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Zvi Kelman

Publications and source records attributed to Zvi Kelman.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

Substrate requirements for duplex DNA translocation by the eukaryal and archaeal minichromosome maintenance helicases.

Replicative DNA helicases are ring-shaped hexamers that play an essential role in DNA synthesis by separating the two strands of chromosomal DNA to provide the single-stranded (ss) substrate for replicative polymerases. Biochemical and structural studies suggest that these helicases translocate along one strand of the duplex, which passes through and interacts with the central channel of these ring-shaped hexamers, and displace the complementary strand. A number of these helicases were shown to also encircle both strands simultaneously and then translocate along double-stranded (ds)DNA. In this report it is shown that the Schizosaccharomyces pombe Mcm4,6,7 complex and archaeal minichromosome maintenance (MCM) helicase from Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus move along duplex DNA. These two helicases, however, differ in the substrate required to support dsDNA translocation. Although the S. pombe Mcm4,6,7 complex required a 3'-overhang ssDNA region to initiate its association with the duplex, the archaeal protein initiated its transit along dsDNA in the absence of a 3'-overhang region, as well. Furthermore, DNA substrates containing a streptavidin-biotin steric block inhibited the movement of the eukaryotic helicase along ss and dsDNAs but not of the archaeal enzyme. The M. thermautotrophicus MCM helicase, however, was shown to displace a streptavidin-biotin complex from ss, as well as dsDNAs. The possible roles of dsDNA translocation by the MCM proteins during the initiation and elongation phases of chromosomal replication are discussed.

Base Sequence↗

The diverse spectrum of sliding clamp interacting proteins.

DNA polymerase sliding clamps are a family of ring-shaped proteins that play essential roles in DNA metabolism. The proteins from the three domains of life, Bacteria, Archaea and Eukarya, as well as those from bacteriophages and viruses, were shown to interact with a large number of cellular factors and to influence their activity. In the last several years a large number of such proteins have been identified and studied. Here the various proteins that have been shown to interact with the sliding clamps of Bacteria, Archaea and Eukarya are summarized.

Archaea↗

Regulation of minichromosome maintenance helicase activity by Cdc6.

Genetic studies, together with amino acid and structural similarities to the clamp loaders of DNA polymerase sliding clamps, have suggested that the Cdc6 protein may function as a loader for the eukaryotic replicative helicase, the minichromosome maintenance (MCM) complex. Thus, Cdc6 may act as the functional homologue of the bacterial DnaC that utilizes ATP hydrolysis to assemble the DnaB helicase at the origin. This report shows that the helicase activity of an MCM homologue from the archaeon Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus is inhibited in the presence of the Cdc6 homologues. This inhibitory activity is dependent, as for DnaC, on ATP binding to Cdc6. Moreover, an intact Cdc6 winged helix domain is required for efficient inhibition. Two-hybrid analyses indicated that MCM and Cdc6 interact and that the interaction is mediated by the winged helix domain. Analysis of Cdc6 and MCM homologues from several archaea exhibited differences in the inhibitory activity suggesting divergence in function in Cdc6 and MCM homologues among the archaea.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

The HI0073/HI0074 protein pair from Haemophilus influenzae is a member of a new nucleotidyltransferase family: structure, sequence analyses, and solution studies.

The crystal structure of HI0074 from Haemophilus influenzae, a protein of unknown function, has been determined at a resolution of 2.4 A. The molecules form an up-down, four-helix bundle, and associate into homodimers. The fold is most closely related to the substrate-binding domain of KNTase, yet the amino acid sequences of the two proteins exhibit no significant homology. Sequence analyses of completely and incompletely sequenced genomes reveal that the two adjacent genes, HI0074 and HI0073, and their close relatives comprise a new family of nucleotidyltransferases, with 15 members at the time of writing. The analyses also indicate that this is one of eight families of a large nucleotidyltransferase superfamily, whose members were identified based on the proximity of the nucleotide- and substrate-binding domains on the respective genomes. Both HI0073 and HI0074 were annotated "hypothetical" in the original genome sequencing publication. HI0073 was cloned, expressed, and purified, and was shown to form a complex with HI0074 by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under nondenaturing conditions, analytic size exclusion chromatography, and dynamic light scattering. Double- and single-stranded DNA binding assays showed no evidence of DNA binding to HI0074 or to HI0073/HI0074 complex despite the suggestive shape of the putative binding cleft formed by the HI0074 dimer.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Archaea: an archetype for replication initiation studies?

Whereas the process of DNA replication is fundamentally conserved in the three domains of life, the archaeal system is closer to that of eukarya than bacteria. In the time since the complete genome sequences of several members of the archaeal domain became available, there has been a burst of research on archaeal DNA replication. These studies have led to both expected and surprising findings. This review summarizes the search for origins of replication in archaea, and our current knowledge of initiation, the process by which replication origins are recognized, the DNA molecule is unwound and the replicative helicase is loaded onto the DNA in preparation for DNA synthesis. The similarities and differences of the initiation process in archea, bacteria and eukarya are also summarized.

Archaea↗

The Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum MCM protein can form heptameric rings.

Mini-chromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins form a conserved family found in all eukaryotes and are essential for DNA replication. They exist as heteromultimeric complexes containing as many as six different proteins. These complexes are believed to be the replicative helicases, functioning as hexameric rings at replication forks. In most archaea a single MCM protein exists. The protein from Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum (mtMCM) has been reported to assemble into a large complex consistent with a dodecamer. We show that mtMCM can assemble into a heptameric ring. This ring contains a C-terminal helicase domain that can be fit with crystal structures of ring helicases and an N-terminal domain of unknown function. While the structure of the ring is very similar to that of hexameric replicative helicases such as bacteriophage T7 gp4, our results show that such ring structures may not be constrained to have only six subunits.

Amino Acid Motifs↗