lesions, whereas only Pol V was indispensable for the T→A transversion introduced by these lesions. Depletion of Pol II, however, did not lead to any detectable alterations in mutation frequencies for any of the O2-alkyldT lesions. Thus, our study provided important new knowledge about the cytotoxic and mutagenic properties of the O2-alkyldT lesions and revealed the roles of the SOS-induced DNA polymerases in bypassing these lesions in E. coli cells.
The protein stability and chromatin functions of UHRF1 (Ubiquitin-like, containing PHD and RING Finger domains, 1) are regulated in a cell cycle-dependent manner. We report a structural characterization of the complex between UHRF1 and the deubiquitinase USP7. The first two UBL domains of USP7 bind to the polybasic region (PBR) of UHRF1, and this interaction is required for the USP7-mediated deubiquitination of UHRF1. Importantly, we find that the USP7-binding site of UHRF1 PBR overlaps with the region engaging an intramolecular interaction with the N-terminal tandem Tudor domain (TTD). We show that the USP7-UHRF1 interaction perturbs the TTD-PBR interaction of UHRF1, thereby shifting the conformation of UHRF1 from a TTD-“occluded” state to a state open for multivalent histone binding. Consistently, introduction of an USP7-interaction defective mutation to UHRF1 significantly reduces its chromatin association. Together, these results link USP7 interaction to the dynamic deubiquitination and chromatin association of UHRF1.
The eukaryotic centromere is an essential chromatin region required for accurate segregation of sister chromatids during cell division. Centromere protein B (CENP-B) is a highly conserved protein which can bind to the 17-bp CENP-B box on the centromeric DNA. In this study, we found that CENP-B could be α-N-methylated in human cells. We also showed that the level of the α-N-methylation was stimulated in cells in response to a variety of extracellular stimuli, including increased cell density, heat shock, and arsenite treatment, though the methylation level was not altered upon metaphase arrest. We identified N-terminal RCC1 methyltransferase (NRMT) as a major enzyme required for the CENP-B methylation. Additionally, we found that chromatin-bound CENP-B was primarily trimethylated and α-N-trimethylation could enhance CENP-B’s binding to CENP-B box in cells. Our study also expands the function of protein α-N-methylation that has been known for decades and whose function remains largely unexplored.
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