Conformational analysis of nucleic acids revisited: Curves+

Reb1 of Schizosaccharomyces pombe represents a family of multifunctional proteins that bind to specific terminator sites (Ter) and cause polar termination of transcription catalyzed by RNA polymerase I (pol I) and arrest of replication forks approaching the Ter sites from the opposite direction. However, it remains to be investigated whether the same mechanism causes arrest of both DNA transactions. Here, we present the structure of Reb1 as a complex with a Ter site at a resolution of 2.7 Å. Structure-guided molecular genetic analyses revealed that it has distinct and well-defined DNA binding and transcription termination (TTD) domains. The region of the protein involved in replication termination is distinct from the TTD. Mechanistically, the data support the conclusion that transcription termination is not caused by just high affinity Reb1-Ter protein-DNA interactions. Rather, protein-protein interactions between the TTD with the Rpa12 subunit of RNA pol I seem to be an integral part of the mechanism. This conclusion is further supported by the observation that double mutations in TTD that abolished its interaction with Rpa12 also greatly reduced transcription termination thereby revealing a conduit for functional communications between RNA pol I and the terminator protein.crystal structure | RNA polymerase I | transcription termination | protein-DNA interaction | replication termination E ukaryotic rDNAs are found as multiple tandem copies encoding pre-rRNA and upstream and downstream regulatory elements (1-3) including DNA sequences (Ter) that promote site-specific termination of transcription catalyzed by RNA polymerase I (pol I) from yeast to humans (4-14). Specialized transcription terminator proteins bind to Ter sites and not only arrest transcription by RNA polymerase I (pol I) in a polar mode but also replication forks approaching from the opposite direction. Several studies have suggested that pol I transcription termination is a multistep process that requires (i) pausing of chain elongation by the terminator protein and (ii) dissociation and release of pol I and the primary transcript from the template. In mice, dissociation of pol I and release of the transcript require the release factor PTRF, a 44-kDa protein that interacts with the largest subunit of pol I (15). In yeast, additional factors for the processing of the end include the endonuclease Rnt1, the 5′-3′ Rat1 exonuclease, Sen1 helicase, and the kinase Grc3. They are part of an alternate pathway for termination by transcriptional coprocessing (4,(16)(17)(18)(19). In addition, in vivo analyses of Saccharomyces cerevisiae have shown a requirement for Rpa12, a component of pol I necessary for transcription termination (20). Whether the polar arrest of transcription is caused by an interaction between Rpa12 with the terminator protein is unknown.The terminator proteins that mediate transcription termination have been identified in multiple organisms and include Reb1 and Nsi1 [also called yeast transcription terminator (Ytt1)] of S. cerevisiae (...

“…4B) (42). The DNA bending angle is directed toward the MybAD domains presumably due to neutralization of negative charges on one face of the complex but not of the opposite one ( Fig.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 92%

Functional architecture of the Reb1-Ter complex of Schizosaccharomyces pombe

Jaiswal

Choudhury

Zaman

et al. 2016

“…The DNA geometry was analyzed using the program "Curve+" (16). The DNA duplex is distorted, with the average distance between bases being 3.2 Å (32 Å per turn), somewhat shorter than observed for a typical B-DNA (3.4 Å).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Structures of complexes comprised of Fischerella transcription factor HetR with Anabaena DNA targets

Kim

Joachimiak

et al. 2013

HetR is an essential regulator of heterocyst development in cyanobacteria. Many mutations in HetR render Anabaena incapable of nitrogen fixation. The protein binds to a DNA palindrome upstream of hetP and other genes. We have determined the crystal structures of HetR complexed with palindromic DNA targets, 21, 23, and 29 bp at 2.50-, 3.00-, and 3.25-Å resolution, respectively. The highest-resolution structure shows fine details of specific protein-DNA interactions. The lower-resolution structures with longer DNA duplexes have similar interaction patterns and show how the flap domains interact with DNA in a sequence nonspecific fashion. Fifteen of 15 protein-DNA contacts predicted on the basis of the structure were confirmed by single amino acid mutations that abolished binding in vitro and complementation in vivo. A striking feature of the structure is the association of glutamate 71 from each subunit of the HetR dimer with three successive cytosines in each arm of the palindromic target, a feature that is conserved among all known heterocyst-forming cyanobacteria sequenced to date.heterocyst differentiation | mutagenesis | X-ray crystallography

“…We averaged the structure of DNA over 80 ns (excluding the first 20 ns as equilibration) from three simulations: (i) FEN1/DNA, (ii) PCNA/FEN1/DNA, and (iii) the 9Δ-1-1/FEN1/DNA. The axis of the upstream duplex was computed with the program Curves+ (45). In the absence of either clamp, the upstream DNA axis is essentially straight and conforms closely to the expected canonical B-form geometry.…”

Section: Structural Determinants Of Flexibility For the Ternary Assemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Repair complexes of FEN1 endonuclease, DNA, and Rad9-Hus1-Rad1 are distinguished from their PCNA counterparts by functionally important stability

Querol-Audí

Cheng

et al. 2012

Processivity clamps such as proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and the checkpoint sliding clamp Rad9/Rad1/Hus1 (9-1-1) act as versatile scaffolds in the coordinated recruitment of proteins involved in DNA replication, cell-cycle control, and DNA repair. Association and handoff of DNA-editing enzymes, such as flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1), with sliding clamps are key processes in biology, which are incompletely understood from a mechanistic point of view. We have used an integrative computational and experimental approach to define the assemblies of FEN1 with double-flap DNA substrates and either proliferating cell nuclear antigen or the checkpoint sliding clamp 9-1-1. Fully atomistic models of these two ternary complexes were developed and refined through extensive molecular dynamics simulations to expose their conformational dynamics. Clustering analysis revealed the most dominant conformations accessible to the complexes. The cluster centroids were subsequently used in conjunction with single-particle electron microscopy data to obtain a 3D EM reconstruction of the human 9-1-1/FEN1/DNA assembly at 18-Å resolution. Comparing the structures of the complexes revealed key differences in the orientation and interactions of FEN1 and double-flap DNA with the two clamps that are consistent with their respective functions in providing inherent flexibility for lagging strand DNA replication or inherent stability for DNA repair.F lap endonuclease 1 (FEN1) belongs to a class of essential nucleases (the FEN1 5′ nuclease superfamily) present in all domains of life (1). FEN1 catalyzes the endonucleolytic cleavage of bifurcated DNA or RNA structures known as 5′ flaps. These 5′ flaps are generated during lagging strand DNA synthesis or during long-patch base excision repair. The FEN1 substrates are in fact double-flap DNA (dfDNA) with DNA on the opposite side of the 5′ flap, forming a single nucleotide 3′ flap when bound to the enzyme (2, 3). By removing the 5′ ssDNA or RNA flap from such substrates, FEN1 produces a single nicked product that could be sealed by the subsequent action of a DNA ligase (4). Consistent with its crucial role in DNA replication and repair, FEN1 is highly expressed in all proliferative tissues, and its activity is key for the maintenance of genomic integrity (5). FEN1 has been identified as a cancer susceptibility gene, and mutations in it have been linked to a number of genetic diseases, such as EM map myotonic dystrophy, Huntington disease, several ataxias, fragile X syndrome, and cancer (6-10).The nuclease activity of FEN1 can be stimulated by association with processivity clamps such as proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), which encircle DNA at sites of replication and repair (11)(12)(13). PCNA is a recognized master coordinator of cellular responses to DNA damage and interacts with numerous DNA repair and cell-cycle control proteins. In this capacity, PCNA serves not only as a mobile platform for the attachment of these proteins to DNA but, importantly, plays an active role in the recru...