Nature发文揭示真核生物DNA复制解旋酶高分辨三维结构

<正>2015年7月29日,清华大学高宁研究组和香港科技大学戴碧瓘研究组共同在Nature以长文形式在线发表研究论文,首次报道真核生物DNA复制起始与延伸过程中DNA解旋酶核心组分MCM2-7复合物的3.8埃高分辨率冷冻电镜结构,并以此为基础对DNA复制起始时MCM2-7复合物的作用机理进行了分析。     

高迁移率族蛋白与真核基因表达调控

高迁移率族蛋白 (high mobility group protein , HMG) 是一系列的染色质相关蛋白,广泛存在于真核生物细胞中,含量丰富,因其在聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳中的高迁移率而得名 . HMG 蛋白家族可分为 HMGB 、 HMGA 和 HMGN 三类亚家族,各亚家族有其特征的结构域,这些结构域介导了 HMG 和 DNA 或染色质相关区域的相互作用 . 现已发现这些蛋白质具有多种重要生物学功能,其中几乎所有 HMG 都可以通过修饰、弯曲或改变染色质 /DNA 的结构,促进各种蛋白质因子形成大分子复合物来调节基因转录 .     

RECQL5基因的结构及其生物学功能的研究进展

RECQL5(Rec Q protein-like 5)是Rec Q DNA解旋酶家族的一个成员,同属于DEXH-box DNA/RNA解旋酶家族。Rec Q家族中的三成员(WRN、BLM、RECQL4)基因突变与人类一些遗传疾病相关,而RECQL5基因至今未发现与人类疾病相关。近年来研究发现,RECQL5对维持DNA的稳定以及在DNA的复制、修复、重组和转录等过程中发挥着非常重要的作用。该文主要对RECQL5基因的结构及其在DNA复制、修复和转录等方面的作用进行综述。     

染色体端粒研究进展

染色体端粒(telomere)是真核生物线性染色体两端的特殊DNA--蛋白质复合体结构,由随机重复序列组成的DNA序列和与之相结合的蛋白质分子构成。端粒DNA无论在DNA顺序、功能及其特殊的复制方式都与其它DNA顺序显著不同。本文将近年来对端粒的DNA结构、与端粒DNA相结合的蛋白质分子和在端粒复制中起重要作用的反转录酶--端粒酶(telomerase)的研究进展以及端粒对于真核生物的重要作用作一综述。     

鼻咽癌组织中基因差异表达及蛋白互作网络分析

目的:利用生物信息学方法从鼻咽癌组织基因芯片中筛选差异表达基因,并分析它们之间的互相作用。方法:利用R语言程序包等相关软件分析鼻咽癌组织和正常组织中差异表达的基因,并对其进行在线GO分析、KEGG富集分析及蛋白互作分析。结果:从25例鼻咽癌组织样本和3例正常组织对照样本中共分析出1103个差异表达基因,包括600个上调基因和503个下调基因(P0.05)。GO分析结果显示,差异表达基因在生物过程中显著富集,包括细胞分裂、DNA复制、G1/S有丝分裂细胞周期的转变和有丝分裂核分裂;在分子功能中,包括与蛋白质结合、与ATP结合、蛋白同二聚化活性、与DNA复制起点结合以及与受损的DNA结合;在细胞组分中,包括细胞质、核质、胞外体和船体中部。KEGG通路分析显示,差异表达基因在细胞周期、DNA复制、癌症途径、p53信号通路、错配修复、小细胞肺癌、卵母细胞减数分裂、氨基糖和核苷酸糖代谢、基部切除修复和人T淋巴细胞病毒(HTLV-Ⅰ)感染等信号通路中显著富集。在蛋白互作分析网络中筛选出10个节点度最高核心基因CDC45、MCM10、MCM3、MCM5、MCM2、CDC7、CDT1、CDC6、SMC2和NCAPG。结论:通过鼻咽癌组织和正常组织的对比筛选,发现多个基因表达发生变化,为相关临床研究提供了重要的信息基础。     

四种DNA复制起始方式的比较

近年来有关DNA复制的机制研究取得一些重要进展,但现有高等生物学相关专业的《生物化学》、《分子生物学》和《基因工程》等教材中DNA复制机理尤其是复制起始相关章节的内容更新不够。结合最新的研究进展,本文综述了四种DNA复制方式:双向复制(原核大肠杆菌和真核生物)、单起点单向(质粒ColE1)、哺乳动物线粒体DNA(取代环)以及最近发现的不需要引物的DNA聚合酶起始的DNA复制方式,丰富了教材相关的内容,强调复制的不同方式是不同的复制起始复合物装备的结果。文末对四种不同的复制方式异同进行了比较,根据复制原点在复制复合物装备中的重要作用,对教材中复制原点的概念进行了进一步的剖析。本文内容将有利于学生跳出课程的框架,将相关的知识点融会贯通,夯实理论基础并在将来能有所应用。     

锌指蛋白与心脏发育

锌指是最大的DNA结合蛋白家族,是最普遍的核酸识别元件.近年来发现锌指参与生物体的基因转录,复制及蛋白质的合成等各种基因调节和控制过程,心脏发育过程中涉及大量锌指基因.综述了心脏发育过程中起重要调控作用的锌指蛋白以及它们的作用机制.     

Mcm10在真核细胞复制起始中的作用

真核生物DNA复制需要精确的调控,复制起始顺利开启至关重要,其中复制解旋酶的组装是复制起始的核心。作为解旋酶的核心组件,微小染色体维持蛋白(minichromosome maintenance proteins,Mcms)在真核细胞DNA复制的起始阶段扮演着重要的角色。目前,对Mcm2-7复合物的功能研究已开展较多,其在复制起始中的作用已有较为全面的解释。近些年研究发现,Mcm10也在DNA复制的起始调控中起重要作用。该文对近些年Mcm10在真核细胞复制起始中的功能研究进行综述,以期对相关领域的研究者有所帮助。     

染色质重塑与肌肉分化

在真核生物中,基因组DNA是以染色质的状态存在和发挥作用的。目前的研究已经鉴定了多种可以调节染色质结构和功能的蛋白质和酶复合物,包括不依赖ATP的染色质修饰酶、依赖于ATP的染色质重塑复合物,以及募集DNA甲基化／去甲基化装置的核小体相关蛋白质复合物等。在骨骼肌分化过程中,MyoD家族和MEF2家族的转录因子起着重要作用。染色质修饰酶通过MyoD和MEF2介导的染色质重塑影响肌肉分化。     

玉米MCM2基因的克隆与功能验证北大核心CSCD

内复制是影响玉米胚乳发育的关键因素。通过降低CDK(周期蛋白依赖性激酶)活性,胚乳细胞可实现有丝分裂向内复制转变,进而推动籽粒快速灌浆。该研究以玉米微染色体维持蛋白ZmMCM基因家族为对象,对其基本生物信息学特征和非生物胁迫条件下的表达特征进行系统分析,并对其中低温胁迫响应明显的ZmMCM2通过转基因和酵母双杂的方法进行功能验证和分子互作分析。结果表明:(1)在玉米基因组中共鉴定到17个MCM家族成员,分布于6条染色体,而且部分基因间存在串联重复基因和片段复制基因;不同物种MCM蛋白的系统进化树可分为6个亚组,玉米、水稻和拟南芥的MCM2蛋白同属于第Ⅳ亚组;启动子序列分析显示,MCM家族基因启动子序列含有许多与激素响应、胁迫应答以及生长发育调节相关的顺式作用元件。(2)逆境胁迫响应分析表明,MCM基因表达受到NaCl和ABA抑制,对PEG、高温以及低温表现出不同程度的应答,尤其对低温具有明显响应。(3)ZmMCM2基因的过表达会对内复制产生一定的抑制作用,进而导致拟南芥植株矮小、莲座叶数减少以及种子体积缩小。(4)亚细胞定位结果显示,ZmMCM2基因定位于细胞核内;cDNA文库筛选和回转验证发现,MCM2与CDC73相互作用。该研究结果为进一步深入了解MCM2蛋白的分子作用机理奠定了基础。     

Over Expression of Minichromosome Maintenance Genes is Clinically Correlated to Cervical Carcinogenesis

Minichromosome Maintenance (MCM) proteins play important roles in cell cycle progression by mediating DNA replication initiation and elongation. Among 10 MCM homologues MCM 2–7 form a hexamer and assemble to the pre-replication complex acting as replication licensing factors. Binding and function of MCM2-7 to pre-replication complex is regulated by MCM10 mediated binding of RECQL4 with MCM2-7. The purpose of this study is to explore the role of MCMs in cervical cancer and their correlation with the clinical parameters of cervical cancer. We have investigated sixty primary cervical cancer tissue samples, eight cervical cancer cell lines and thirty hysterectomised normal cervical tissue. The expression profiling of MCMs was done using semi-quantitative RT-PCR, immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry. MCM2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10 and RECQL4 are significantly over-expressed in cervical cancer. Among these, MCM4, 6 and 10 show increased frequency of over expression along with advancement of tumor stages. MCM4, 5 and 6 also show differential expression in different types of lesion, while MCM2 and MCM10 are over expressed in cervical cancer irrespective of clinico-pathological parameters. Our data indicates the role of MCM4, MCM5, MCM6, MCM10 and RECQL4 in the progression of cervical cancer.     

Multiomics profiling of the expression and prognosis of MCMs in endometrial carcinoma

Minichromosome maintenance (MCM) family members are a group of genes involved in regulating DNA replication and cell division and have been identified as oncogenes in various cancer types. Several experimental studies have suggested that MCMs are dysregulated in endometrial carcinoma (EC). However, the expression pattern, clinical value and functions of different MCMs have yet to be analyzed systematically and comprehensively. We analyzed expression, survival rate, DNA alteration, PPT network, GGI network, functional enrichment cancer hallmarks and drug sensitivity of MCMs in patients with EC based on diverse datasets, including Oncomine, GEPIA, Kaplan–Meier Plotter, HPA, Sangerbox and GSCALite databases. The results indicated that most MCM members were increased in EC and showed a prognostic value in survival analysis, which were considerately well in terms of PFS and OS prognostic prediction. Importantly, functional enrichment, PPI network and GGI network suggested that MCMs interact with proteins related to DNA replication and cell division, which may be the mechanism of MCM promote EC progression. Further data mining illustrated that MCMs have broad DNA hypomethylation levels and high levels of copy number aberrations in tumor tissue samples, which may be the mechanism causing the high expression level of MCMs. Moreover, MCM2 can activate or suppress diverse cancer-related pathways and is implicated in EC drug sensitivity. Taking together, our findings illustrate the expression pattern, clinical value and function of MCMs in EC and imply that MCMs are potential targets for precision therapy and new biomarkers for the prognosis of patients with EC.     

Interaction between RAD51 and MCM complex is essential for RAD51 foci forming in colon cancer HCT116 cells

Colon cancer remains one of the most common digestive system malignancies in the World. This study investigated the possible interaction between RAD51 and minichromosome maintenance proteins (MCMs) in HCT116 cells, which can serve as a model system for forming colon cancer foci. The interaction between RAD51 and MCMs was detected by mass spectrometry. Silenced MCM vectors were transfected into HTC116 cells. The expressions of RAD51 and MCMs were detected using Western blotting. Foci forming and chromatin fraction of RAD51 in HCT116 cells were also analyzed. The results showed that RAD51 directly interacted with MCM2, MCM3, MCM5, and MCM6 in colon cancer HTC116 cells. Suppression of MCM2 or MCM6 by shRNA decreased the chromatin localization of RAD51 in HTC116 cells. Moreover, silenced MCM2 or MCM6 decreased the foci forming of RAD51 in HTC116 cells. Our study suggests that the interaction between MCMs and RAD51 is essential for the chromatin localization and foci forming of RAD51 in HCT116 cell DNA damage recovery, and it may be a theoretical basis for analysis of RAD51 in tumor samples of colon cancer patients.     

Evidence for Different MCM Subcomplexes with Differential Binding to Chromatin inXenopus

MCM proteins are molecular components of the DNA replication licensing system inXenopus.These proteins comprise a conserved family made up of six distinct members which have been found to associate in large protein complexes. We have used a combination of biochemical and cytological methods to study the association of soluble and chromatin-boundXenopusMCM proteins during the cell cycle. In interphase, soluble MCM proteins are found organized in a core salt-resistant subcomplex that includes MCM subunits which are known to have high affinity for histones. The interphasic complex is modified at mitosis and the subunit composition of the resulting mitotic subcomplexes is distinct, indicating that the stability of the MCM complex is under cell cycle control. Moreover, we provide evidence that the binding of MCM proteins to chromatin may occur in sequential steps involving the loading of distinct MCM subunits. Comparative analysis of the chromatin distribution of MCM2, 3, and 4 shows that the binding of MCM4 is distinct from that of MCM2 and 3. Altogether, these data suggest that licensing of chromatin by MCMs occurs in an ordered fashion involving discrete subcomplexes.     

Plant MCM proteins: role in DNA replication and beyond

Mini-chromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins form heterohexameric complex (MCM2–7) to serve as licensing factor for DNA replication to make sure that genomic DNA is replicated completely and accurately once during S phase in a single cell cycle. MCMs were initially identified in yeast for their role in plasmid replication or cell cycle progression. Each of six MCM contains highly conserved sequence called “MCM box”, which contains two ATPase consensus Walker A and Walker B motifs. Studies on MCM proteins showed that (a) the replication origins are licensed by stable binding of MCM2–7 to form pre-RC (pre-replicative complex) during G1 phase of the cell cycle, (b) the activation of MCM proteins by CDKs (cyclin-dependent kinases) and DDKs (Dbf4-dependent kinases) and their helicase activity are important for pre-RC to initiate the DNA replication, and (c) the release of MCMs from chromatin renders the origins “unlicensed”. DNA replication licensing in plant is, in general, less characterized. The MCMs have been reported from Arabidopsis, maize, tobacco, pea and rice, where they are found to be highly expressed in dividing tissues such as shoot apex and root tips, localized in nucleus and cytosol and play important role in DNA replication, megagametophyte and embryo development. The identification of six MCM coding genes from pea and Arabidopsis suggest six distinct classes of MCM protein in higher plant, and the conserved function right across the eukaryotes. This overview of MCMs contains an emphasis on MCMs from plants and the novel role of MCM6 in abiotic stress tolerance.     

Simultaneous measurement of passage through the restriction point and MCM loading in single cells

Passage through the Retinoblastoma protein (RB1)-dependent restriction point and the loading of minichromosome maintenance proteins (MCMs) are two crucial events in G1-phase that help maintain genome integrity. Deregulation of these processes can cause uncontrolled proliferation and cancer development. Both events have been extensively characterized individually, but their relative timing and inter-dependence remain less clear. Here, we describe a novel method to simultaneously measure MCM loading and passage through the restriction point. We exploit that the RB1 protein is anchored in G1-phase but is released when hyper-phosphorylated at the restriction point. After extracting cells with salt and detergent before fixation we can simultaneously measure, by flow cytometry, the loading of MCMs onto chromatin and RB1 binding to determine the order of the two events in individual cells. We have used this method to examine the relative timing of the two events in human cells. Whereas in BJ fibroblasts released from G0-phase MCM loading started mainly after the restriction point, in a significant fraction of exponentially growing BJ and U2OS osteosarcoma cells MCMs were loaded in G1-phase with RB1 anchored, demonstrating that MCM loading can also start before the restriction point. These results were supported by measurements in synchronized U2OS cells.     

Incremental Genetic Perturbations to MCM2-7 Expression and Subcellular Distribution Reveal Exquisite Sensitivity of Mice to DNA Replication Stress

Mutations causing replication stress can lead to genomic instability (GIN). In vitro studies have shown that drastic depletion of the MCM2-7 DNA replication licensing factors, which form the replicative helicase, can cause GIN and cell proliferation defects that are exacerbated under conditions of replication stress. To explore the effects of incrementally attenuated replication licensing in whole animals, we generated and analyzed the phenotypes of mice that were hemizygous for Mcm2, 3, 4, 6, and 7 null alleles, combinations thereof, and also in conjunction with the hypomorphic Mcm4^Chaos3 cancer susceptibility allele. Mcm4^{Chaos3/Chaos3} embryonic fibroblasts have ∼40% reduction in all MCM proteins, coincident with reduced Mcm2-7 mRNA. Further genetic reductions of Mcm2, 6, or 7 in this background caused various phenotypes including synthetic lethality, growth retardation, decreased cellular proliferation, GIN, and early onset cancer. Remarkably, heterozygosity for Mcm3 rescued many of these defects. Consistent with a role in MCM nuclear export possessed by the yeast Mcm3 ortholog, the phenotypic rescues correlated with increased chromatin-bound MCMs, and also higher levels of nuclear MCM2 during S phase. The genetic, molecular and phenotypic data demonstrate that relatively minor quantitative alterations of MCM expression, homeostasis or subcellular distribution can have diverse and serious consequences upon development and confer cancer susceptibility. The results support the notion that the normally high levels of MCMs in cells are needed not only for activating the basal set of replication origins, but also “backup” origins that are recruited in times of replication stress to ensure complete replication of the genome.     

A potential role for mini-chromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins in initiation at the dihydrofolate reductase replication origin.

Mini-chromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins were originally identified in yeast, and homologues have been identified in several other eukaryotic organisms, including mammals. These findings suggest that the mechanisms by which eukaryotic cells initiate and regulate DNA replication have been conserved throughout evolution. However, it is clear that many mammalian origins are much more complex than those of yeast. An example is the Chinese hamster dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) origin, which resides in the spacer between the DHFR and 2BE2121 genes. This origin consists of a broad zone of potential sites scattered throughout the 55-kb spacer, with several subregions (e.g. ori-beta, ori-beta', and ori-gamma) being preferred. We show here that antibodies to human MCMs 2-7 recognize counterparts in extracts prepared from hamster cells; furthermore, co-immunoprecipitation data demonstrate the presence of an MCM2-3-5 subcomplex as observed in other species. To determine whether MCM proteins play a role in initiation and/or elongation in Chinese hamster cells, we have examined in vivo protein-DNA interactions between the MCMs and chromatin in the DHFR locus using a chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) approach. In synchronized cultures, MCM complexes associate preferentially with DNA in the intergenic initiation zone early in S-phase during the time that replication initiates. However, significant amounts of MCMs were also detected over the two genes, in agreement with recent observations that the MCM complex co-purifies with RNA polymerase II. As cells progress through S-phase, the MCMs redistribute throughout the DHFR domain, suggesting a dynamic interaction with DNA. In asynchronous cultures, in which replication forks should be found at any position in the genome, MCM proteins were distributed relatively evenly throughout the DHFR locus. Altogether, these data are consistent with studies in yeast showing that MCM subunits localize to origins during initiation and then migrate outward with the replication forks. This constitutes the first evidence that mammalian MCM complexes perform a critical role during the initiation and elongation phases of replication at the DHFR origin in hamster cells.