Sequence-specific artificial photo-induced endonucleases based on triple helix-forming oligonucleotides

Homopyrimidine oligonucleotides bind to homopurine-homopyrimidine sequences of duplex DNA forming a local triple helix. This binding can be demonstrated either directly by a footprinting technique, gel assays, or indirectly by inducing irreversible reactions in the target sequence, such as photocrosslinking or cleavage. Binding occurs in the major groove with the homopyrimidine oligonucleotide orientated parallel to the homopurine strand. Thymine and protonated cytosine in the oligonucleotide form Hoogsteen-type hydrogen bonds with A.T and G.C Watson-Crick base pairs, respectively. Here we report that an 11-residue homopyrimidine oligonucleotide covalently attached to an ellipticine derivative by its 3' phosphate photo-induces cleavage of the two strands of a target homopurine--homopyrimidine sequence. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of a sequence-specific artificial photoendonuclease. In addition we show that a strong binding site for a free ellipticine derivative is induced at the junction between the triplex and duplex structures on the 5' side of the bound oligonucleotide. On irradiation, cleavage is observed on both strands of DNA. This opens new possibilities for inducing irreversible reactions on DNA at specific sites by the synergistic action of a triple helix-forming oligonucleotide and an intercalating agent.     

Formation of a stable triplex from a single DNA strand

Homopurine.homopyrimidine DNA sequences have been shown to form triple-stranded structures readily under appropriate conditions. Interest in DNA triplexes arises from potential applications of intermolecular triplexes as antisense inhibitors of gene expression and from the possibility that intramolecular triplexes may have a role in gene expression and recombination. We recently presented NMR evidence for triplex formation from the DNA oligonucleotides d(GA)4 and d(TC)4, which showed unambiguously that the second pyrimidine strand is Hoogsteen base paired and the cytosines are protonated at N3 as required. To obtain a more well defined triplex, and to provide a model for in vivo triplex structures, we have designed and synthesized a 28-base DNA oligomer with a sequence that could potentially fold to form a triplex containing both T.A.T and C+.G.C triplets. Our NMR results indicate that the conformation at pH 5.5 is an intramolecular triplex and that a significant amount of triplex remains even at pH 8.0.     

Chemical probing of homopurine-homopyrimidine mirror repeats in supercoiled DNA

We have recently shown that under superhelical stress and/or acid pH the homopurine-homopyrimidine tracts conforming to the mirror symmetry (H palindromes) form a novel DNA structure, the H form. According to our model, the H form includes (1) a triplex formed by half of the purine strand and by the homopyrimidine hairpin and (2) the unstructured other half of the purine strand. We used four specially designed sequences to demonstrate that, in accordance with our model, the mirror symmetry is essential for facile formation of the H form detected by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Here we report that, under conditions favouring the H-form extrusion, guanines of the 3' half of the purine strand are protected against alkylation by dimethylsulphate, whereas adenines of the 5' half of the purine strand react with diethyl pyrocarbonate. These data indicate that the 3' half of the homopurine strand is within the triplex whereas the 5' half is unstructured, in full agreement with our model.     

Local destabilisation of a DNA double helix by a T--T wobble pair.

Nuclear magnetic resonance is a technique which permits direct observation of the Waton--Click hydrogen-bonded ring imino protons (guanine N1H and thymine N3H). As the formation and disruption of hydrogen bonds of double-helical RNA and DNA structures are key events during various biological processes, NMR thus provides a useful tool for studying the fluctuational mobility of the individual base pairs. Indeed, several NMR studies of oligo- and polynucleotides have been carried out to probe the structure and dynamics of nucleic acids in solution (for a review see ref. 1). The present study constitutes the first part of our attempt to assess the influence of non-complementary base pairs on the stability of nucleic acid double helices. We report the spectral assignment and temperature-dependent NMR profiles of the hydrogen-bonded imino protons of the two DNA fragments shown in Fig. 1. The assignment is based solely on experimental grounds using the principle of chemical modification. It will be demonstrated that the introduction of a non-complementary (wobble) base pair in a DNA duplex introduces an extra melting site in addition to the sequential melting which starts with the terminal base pairs in the double helix structure.     

PGC7 binds histone H3K9me2 to protect against conversion of 5mC to 5hmC in early embryos

The modification of DNA by 5-methylcytosine (5mC) has essential roles in cell differentiation and development through epigenetic gene regulation. 5mC can be converted to another modified base, 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC), by the tet methylcytosine dioxygenase (Tet) family of enzymes. Notably, the balance between 5hmC and 5mC in the genome is linked with cell-differentiation processes such as pluripotency and lineage commitment. We have previously reported that the maternal factor PGC7 (also known as Dppa3, Stella) is required for the maintenance of DNA methylation in early embryogenesis, and protects 5mC from conversion to 5hmC in the maternal genome. Here we show that PGC7 protects 5mC from Tet3-mediated conversion to 5hmC by binding to maternal chromatin containing dimethylated histone H3 lysine 9 (H3K9me2) in mice. In addition, imprinted loci that are marked with H3K9me2 in mature sperm are protected by PGC7 binding in early embryogenesis. This type of regulatory mechanism could be involved in DNA modifications in somatic cells as well as in early embryos.     

Expression of a bacterial modification methylase gene in yeast

Methylation of specific cytosines in the DNA is generally believed to play some role in the regulation of gene expression in eukaryotes. However, some eukaryotes, such as Drosophila and yeast (S. Hattman, personal communication) seem not to contain 5-methylcytosine in their DNA. It would be interesting to test, how gene expression in such organisms would respond to the methylation of specific cytosines in the genome. As a first step towards this goal, we have introduced the gene encoding the Bacillus sphaericus R modification methylase, which methylates the internal cytosine within the recognition sequence 5'-GGCC, into yeast cells. Southern-type hybridization to DNAs isolated from the transformed yeast clones revealed that the yeast plasmid carrying the prokaryotic methylase gene, as well as the two chromosomal genes tested (his3 and leu2) were methylated, whereas the bulk of the yeast DNA remained largely unmethylated. This indicates that the Bacillus sphaericus modification methylase was expressed in yeast but it modified only certain parts of the yeast DNA.     

A histone H3 methyltransferase controls DNA methylation in Neurospora crassa.

DNA methylation is involved in epigenetic processes such as X-chromosome inactivation, imprinting and silencing of transposons. We have demonstrated previously that dim-2 encodes a DNA methyltransferase that is responsible for all known cytosine methylation in Neurospora crassa. Here we report that another Neurospora gene, dim-5, is required for DNA methylation, as well as for normal growth and full fertility. We mapped dim-5 and identified it by transformation with a candidate gene. The mutant has a nonsense mutation in a SET domain of a gene related to histone methyltransferases that are involved in heterochromatin formation in other organisms. Transformation of a wild-type strain with a segment of dim-5 reactivated a silenced hph gene, apparently by 'quelling' of dim-5. We demonstrate that recombinant DIM-5 protein specifically methylates histone H3 and that replacement of lysine 9 in histone H3 with either a leucine or an arginine phenocopies the dim-5 mutation. We conclude that DNA methylation depends on histone methylation.     

Recognition of hemi-methylated DNA by the SRA protein UHRF1 by a base-flipping mechanism

DNA methylation of CpG dinucleotides is an important epigenetic modification of mammalian genomes and is essential for the regulation of chromatin structure, of gene expression and of genome stability. Differences in DNA methylation patterns underlie a wide range of biological processes, such as genomic imprinting, inactivation of the X chromosome, embryogenesis, and carcinogenesis. Inheritance of the epigenetic methylation pattern is mediated by the enzyme DNA methyltransferase 1 (Dnmt1), which methylates newly synthesized CpG sequences during DNA replication, depending on the methylation status of the template strands. The protein UHRF1 (also known as Np95 and ICBP90) recognizes hemi-methylation sites via a SET and RING-associated (SRA) domain and directs Dnmt1 to these sites. Here we report the crystal structures of the SRA domain in free and hemi-methylated DNA-bound states. The SRA domain folds into a globular structure with a basic concave surface formed by highly conserved residues. Binding of DNA to the concave surface causes a loop and an amino-terminal tail of the SRA domain to fold into DNA interfaces at the major and minor grooves of the methylation site. In contrast to fully methylated CpG sites recognized by the methyl-CpG-binding domain, the methylcytosine base at the hemi-methylated site is flipped out of the DNA helix in the SRA-DNA complex and fits tightly into a protein pocket on the concave surface. The complex structure suggests that the successive flip out of the pre-existing methylated cytosine and the target cytosine to be methylated is associated with the coordinated transfer of the hemi-methylated CpG site from UHRF1 to Dnmt1.     

水-有机两相体系长链烯烃氢甲酰化反应研究--阳离子表面活性剂结构的影响

合成了四种季铵盐型阳离子表面活性剂C22H45N（CH3）2C2H5Br(二十二烷基乙基二甲基溴化铵)，C22H45N(CH3)2C4H9Br(二十二烷基丁基二甲基溴化铵)，C22H45N(CH3)2C8H17Br(二十二烷基辛基二甲基溴化铵)，C22H45N(CH3)2C12H25Br(二十二烷基十二烷基二甲基溴化铵)，并考察了其对Rh-TPPTS[TPPTS：P(m—C6H4SO3Na)3]催化的水—有机两相长链烯烃氢甲酰化反应性能的影响．研究结果表明，在该体系中添加含有疏水长链的阳离子表面活性剂后，反应性能得到明显改善．     

C6H5X·Y-（X，Y=F，Cl，Br，I）中氢键和卤键的理论研究

通过MP2／aug—cc—pVDZ理论方法计算研究了C6H5X·Y-（x,Y=F,Cl,Br,I）体系中的氢键和卤键．计算表明所有的卤代苯都能与卤素离子形成氢键相互作用,氢键强度顺序为：C6H,F〈C6H5C1〈C6H5Br〈C6H5I;F-〉Cl-〉Br-〉I-．C6H5Cl,C6H5Br,C6H5I能与卤素离子形成卤键相互作用,卤键强度顺序为：C6H5Cl〈C6H5Br〈C6H5I;F-〉Cl-〉Br-〉I-．分析结果可以发现体系中的卤键强度差异要大于氢键,说明在此体系中卤键具有比氢键更大的选择性．     

Evidence for Base Substitutions and Repair of DNA Mismatch Damage Induced by Low Energy N^＋ Ion Beam Implantation in E. coli

Ever since the low energy N^ ion beam has been accepted, the mutations of ionizing radia-tion are attributable mainly to avoidance of DNA damages repair. Evidences based on in vivo proof results are limited. Using the E. coli wild type and mutator strains, the mutant frequencies suggest that base substitutions in rpoB gene are induced by the N^ implantation. A highly con-served region is selected to get the direct evidence for base substitutions by sequence of the high fi-delity PCR amplification products in mutants. Most of the mutants (90.9%, 40/44) have at least one base substitution in the amplification region. The evidences for CG to TA (55 %, 22/40), AT to GC (20%, 8/40) and TA to CG (5%, 2/40) transitions are identified. The transversions are AT to TA ( 15 %, 6/40) and GC to CG (5 %, 2/40). It is suggested that DNA cytosine methylase might play an important role in mismatch repair of DNA damage induced by N^ implantation by analysis of the mutant frequencies of mutator strains.     

C6H5X·Y-（X,Y=F,Cl,Br,I）中氢键和卤键的理论研究

通过MP2/aug-cc-pVDZ理论方法计算研究了C6H5X.Y-(X,Y=F,Cl,Br,I)体系中的氢键和卤键.计算表明所有的卤代苯都能与卤素离子形成氢键相互作用,氢键强度顺序为:C6H5FCl->Br->I-.C6H5Cl,C6H5Br,C6H5I能与卤素离子形成卤键相互作用,卤键强度顺序为:C6H5ClCl->Br->I-.分析结果可以发现体系中的卤键强度差异要大于氢键,说明在此体系中卤键具有比氢键更大的选择性.     

Two levels of protection for the B cell genome during somatic hypermutation

Somatic hypermutation introduces point mutations into immunoglobulin genes in germinal centre B cells during an immune response. The reaction is initiated by cytosine deamination by the activation-induced deaminase (AID) and completed by error-prone processing of the resulting uracils by mismatch and base excision repair factors. Somatic hypermutation represents a threat to genome integrity and it is not known how the B cell genome is protected from the mutagenic effects of somatic hypermutation nor how often these protective mechanisms fail. Here we show, by extensive sequencing of murine B cell genes, that the genome is protected by two distinct mechanisms: selective targeting of AID and gene-specific, high-fidelity repair of AID-generated uracils. Numerous genes linked to B cell tumorigenesis, including Myc, Pim1, Pax5, Ocab (also called Pou2af1), H2afx, Rhoh and Ebf1, are deaminated by AID but escape acquisition of most mutations through the combined action of mismatch and base excision repair. However, approximately 25% of expressed genes analysed were not fully protected by either mechanism and accumulated mutations in germinal centre B cells. Our results demonstrate that AID acts broadly on the genome, with the ultimate distribution of mutations determined by a balance between high-fidelity and error-prone DNA repair.     

PNA（T）.DNA（AT） triplexes with Hoogsteen base pairing are more favorable

Peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) are nucleic acid analogs with the deoxyribose phosphate backbone replaced by pseudo-peplide polymers to which the nucleobases are linked. The achiral, uncharged and rather flexible properties of the peplide backbone permit peptide nucleic acids more potential than oligonucleolides in application to antisence and antigenic reagents. The process of PNA binding to DNA duplex and forming triplex is the first step of PNA interacting with PNA. But there are no PNA.2DNA triplex crystal data up to date and little has been reported on the structure features and the force of the PNA.2DNA triplex. In this work, PNA(T).DNA(AT) triplexes are successfully built and the structures and forces to stabilize the triplex after optimizations and molecule dynamics are systematically examined, which are expected to aid in the application of PNAs as anticerise and antigene agents.     

Evidence from 18O feeding studies for hydroxyl group donor in the reaction catalyzed by cytidylate hydroxymethylase MilA

5-Hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) was present in T-even phage and mammalian DNA. 5hmC in phage is formed by hydroxymethylation of the cytosine base in deoxycytidylate (dCMP) by deoxycytidylate hydroxymethylase (CH), which uses the solvent water as the hydroxyl group donor. By contrast, 5hmC is formed in mammal zygotes by the oxidation of 5-methylcytosine (5mC). 5hmC was also present in a nucleoside antibiotic mildiomycin and its formation is governed by a cytidylate hydroxymethylase MilA. However, the catalytic mechanism remains unknown. In the present study, we purified His-tagged MilA and fed its in vitro reaction with H218O. The LC-MS analysis of the product revealed that 18O was incorporated into the hydroxymethylated CMP (HmCMP), and the secondary MS result of 18O-labeled HmCMP indicated that 18O was incorporated into the cytosine of HmCMP. The results demonstrate that MilA uses solvent water as the hydroxyl group donor like CH. Moreover, Thr102 of MilA was predicted as potential critical amino acid anchoring one molecule of water for hydroxylation. Finally, organizational context comparison in microbial genomes reveals that six homologous ORFs originally annotated as putative thymidylate synthase (TS) are more likely to be CMP hydroxymethylase.     

三-(五氟苯基)咔咯锰配合物与DNA碱基的相互作用理论研究

采用DFT/B3LYP方法对三-(五氟苯基)咔咯锰配合物(TPFC)Mn(Ⅲ)与DNA的4种碱基以及碱基对的轴向配位性质进行了理论研究.计算结果表明:以相同碱基的不同原子作为配位原子时,与(TPFC)Mn(Ⅲ)的配位能力不同,其中氧原子的配位能力强;(TPFC)Mn(Ⅲ)主要以插入的方式与A=T和C≡G碱基对结合;无论...     

Chi-sequence recognition and DNA translocation by single RecBCD helicase/nuclease molecules

Major pathways of recombinational DNA repair in Escherichia coli require the RecBCD protein--a heterotrimeric, ATP-driven, DNA translocating motor enzyme. RecBCD combines a highly processive and exceptionally fast helicase (DNA-unwinding) activity with a strand-specific nuclease (DNA-cleaving) activity (refs 1, 2 and references therein). Recognition of the DNA sequence 'chi' (5'-GCTGGTGG-3') switches the polarity of DNA cleavage and stimulates recombination at nearby sequences in vivo. Here we attach microscopic polystyrene beads to biotin-tagged RecD protein subunits and use tethered-particle light microscopy to observe translocation of single RecBCD molecules (with a precision of up to approximately 30 nm at 2 Hz) and to examine the mechanism by which chi modifies enzyme activity. Observed translocation is unidirectional, with each molecule moving at a constant velocity corresponding to the population-average DNA unwinding rate. These observations place strong constraints on possible movement mechanisms. Bead release at chi is negligible, showing that the activity modification at chi does not require ejection of the RecD subunit from the enzyme as previously proposed; modification may occur through an unusual, pure conformational switch mechanism.