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PubMed2001

The molecular roots of compositional inheritance.

Non-covalent compositional assemblies, made of monomeric mutually catalytic molecules, constitute an alternative to alphabet-based informational biopolymers as a mechanism of primordial inheritance. Such assemblies appear implicitly in many "Metabolism First" origin of life scenarios, and more explicitly in the Graded Autocatalysis Replication Domain (GARD) model [Segréet al. (2000). Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. U.S.A.97, 4112-4117]. In the present work, we provide a detailed analysis of the quantitative molecular roots of such behavior. It is demonstrated that the fidelity of reproduction provided by a newly defined heritability measure eta(*)(s), strongly depends on the values of molecular recognition parameters and on assembly size. We find that if the catalytic rate acceleration coefficients are distributed normally, transfer of compositional information becomes impossible, due to frequent "compositional error catastrophes". In contrast, if the catalytic acceleration rates obey a lognormal distribution, as actually predicted by a statistical formalism for molecular repertoires, high reproduction fidelity is obtained. There is also a clear dependence on assembly size N, whereby maximal eta is seen in a narrow range around N approximately 3.5 N(G)/lambda, where N(G)is the size of the primordial molecular repertoire and lambda is a molecular interaction statistical parameter. Such relationships help define the physicochemical conditions that could underlie the early steps in pre-biotic evolution.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

The mutagenic effect of deoxynucleotide substrate imbalances during DNA synthesis with mammalian DNA polymerases.

The frequency of reversion of phi X174 amber mutants to wild-type, resulting from in vitro DNA synthesis catalyzed by eucaryotic DNA polymerase-alpha or -beta, varies over a 10- to 1000-fold range. This variation is dependent on the relative ratio of deoxyribonucleotide substrates present during in vitro DNA synthesis. The effect is observed at two different loci in the genome and with several different DNA polymerases. In addition, the effect is observed using an unfractionated cellular extract. These results provide support for the hypothesis that altered nucleotide pools cause mutations in mammalian cells by decreasing the fidelity of DNA synthesis.

Bacteriophage phi X 174↗
PubMed1990

Clonal variation in gene methylation: c-H-ras and alpha-hCG regions vary independently in human fibroblast lineages.

The stability of DNA methylation has been followed in clonal lineages of human diploid fibroblasts, for the gene regions encoding the c-H-ras proto-oncogene and the alpha subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin (alpha-hCG). Although methylation losses predominated, both de novo gains and losses of cytosine methylation were observed in subclones and sub-subclones, at frequencies which differed between individual clonal lineages, and between the 2 gene regions compared. Methylation of these loci varied independently among clones; e.g., a lineage which showed frequent methylation loss in the c-H-ras gene region remained highly methylated for alpha-hCG, and vice versa. Thus, the fidelity with which DNA methylation is inherited in specific endogenous gene regions must be governed by a clone-specific property affecting local chromatin structure, but apparently not by gene expression per se. Late in the replicative life-span of diploid fibroblasts, as cell replication slowed, restriction patterns for methylation-sensitive enzymes became simpler and more discrete, while those for other enzymes did not change. This is interpreted as a consequence of 'clonal succession', in which the fastest-replicating or longest-lived clones/subclones eventually predominate in a cell population; it could also reflect a decreased rate or a non-random selection of methylation changes in late-passage cells.

Cell Survival↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Mechanism of SOS-induced targeted and untargeted mutagenesis in E. coli.

This paper retraces the evolution of hypotheses concerning mechanisms of SOS induced mutagenesis. Moreover, it reports some recent data which support a new model for the mechanism of targeted and untargeted mutagenesis in E. coli. In summary, the SOS mutator effect, which is responsible for untargeted mutagenesis and perhaps for the misincorporation step in targeted mutagenesis, is believed to involve a fidelity function associated with DNA polymerase III and does not require the umuC gene product. umuC and umuD gene products are probably required specifically for elongation of DNA synthesis past blocking lesions, i.e. to allow mutagenic replication of damaged DNA.

Bacteriophage lambda↗
PubMed1977

2-Aminopurine-induced mutagenesis in T4 bacteriophage: a model relating mutation frequency to 2-aminopurine incorporation in DNA.

We measured the in vivo incorporation of 2-aminopurine into DNA of T4 bacteriophage allelic for gene 43 (DNA polymerase), mutator (L56), 43+, and antimutator (L141). The magnitude of incorporation (mol/mol of Thy) was 1/1500 in L56, 1/1600 in 43+, and 1/8900 in L141. The incorporation ratio L56:43+:L141 in vivo was equal to that mediated by the purified DNA polymerases of these allelic phages in vitro. A model for 2-aminopurine-induced A-T in equilibrium G-C transitions is discussed. The model is used to predict the magnitudes of replication errors (C mispairing with a template 2-aminopurine) and incorporation errors (2-aminopurine mispairing with a template C) per round of replication and to investigate the asymmetry in 2-aminopurine-induced transitions favoring the A-T leads to G-C pathway over G-C leads to A-T. We suggest that the fidelity of L56 and L141 DNA polymerases exemplifies one-step and two-step editing, respectively.

2-Aminopurine↗
PubMed1998

High fidelity of internal strand transfer catalyzed by human immunodeficiency virus reverse transcriptase.

A system to study the fidelity of internal strand transfer events was constructed. A donor RNA, on which reverse transcriptase (RT)-directed DNA synthesis was initiated, shared homology with an acceptor RNA, to which DNAs initiated on the donor could transfer. The homology occurred over a 119-base internal region of the donor which coded for the N-terminal portion of the alpha-lac gene. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to amplify DNA synthesis products. The PCR products were then digested with PvuII and EcoRI and ligated into a vector which had this same region excised. Transformed Escherichia coli were screened for the ability to produce a functional beta-galactosidase protein by blue-white phenotype analysis with white colonies scored as those with errors in alpha-lac. Products synthesized on the donor were used to assess the error rate of human immunodeficiency virus-RT while products transferring to and subsequently extended on the acceptor (transfer products) were used to monitor transfer fidelity. Human immunodeficiency virus-RT made approximately 1 error per 7500 bases copied in the assay. Nucleocapsid protein (NCp), although stimulating strand transfer 3-fold, had no effect on RT fidelity. Transfer products in the absence of NCp had essentially the same amount of errors as donor-directed products while those produced with NCp showed a slight increase in error frequency. Overall, strand transfer events on this template were highly accurate. Since experiments with other templates have suggested that transfer is error prone, the fidelity of strand transfer may be highly sequence dependent.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed2003

Optimal alphabets for an RNA world.

Experiments have shown that the canonical AUCG genetic alphabet is not the only possible nucleotide alphabet. In this work we address the question 'is the canonical alphabet optimal?' We make the assumption that the genetic alphabet was determined in the RNA world. Computational tools are used to infer the RNA secondary structure (shape) from a given RNA sequence, and statistics from RNA shapes are gathered with respect to alphabet size. Then, simulations based upon the replication and selection of fixed-sized RNA populations are used to investigate the effect of alternative alphabets upon RNA's ability to step through a fitness landscape. These results show that for a low copy fidelity the canonical alphabet is fitter than two-, six- and eight-letter alphabets. In higher copy-fidelity experiments, six-letter alphabets outperform the four-letter alphabets, suggesting that the canonical alphabet is indeed a relic of the RNA world.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Defective mismatch binding and a mutator phenotype in cells tolerant to DNA damage.

Acquired resistance to alkylating agents such as N-methyl-N-nitrosourea or N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine results from the ability to tolerate the potentially cytotoxic methylated base O6-methylguanine (m6-G) in DNA. In the absence of repair by demethylation in situ, m6-G is probably lethal through its inappropriate processing by the cell. DNA mismatch correction is an attractive candidate for the processing function because although it is replicated, m6-G has no perfect complementary base. Thus, m6-G in DNA might provoke abortive mismatch repair and tolerance could subsequently arise through loss of a mismatch repair pathway. Mismatch correction helps maintain genomic fidelity by removing misincorporated bases and deaminated 5-methylcytosine from DNA, and its loss by mutation confers a mutator phenotype on Escherichia coli. Here we describe human and hamster cell lines that are tolerant to N-methyl-N-nitrosourea and are defective in a DNA mismatch binding activity. The loss of this activity, which acts on G.T mispairs, confers a mutator phenotype.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Amplification of the full-length hepatitis A virus genome by long reverse transcription-PCR and transcription of infectious RNA directly from the amplicon.

The genetic study of RNA viruses is greatly facilitated by the availability of infectious cDNA clones. However, their construction has often been difficult. While exploring ways to simplify the construction of infectious clones, we have successfully modified and applied the newly described technique of "long PCR" to the synthesis of a full-length DNA amplicon from the RNA of a cytopathogenic mutant (HM 175/24a) of the hepatitis A virus (HAV). Primers were synthesized to match the two extremities of the HAV genome. The antisense primer, homologous to the 3' end, was used in both the reverse transcription (RT) and the PCR steps. With these primers we reproducibly obtained a full-length amplicon of approximately 7.5 kb. Further, since we engineered a T7 promoter in the sense primer, RNA could be transcribed directly from the amplicon with T7 RNA polymerase. Following transfection of cultured fetal rhesus kidney cells with the transcription mixture containing both the HAV cDNA and the transcribed RNA, replicating HAV was detected by immunofluorescence microscopy and, following passage to other cell cultures, by focus formation. The recovered virus displayed the cytopathic effect and large plaque phenotype typical of the original virus; this result highlights the fidelity of the modified long reverse transcription-PCR procedure and demonstrates the potential of this method for providing cDNAs of viral genomes and simplifying the construction of infectious clones.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

An electrical network model of intracranial arteriovenous malformations: analysis of variations in hemodynamic and biophysical parameters.

The propensity of intracranial arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) to hemorrhage is correlated significantly with their hemodynamic features. Biomathematical models offer a theoretical approach to analyse complex AVM hemodynamics, which otherwise are difficult to quantify, particularly within or in close proximity to the nidus. Our purpose was to investigate a newly developed biomathematical AVM model based on electrical network analysis in which morphological, biophysical, and hemodynamic characteristics of intracranial AVMs were replicated accurately. Several factors implemented into the model were altered systematically to study the effects of a possible wide range of normal variations in AVM hemodynamic and biophysical parameters on the behavior of this model and its fidelity to physiological reality. The model represented a complex, noncompartmentalized AVM with four arterial feeders, two draining veins, and a nidus consisting of 28 interconnected plexiform and fistulous components. Various clinically-determined experimentally-observed, or hypothetically-assumed values for the nidus vessel radii (plexiform: 0.01 cm-0.1 cm; fistulous: 0.1 cm-0.2 cm), mean systemic arterial pressure (71 mm Hg-125 mm Hg), mean arterial feeder pressures (21 mm Hg-80 mm Hg), mean draining vein pressures (5 mm Hg-23 mm Hg), wall thickness of nidus vessels (20 microns-70 microns), and elastic modulus of nidus vessels (1 x 10(4) dyn/cm2 to 1 x 10(5) dyn/cm2) were used as normal or realistic ranges of parameters implemented in the model. Using an electrical analogy of Ohm's law, flow was determined based on Poiseuille's law given the aforementioned pressures and resistance of each nidus vessel. Circuit analysis of the AVM vasculature based on the conservation of flow and voltage revealed the flow rate through each vessel in the AVM network. An expression for the risk of AVM nidus rupture was derived based on the functional distribution of the critical radii of component vessels. The two characteristics which were used to judge the fidelity of the theoretical performance of the AVM model against the physiological one of human AVMs were total volumetric flow through the AVM (< or = 900 ml/min), and its risk of rupture (< 100%). Applying these criteria, a series of 216 (out of 260) AVM models using different combinations of these hemodynamic and biophysical parameters resulted in a physiologically-realistic conduct of the model (yielding a total flow through the AVM model varying from 449.9 ml/min to 888.6 ml/min, and a maximum risk of rupture varying from 26.4 to 99.9%). The described novel biomathematical model characterizes the transnidal and intranidal hemodynamics of an intracranial AVM more accurately than previously possible. A wide range of hemodynamic and biophysical parameters can be implemented in this AVM model to result in simulation of human AVMs with differing characteristics (e.g. low-flow and high-flow AVMs). This experimental model should serve as a useful research tool for further theoretical investigations of a variety of intracranial AVMs and their hemodynamic sequelae.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1980

On the fidelity of DNA synthesis:effects of steroids and intercalating agents.

Studies on the fidelity of DNA synthesis in vitro were extended to pharmacological agents that interact non-covalently to DNA. Several steroids, intercalators and cancer chemotherapeutic agents increased the relative frequency of incorrect deoxynucleotide incorporation in the fidelity assay. The relationship between non-covalent interactions with DNA and the decreased fidelity of DNA synthesis in vitro is considered.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed2003

DNA polymerase template interactions probed by degenerate isosteric nucleobase analogs.

The development of novel artificial nucleobases and detailed X-ray crystal structures for primer/template/DNA polymerase complexes provide opportunities to assess DNA-protein interactions that dictate specificity. Recent results have shown that base pair shape recognition in the context of DNA polymerase must be considered a significant component. The isosteric azole carboxamide nucleobases (compounds 1-5; ) differ only in the number and placement of nitrogen atoms within a common shape and therefore present unique electronic distributions that are shown to dictate the selectivity of template-directed nucleotide incorporation by DNA polymerases. The results demonstrate how nucleoside triphosphate substrate selection by DNA polymerase is a complex phenomenon involving electrostatic interactions in addition to hydrogen bonding and shape recognition. These azole nucleobase analogs offer unique molecular tools for probing nonbonded interactions dictating substrate selection and fidelity of DNA polymerases.

Azoles↗
PubMed2000

Hydrophobic interactions in the hinge domain of DNA polymerase beta are important but not sufficient for maintaining fidelity of DNA synthesis.

We previously described a general mutator form of mammalian DNA polymerase beta containing a cysteine substitution for tyrosine 265. Residue 265 localizes to a hydrophobic hinge region predicted to mediate a polymerase conformational change that may aid in nucleotide selectivity. In this study we tested the hypothesis that van der Waals and hydrophobic contacts between Y265 and neighboring residues are important for DNA synthesis fidelity and catalysis, by altering interactions in the hinge domain via substitution at position 265. Consistent with the importance of hydrophobic interactions, we found that phenylalanine, leucine, and tryptophan substitutions did not alter significantly the steady-state catalytic efficiency of DNA synthesis, relative to wild type, while the polar serine substitution decreased catalytic efficiency 6-fold. However, we found that all substitutions other than phenylalanine increased the error frequency, relative to wild type, in the order serine > tryptophan = leucine. Therefore, maintenance of the hydrophobicity of residue 265 was not sufficient for maintaining fidelity of DNA synthesis. We conclude that while hydrophobic interactions in the hinge domain are important for fidelity, additional factors such as electrostatic and van der Waals interactions contributed by the tyrosine 265 aromatic ring are required to retain wild-type fidelity.

Amino Acid Substitution↗
PubMed1992

An Escherichia coli dnaE mutation with suppressor activity toward mutator mutD5.

The Escherichia coli mutator mutD5 is a conditional mutator whose strength is moderate when the strain is growing in minimal medium but very strong when it is growing in rich medium. The primary defect of this strain resides in the dnaQ gene, which encodes the epsilon (exonucleolytic proofreading) subunit of the DNA polymerase III holoenzyme. In one of our mutD5 strains we discovered a mutation that suppressed the mutability of mutD5. Interestingly, the level of suppression was strong in minimal medium but weak in rich medium. The mutation was localized to the dnaE gene, which encodes the alpha (polymerase) subunit of the DNA polymerase III holoenzyme. This mutation, termed dnaE910, also conferred improved growth of the mutD5 strain and caused increased temperature sensitivity in both wild-type and dnaQ49 backgrounds. The reduction in mutator strength by dnaE910 was also observed when this allele was placed in a mutL, a mutT, or a dnaQ49 background. The results suggest that dnaE910 encodes an antimutator DNA polymerase whose effect might be mediated by improved insertion fidelity or by increased proofreading via its effect on the exonuclease activity.

Chromosome Mapping↗
PubMed1997

Nucleotide substitutions within U5 are critical for efficient reverse transcription of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 with a primer binding site complementary to tRNA(His).

Sequence analysis of integrated proviruses of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) which utilize tRNA(His) to initiate reverse transcription [virus derived from pHXB2(His-AC-TGT)] revealed five additional nucleotide substitutions in the U5 and primer binding site (PBS) regions (ATGAC for CCTGT at nucleotides 152, 160, 174, 181, and 200, respectively) (Z. Zhang et al., Virology 226:306-317, 1996). We constructed a mutant proviral genome [pHXB2(His-AC-GAC)] which contained the ATGAC substitutions to test if they represented a necessary adaptation by the virus for use of tRNA(His) to initiate reverse transcription. Viruses from pHXB2(His-AC-TGT) and pHXB2(His-AC-GAC) were infectious. Sequence analysis of the U5 and PBS regions of integrated provirus from a cell culture infected with virus derived from pHXB2(His-AC-TGT) revealed a G-to-A change in CCTGT at nucleotide 181 after limited in vitro culture, suggesting that this nucleotide change represented an adaptation by the virus to efficiently utilize tRNA(His) to initiate reverse transcription. To further address this possibility, we used a specific mutation in reverse transcriptase (RT), a methionine-to-valine change in the highly conserved YMDD amino acid motif of HIV-1 RT (M184V), which has been shown in previous studies to influence the fidelity and activity of the enzyme. The M184V RT mutation was cloned into pHXB2(His-AC-GAC) and pHXB2(His-AC-TGT). Virus derived from pHXB2(His-AC-GAC) with M184V RT had slightly delayed replication compared to the virus from pHXB2(His-AC-GAC) with wild-type RT; in contrast, virus from pHXB2(His-AC-TGT) with M184V RT was severely compromised in replication. Using an endogenous reverse transcription-PCR assay to analyze the reverse transcription of viruses obtained after transfection, we found that viruses derived from pHXB2(His-AC-GAC) with the wildtype RT were slightly faster in the initiation of reverse transcription than viruses with M184V RT. The initiation of reverse transcription was delayed in viruses derived from pHXB2(His-AC-TGT) with wild-type RT and M184V RT compared to viruses derived from pHXB2(His-AC-GAC). Finally, sequence analysis of U5 and PBS regions of proviruses from pHXB2(His-AC-GAC) with wild-type RT revealed considerably more nucleotide substitutions than in viruses derived from pHXB2(His-AC-GAC) containing the M184V mutation in RT after extended in vitro culture. Our studies point to a role for these additional nucleotide substitutions in U5 as an adaptation by the virus to utilize an alternative tRNA to initiate reverse transcription.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Tying the loose ends together in DNA double strand break repair with 53BP1.

To maintain genomic stability and ensure the fidelity of chromosomal transmission, cells respond to various forms of genotoxic stress, including DNA double-stranded breaks (DSBs), through the activation of DNA damage response signaling networks. In response to DSBs as induced by ionizing radiation (IR), during DNA replication, or through immunoglobulin heavy chain (IgH) rearrangements in B cells of lymphoid origin, the phosphatidyl inositol-like kinase (PIK) kinases ATM (mutated in ataxia telangiectasia), ATR (ATM and Rad3-related kinase), and the DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) activate signaling pathways that lead to DSB repair. DSBs are repaired by either of two major, non-mutually exclusive pathways: homologous recombination (HR) that utilizes an undamaged sister chromatid template (or homologous chromosome) and non- homologous end joining (NHEJ), an error prone mechanism that processes and joins broken DNA ends through the coordinated effort of a small set of ubiquitous factors (DNA-PKcs, Ku70, Ku80, artemis, Xrcc4/DNA lig IV, and XLF/Cernunnos). The PIK kinases phosphorylate a variety of effector substrates that propagate the DNA damage signal, ultimately resulting in various biological outputs that influence cell cycle arrest, transcription, DNA repair, and apoptosis. A variety of data has revealed a critical role for p53-binding protein 1 (53BP1) in the cellular response to DSBs including various aspects of p53 function. Importantly, 53BP1 plays a major role in suppressing translocations, particularly in B and T cells. This report will review past experiments and current knowledge regarding the role of 53BP1 in the DNA damage response.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2002

DNA polymerase theta purified from human cells is a high-fidelity enzyme.

With the aim to identify unconventional DNA polymerases from human cells, we have set up a special assay to fractionate HeLa extracts based on the ability (i) to bypass DNA lesions, (ii) to be resistant to aphidicolin and an inhibitory antibody against pol alpha and (iii) to be non-responsive to proliferating cell nuclear antigen. After eight different chromatographic steps, an aphidicolin-resistant DNA polymerase activity was obtained that was able to utilize either undamaged or abasic sites-containing DNA with the same efficiency. Biochemical characterization and immunoblot analysis allowed its identification as the human homologue of DNA polymerase theta (hpol theta), whose cDNA has been cloned by homology with the mus308 gene of Drosophila melanogaster but still awaited detailed biochemical characterization. The purified hpol theta was devoid of detectable helicase activity, possessed a 3'-->5' exonuclease activity and showed biochemical properties clearly distinct from any other eukaryotic DNA polymerase known so far. Misincorporation and fidelity assays showed that: (i) hpol theta was able to catalyze efficiently DNA synthesis past an abasic site; and (ii) hpol theta showed high fidelity. Our findings are discussed in light of the proposed physiological role of hpol theta.

DNA↗
PubMed2000

A single highly mutable catalytic site amino acid is critical for DNA polymerase fidelity.

DNA polymerases contain active sites that are structurally superimposable and conserved in amino acid sequence. To probe the biochemical and structure-function relationship of DNA polymerases, a large library (200,000 members) of mutant Thermus aquaticus DNA polymerase I (Taq pol I) was created containing random substitutions within a portion of the dNTP binding site (Motif A; amino acids 605-617), and a fraction of all selected active Taq pol I (291 out of 8000) was tested for base pairing fidelity; seven unique mutants that efficiently misincorporate bases and/or extend mismatched bases were identified and sequenced. These mutants all contain substitutions of one specific amino acid, Ile-614, which forms part of the hydrophobic pocket that binds the base and ribose portions of the incoming nucleotide. Mutant Taq pol Is containing hydrophilic substitution I614K exhibit 10-fold lower base misincorporation fidelity, as well as a high propensity to extend mispairs. In addition, these low fidelity mutants containing hydrophilic substitution for Ile-614 can bypass damaged templates that include an abasic site and vinyl chloride adduct ethenoA. During polymerase chain reaction, Taq pol I mutant I614K exhibits an error rate that is >20-fold higher relative to the wild-type enzyme and efficiently catalyzes both transition and transversion errors. These studies have generated polymerase chain reaction-proficient mutant polymerases containing substitutions within the active site that confers low base pairing fidelity and a high error rate. Considering the structural and sequence conservation of Motif A, it is likely that a similar substitution will yield active low fidelity DNA polymerases that are mutagenic.

Amino Acid Motifs↗