Kinetic basis of spontaneous mutation. Misinsertion frequencies, proofreading specificities and cost of proofreading by DNA polymerases of Escherichia coli

Reversibility of nucleotide incorporation by Escherichia coli RNA polymerase, and its effect on fidelity

During transcription, Escherichia coli RNA polymerase is capable of removing the nucleotide that it has just added to a growing RNA chain, and this removal depends on the presence of small concentrations of pyrophosphate. Chemically, the removal reaction is simply the reversal of the incorporation reaction, and we have observed the generation of free triphosphate as a result. After the removal the enzyme can continue synthesis. To test whether this reaction can provide an error correction mechanism, misincorporation rates were measured at a single position in an RNA transcript by withholding the correct nucleotide for that position, measuring the amount of readthrough transcript, and analyzing the readthrough transcripts with nearest-neighbor analysis and enzymatic RNA sequencing. The removal of pyrophosphate increases the rate of misincorporation. We present a theory that explains how reversible incorporation can increase the available discrimination free energy between correct and incorrect nucleotides and therefore may increase the fidelity of transcription. The formation of a covalent phosphodiester bond allows discrimination on the basis of helical structure as well as base-pairing. We propose that the important discrimination step is the translocation of the enzyme from one site on the DNA template to the next, and that reversible incorporation is necessary in order to take full advantage of the maximum discrimination free energy.

Deleterious mutations and the evolution of sexual reproduction

The origin and maintenance of sexual reproduction continues to be an important problem in evolutionary biology. If the deleterious mutation rate per genome per generation is greater than 1, then the greater efficiency of selection against these mutations in sexual populations may be responsible for the evolution of sex and related phenomena. In modern human populations detrimental mutations with small individual effects are probably accumulating faster than they are being eliminated by selection.

Cocrystal structure of an editing complex of Klenow fragment with DNA

High-resolution crystal structures of editing complexes of both duplex and single-stranded DNA bound to Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I large fragment (Klenow fragment) show four nucleotides of single-stranded DNA bound to the 3'-5' exonuclease active site and extending toward the polymerase active site. Melting of the duplex DNA by the protein is stabilized by hydrophobic interactions between Phe-473, Leu-361, and His-666 and the last three bases at the 3' terminus. Two divalent metal ions interacting with the phosphodiester to be hydrolyzed are proposed to catalyze the exonuclease reaction by a mechanism that may be related to mechanisms of other enzymes that catalyze phospho-group transfer including RNA enzymes. We suggest that the editing active site competes with the polymerase active site some 30 A away for the newly formed 3' terminus. Since a 3' terminal mismatched base pair favors the melting of duplex DNA, its binding and excision at the editing exonuclease site that binds single-stranded DNA is enhanced.

Mechanisms of mutagenesis in the Escherichia coli mutator mutD5: role of DNA mismatch repair

To investigate the mechanisms of spontaneous mutation in the Escherichia coli mutD5 mutator strain, 502 mutations generated in this strain in the N-terminal part of the lacI gene were sequenced (i-d mutations). Since the mutator strength of this strain depends on the medium in which it grows, mutations were analyzed in both minimal medium (moderate mutator activity) and rich medium (high mutator activity). In either case, 95% of all mutations were base substitutions and 5% were single-base deletions. However, the nature and site distribution of the base substitutions differed dramatically for the two conditions. In minimal medium (mutation frequency, 480-fold above background), a majority (62%) were transversions, notably A.T----T.A at three 5'-GTGG-3' sequences. Most (64%) of the transitions under this condition occurred at specific sequences that are suggestive of a "dislocation" type of mutagenesis. In rich medium (mutation frequency, 37,000-fold above background), 90% of the base substitutions were transitions. These observations suggest that different modes of mutagenesis operate under the two conditions. mutD5 cells have been reported to be defective in exonucleolytic proofreading during DNA replication. The present data suggest that mutD cells in rich medium also suffer a defect in mutHLS-encoded mismatch correction. This hypothesis was confirmed by the direct measurement of mismatch repair in mutD5 cells by transfection of M13mp2 heteroduplex DNA.

Mispair formation in DNA can involve rare tautomeric forms in the template

The formation of pyridine-pyrimidine- and pyrimidine-pyrimidine base pairs after in vitro DNA replication with the large fragment of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I indicates that Watson-Crick-like base pairing between pyrimidine bases can occur in the enzyme due to the presence of the rare tautomers of deoxycytidylate and thymidylate in the template strand. The implications to mispair formation in DNA, such as the difference between the structures of the mispairs during and after replication, are discussed and the possible action of mutagenic DNA protonating and deprotonating agents in vivo is considered.

Bypass and termination at apurinic sites during replication of single-stranded DNA in vitro: a model for apurinic site mutagenesis

Mutations produced in Escherichia coli by apurinic sites are believed to arise via SOS-assisted translesion replication. Analysis of replication products synthesized on depurinated single-stranded DNA by DNA polymerase III holoenzyme revealed that apurinic sites frequently blocked in vitro replication. Bypass frequency of an apurinic site was estimated to be 10-15%. Direct evidence for replicative bypass was obtained in a complete single-stranded----replicative form replication system containing DNA polymerase III holoenzyme, single-stranded DNA binding protein, DNA polymerase I, and DNa ligase, by demonstrating the sensitivity of fully replicated products to the apurinic endonuclease activity of E. coli exonuclease III. Termination at apurinic sites, like termination at pyrimidine photodimers, involved dissociation of the polymerase from the blocked termini, followed by initiations at available primer templates. When no regular primer templates were available, the polymerase underwent repeated cycles of dissociation and rebinding at the blocked termini and, while bound, carried out multiple polymerization-excision reactions opposite the apurinic sites, leading to turnover of dNTPs into dNMPs. From the in vitro turnover rates, we could predict with striking accuracy the specificity of apurinic site mutagenesis, as determined in vivo in depurinated single-stranded DNA from an M13-lac hybrid phage. This finding is consistent with the view that DNA polymerase III holoenzyme carries out the mutagenic "misinsertion" step during apurinic site mutagenesis in vivo and that the specificity of the process is determined primarily by the polymerase. SOS-induced proteins such as UmuD/C might act as processivity-like factors to stabilize the polymerase-DNA complex, thus increasing the efficiency of the next stage of past-lesion polymerization required to complete the bypass reaction.

DNA replication fidelity: kinetics and thermodynamics

Mechanisms that control the fidelity of DNA replication are discussed. Data are reviewed for 3 steps in a fidelity pathway: nucleotide insertion, exonucleolytic proofreading, and extension from matched and mismatched 3'-primer termini. Fidelity mechanisms that involve predominantly Km discrimination, Vmax discrimination, or a combination of the two are analyzed in the context of a simple model for fidelity. Each fidelity step is divided into 2 components, thermodynamic and kinetic. The thermodynamic component, which relates to free-energy differences between right and wrong base pairs, is associated with a Km discrimination mechanism for polymerase. The kinetic component, which represents the enzyme's ability to select bases for insertion and excision to achieve fidelity greater than that available from base pairing free-energy differences, is associated with a Vmax discrimination mechanism for polymerase. Currently available fidelity data for nucleotide insertion and primer extension in the absence of proofreading appears to have relatively large Km and small Vmax components. An important complication can arise when analyzing data from polymerases containing an associated 3'-exonuclease activity. In the presence of proofreading, a Vmax discrimination mechanism is likely to occur, but this may be the result of two Km discrimination mechanisms acting serially, one for nucleotide insertion and the other for excision. Possible relationships between base pairing free energy differences measured in aqueous solution and those defined within the polymerase active cleft are considered in the context of the enzyme's ability to exclude water, at least partially, from the vicinity of its active site.

Deleterious mutations as an evolutionary factor. III. Mating preference and some general remarks

This paper is concerned with the evolution of female mating choice under truncation selection against deleterious mutations. It is shown that with genome degradation rates necessary to maintain crossing-over, the advantage of choice is of the order of several per cent, which is in good accord with some experimental data. Some other consequences of intensive selection against mutations are also discussed.

Structures of the mismatched duplex d(GGGTGCCC) and one of its Watson-Crick analogues d(GGGCGCCC)

The mismatched duplex d(GGGTGCCC) (I) and its two Watson-Crick analogues (dGGGCGCCC) (II) and d(GGGTACCC) (III) were synthesized. The X-ray crystal structures of (I) and (II) were determined at resolutions of 2.5 and 1.7 A (1 A = 0.1 nm) and refined to R factors of 15 and 16%, respectively. (I) and (II) crystallize as A-DNA doublehelical octamers in space groups P61 and P4(3)2(1)2, respectively, and are stable at room temperature. The central two G.T mispairs of (I) adopt the wobble geometry as observed in other G.T mismatches. The two structures differ significantly in their local conformational features at the central helical regions as well as in some global ones. In particular, T-G adopts a large helical twist (44 degrees) whereas C-G adopts a small one (24 degrees). This difference can be rationalized on the basis of simple geometrical considerations. Base-pair stacking energies which were calculated for the two duplexes indicate that (I) is destabilized with respect to (II). Helix-coil transition measurements were performed for each of the three oligomers by means of ultraviolet absorbance spectrophotometry. The results indicate that the stability of the duplexes and the co-operativity of the transition are in the following order: (I) less than (III) less than (II). Such studies may help in understanding why certain regions of DNA are more likely to undergo spontaneous mutations than others.

Structural features and hydration of a dodecamer duplex containing two C.A mispairs

X-ray diffraction techniques have been used to characterise the crystal and molecular structure of the deoxyoligomer d(C-G-C-A-A-A-T-T-C-G-C-G) at 2.5A resolution. The final R factor is 0.19 with the location of 78 solvent molecules. The oligomer crystallises in a B-DNA type conformation with two strands coiled about each other to produce a duplex. This double helix consists of four A.T and six G.C Watson-Crick base pairs and two C.A mispairs. The mismatched base pairs adopt a "wobble" type structure with the cytosine displaced laterally into the major groove, the adenine into the minor groove. We have proposed that the two close contacts observed in the C.A pairing represent two hydrogen bonds one of which results from protonation of adenine. The mispairs are accommodated in the double helix with small adjustments in the conformation of the sugar-phosphate backbone. Details of the backbone conformation, base stacking interactions, thermal parameters and the hydration are now presented and compared with those of the native oligomer d(C-G-C-G-A-A-T-T-C-G-C-G) and with variations of this sequence containing G.T and G.A mispairs.

Structural features and hydration of d(C-G-C-G-A-A-T-T-A-G-C-G); a double helix containing two G.A mispairs

Single crystal X-ray diffraction techniques have been used to characterise the molecular structure of the title compound to 2.5A resolution. The structure consists of ten standard Watson-Crick base pairs and two G.A mismatched base pairs. The purine-purine mismatches have guanine in the usual anti orientation with respect to the sugar and adenine in syn orientation. There are two hydrogen bonds formed between the mismatch bases, N-1 and O-6 of guanine with N-7 and N-6 of adenine respectively. The bulky purine-purine mismatches are accommodated with minor perturbation of the sugar-phosphate backbone. There is a slight improvement in base pair overlap at the mismatch sites. Details of the backbone conformation, base stacking interactions and hydration are presented and compared with those of the parent compound d(C-G-C-G-A-A-T-T-C-G-C-G).

Guanine and adenine analogues as tools in the investigation of the mechanisms of mismatch repair in E. coli

The efficiency of in vivo correction of five "mismatch analogues", incorporated into M13mp9 DNA, was studied in an attempt to elucidate the structural determinants required for mismatch recognition by the repair machinery of E. coli. Inosine was efficiently removed from an I/T mismatch, presumably by the action of hypoxanthine glycosylase. The mismatch analogues DI/T (DI = 7-deazainosine), Tu/C (Tu = tubercidin), N/C (N = nebularine) and DN/C (DN = 7-deazanebularine) were left largely unrepaired, giving rise to high yields of mutant phenotype. The efficiency of correction of these mismatch analogues could be correlated with their structure within the base-pair.

Refined crystal structure of an octanucleotide duplex with G . T mismatched base-pairs

Single crystal X-ray diffraction techniques have been used to determine the structure of the DNA octamer d(G-G-G-G-C-T-C-C) at a resolution of 2.25 A. The asymmetric unit consists of two strands coiled about each other to produce an A-type DNA helix. The double helix contains six G . C Watson-Crick base-pairs and two G . T mismatched base-pairs. The mismatches adopt a "wobble" type structure in which both bases retain their major tautomer forms. The double helix is able to accommodate this G . T pairing with little distortion of the overall helical conformation. Crystals of this octamer melt at a substantially lower temperature than do those of a related octamer also containing two G . T base-pairs. We attribute this destabilization to disruption of the hydration network around the mismatch site combined with changes in intermolecular packing. Full details are given of conformational parameters, base stacking, intermolecular contacts and hydration involving 52 solvent molecules.

Mismatches in DNA double strands: thermodynamic parameters and their correlation to repair efficiencies

The helix-coil transitions of the 16 octadecameric DNA duplexes dCGTCGTTTXACAACGTCG X dCGACGTTGTX1AAACGACG with A, T, G, and C for X and X1 were measured by UV-absorption. This sequence was taken from former studies of in vivo determination of efficiencies of mismatch repair (Kramer, Kramer, and Fritz (1984) Cell 38, 879-887). The thermodynamic parameters for double strand and mismatch formation have been obtained by evaluating the partition function of a stack model which allowed for loop formation. As a result the mismatches could be classified into wobble base pairs (T/G, G/G, C/A, A/A, A/G), open base pairs, i.e. permanent loops (T/T, C/T, T/C, C/C), and intermediate or weak base pairs (G/T, A/C, G/A). There is no correlation between Tm and the biological repair efficiency of X/X1. The structure classes, however, as described above show a close correlation: Open base pairs show the lowest repair efficiencies, whereas mismatches with high repair efficiency always belong to the structural class of wobble base pairs. Because of the palindromic nearest neighbors of the variation site X/X1, the influence of next-nearest neighbor interactions could be detected and be estimated to about 1 kJ/mol for one stack.

Structure of an adenine-cytosine base pair in DNA and its implications for mismatch repair

Mutational pathways rely on introducing changes in the DNA double helix. This may be achieved by the incorporation of a noncomplementary base on replication or during genetic recombination, leading to substitution mutation. In vivo studies have shown that most combinations of base-pair mismatches can be accommodated in the DNA double helix, albeit with varying efficiencies. Fidelity of replication requires the recognition and excision of mismatched bases by proofreading enzymes and post-replicative mismatch repair systems. Rates of excision vary with the type of mismatch and there is some evidence that these are influenced by the nature of the neighbouring sequences. However, there is little experimental information about the molecular structure of mismatches and their effect on the DNA double helix. We have recently determined the crystal structures of several DNA fragments with guanine X thymine and adenine X guanine mismatches in a full turn of a B-DNA helix and now report the nature of the base pairing between adenine and cytosine in an isomorphous fragment. The base pair found in the present study is novel and we believe has not previously been demonstrated. Our results suggest that the enzymatic recognition of mismatches is likely to occur at the level of the base pairs and that the efficiency of repair can be correlated with structural features.

Molecular structure of the G.A base pair in DNA and its implications for the mechanism of transversion mutations

The synthetic deoxydodecamer d(C-G-C-G-A-A-T-T-A-G-C-G) was analyzed by x-ray diffraction methods, and the structure was refined to a residual error of R = 0.17 at 2.5-A resolution (2 sigma data) with 83 water molecules located. The sequence crystallizes as a full turn of a B-DNA helix and contains 2 purine X purine (G.A) base pairs and 10 Watson-Crick base pairs. The analysis shows conclusively that adenine is in the syn orientation with respect to the sugar moiety whereas guanine adopts the usual trans orientation. Nitrogen atoms of both bases are involved in hydrogen bonding with the N-1 of guanine 2.84 A from the N-7 of adenine and the N-6 of adenine within 2.74 A of the O-6 of guanine. The C-1'...C-1' separation is 10.7 A close to that for standard Watson-Crick base pairs. The incorporation of the purine.purine base pairs at two steps in the dodecamer causes little perturbation of either the local or the global conformation of the double helix. Comparison of the structural features with those of the G.T wobble pair and the standard G.C pair suggests a rationale for the differential enzymatic repair of the two types of base-pair mismatches.

Mutational specificity of a proof-reading defective Escherichia coli dnaQ49 mutator

The dnaQ (mutD) gene product which encodes the epsilon-subunit of the DNA polymerase III holoenzyme has a central role in controlling the fidelity of DNA replication because both mutD5 and dnaQ49 mutations severely decrease the 3'-5' exonucleolytic editing capacity. It is shown in this paper that more than 95% of all dnaQ49-induced base pair substitutions are transversions of the types G:C-T:A and A:T-T:A. Not only is this unusual mutational specificity precisely that observed recently for a number of potent carcinogens such as benzo(a) pyrene diolepoxide (BPDE) and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), which are dependent on the SOS system to mutagenize bacteria, but it is also seen for the constitutively expressed SOS mutator activity in E. coli tif-1 strains as well as for the SOS mutator activity mediated gap filling of apurinic sites. Because the G:C-T:A and A:T-T:A transversions can either result from the insertion of an adenine across from apurinic sites or arise due to the incorporation of syn-adenine opposite a purine base, we postulate that the DNA polymerase III holoenzyme also has a reduced discrimination ability in a dnaQ49 background. The introduction of a lexA (Ind-) allele, which prevents the expression of SOS functions, led to a significant reduction in the dnaQ49-caused mutator effect. Both, the mutational specificity observed and the partial lexA+ dependence of the mutator effect provoke a reanalysis of the hypothesis that the DNA polymerase III holoenzyme can be converted into the postulated but until now unidentified SOS polymerase.

Mechanism of the idling-turnover reaction of the large (Klenow) fragment of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I

The mechanism of the idling-turnover reaction catalyzed by the large (Klenow) fragment of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I has been investigated. The reaction cycle involved is one of excision/incorporation, in which the 3' deoxynucleotide residue of the primer DNA strand is partitioned into its 5'-mono- and 5'-triphosphate derivatives, respectively. Mechanistic studies suggest the 5'-monophosphate product is formed in the first step by simple 3'----5' exonucleolytic cleavage. Rapid polymerization follows with the concomitant release of inorganic pyrophosphate. In the second step, the 5'-triphosphate product is generated by a pyrophosphorolysis reaction, which, despite the low concentration of pyrophosphate that has accumulated, occurs at a rate that is comparable with that of the parallel 3'----5' hydrolysis reaction.

G . T base-pairs in a DNA helix: the crystal structure of d(G-G-G-G-T-C-C-C)

The synthetic deoxyoctanucleotide d(G-G-G-G-T-C-C-C) crystallizes as an A-type DNA double helix containing two adjacent G . T base-pair mismatches. The structure has been refined to an R-factor of 14% at 2.1 A resolution with 104 solvent molecules located. The two G . T mismatches adopt the "wobble" form of base-pairing. The mismatched bases are linked by a network of water molecules interacting with the exposed functional groups in both the major and minor grooves. The presence of two mispaired bases in the octamer has surprisingly little effect on the global structure of the helix or the backbone and glycosidic torsional angles. Base stacking around the mismatch is perturbed, but the central G-T step shows particularly good base overlap, which may contribute to the relatively high stability of this oligomer.

Structural studies of DNA fragments: the G.T wobble base pair in A, B and Z DNA; the G.A base pair in B-DNA

The crystal structures of five double helical DNA fragments containing non-Watson-Crick complementary base pairs are reviewed. They comprise four fragments containing G.T base pairs: two deoxyoctamers d(GGGGCTCC) and d(GGGGTCCC) which crystallise as A type helices; a deoxydodecamer d(CGCGAATTTGCG) which crystallises in the B-DNA conformation; and the deoxyhexamer d(TGCGCG), which crystallises as a Z-DNA helix. In all four duplexes the G and T bases form wobble base pairs, with bases in the major tautomer forms and hydrogen bonds linking N1 of G with O2 of T and O6 of G with N3 of T. The X-ray analyses establish that the G.T wobble base pair can be accommodated in the A, B or Z double helix with minimal distortion of the global conformation. There are, however, changes in base stacking in the neighbourhood of the mismatched bases. The fifth structure, d(CGCGAATTAGCG), contains the purine purine mismatch G.A where G is in the anti and A in the syn conformation. The results represent the first direct structure determinations of base pair mismatches in DNA fragments and are discussed in relation to the fidelity of replication and mismatch recognition.

High-resolution structure of a DNA helix containing mismatched base pairs

The concept of complementary base pairing, integral to the double-helical structure of DNA, provides an effective and elegant mechanism for the faithful transmission of genetic information. Implicit in this model, however, is the potential for incorporating non-complementary base pairs (mismatches) during replication or subsequently, for example, during genetic recombination. As such errors are usually damaging to the organism, they are generally detected and repaired. Occasionally, however, the propagation of erroneous copies of the genome confers a selective advantage, leading to genetic variation and evolutionary change. An understanding of the nature of base-pair mismatches at a molecular level, and the effect of incorporation of such errors on the secondary structure of DNA is thus of fundamental importance. We now report the first single-crystal X-ray analysis of a DNA fragment, d(GGGGCTCC), which contains two non-complementary G X T base pairs, and discuss the implications of the results for the in vivo recognition of base-pair mismatches.

Interaction of an antimutator gene with DNA repair pathways in Escherichia coli K-12

A mutation in the purB gene of E. coli K-12, isolated and partially characterized by Geiger and Speyer (1977), confers a temperature sensitive requirement for adenine and an antimutator phenotype at 30 degrees C. Several hypotheses about the mechanism of action of this mutation, named mud for mutation defective, were tested in the present work. The mud mutation has no effect upon the induction of the SOS response, so the antimutator phenotype is unlikely to be due to repression of mutagenic repair. Mud cells are resistant to the cytotoxic and mutagenic effects of alkylating agents such as MNNG, but this resistance is not due simply to derepression of the adaptive response. DNA isolated from mud cells is not undermethylated relative to DNA from purB+ cells, so the antimutator phenotype of mud cannot be due to reduced hotspot base-substitution mutation at methylated cytosine residues. Nor is there a longer lag in post-replicative DNA methylation, which indicates that there is no enhancement of mismatch repair resulting from an extended time window for strand discrimination. Measurement of nucleotide pool levels demonstrated an elevation of dCTP in mud cells and a reduction of all other nucleoside triphosphates.

The biochemical basis of 5-bromouracil- and 2-aminopurine-induced mutagenesis

We describe in vitro measurements of heteroduplex base mispaired intermediates involving 5-bromouracil and 2-aminopurine in A X T----G X C and G X C----A X T transition mutation pathways. For the case of 2-aminopurine, 2-aminopurine X cytosine mispairs are formed at a much higher frequency than adenine X cytosine mispairs in either transition pathway. For the case of 5-bromouracil, at least a 40-fold increase in 5-bromouracil X guanine mispairs are observed over thymine X guanine mispairs but only in the G X C----A X T pathway. In the A X T----G X C pathway, mispairs involving 5-bromouracil are formed 2.5-fold more frequently to those involving thymine suggesting perhaps that 5-bromouracil may exhibit substantially different base-pairing behavior depending on whether it is present as a template base or as a deoxyribonucleosides triphosphate substrate. The effect of the base analogs on dNTP pool size perturbations is discussed. A measurement of dNTP pools in 2-aminopurine mutagenized bacteriophage T4-infected cells is presented. An approximate eight-fold expansion in common dNTP pools is observed in a ts L141 antimutator genetic background compared to wild type T4 43+ and ts L56 mutator backgrounds. The effects of distorted dNTP pools on mutagenesis will be considered.

Fidelity of DNA replication under conditions used for oligodeoxynucleotide-directed mutagenesis

The fidelity of DNA replication in vitro by DNA polymerase I (large subfragment) of Escherichia coli has been measured by the standard bioassay: single-stranded phi X174 DNA (plus strand) containing an amber codon was primed with a synthetic oligodeoxynucleotide, replicated and the frequency of point mutations formed in the synthetic minus strand of the resultant double-stranded DNA determined from the number of revertant phage produced in a spheroplast assay. Since the assay depends crucially on the frequency of expression of the mutations in the heteroduplex, and this can vary for a variety of reasons, parallel control experiments were performed using a primer that covered the amber codon but contained the same mismatch that occurred during replication. The frequency of expression of these mutations was found to vary from 40 to 100% in fully ligated heteroduplexes, depending upon the age and batch of spheroplasts used. The variation probably reflects the viability of the post-replicative mismatch repair enzymes in the spheroplasts used for transfection. Far lower frequencies of expression were found under conditions of poor replication. Accurate data and rate laws for fidelity are obtained only when the bioassay is normalized for the variation in the expression frequency. There is active proofreading by the 3'-5'-exonuclease activity of the polymerase of a misincorporation resulting from a dGTP:T mismatch. The contribution of proofreading to fidelity is low: accuracy is enhanced by a factor of less than 7 at the concentrations of dNTPs in vivo. The lower accuracy of Pol I than Pol III is due mainly to poorer proofreading, which is manifested in a lower "cost" of replication: only 0.7 to 1.7% of the dNTPs are turned over to dNMPs during replication compared with 6 to 13% for Pol III. The error rates measured for Pol I under conditions used for oligodeoxynucleotide-directed mutagenesis are sufficiently low that extraneous errors should not be induced when the concentrations of dNTPs are balanced. However, even higher fidelity will be obtained using the lowest concentrations of dNTPs consistent with efficient replication (approximately 20 microM). Highly unbalanced concentrations as used in pulsed labelling should be avoided.

A memory effect in DNA replication

A study of the polymerization/excision ratio in the replication of poly(dA), primed with oligo(dT), was carried out with E. coli DNA polymerase I, at various primer and enzyme concentrations. The variations in this ratio suggest that 1) the DNA polymerase is able to switch between two states of low and high exonuclease activities and 2) after dissociating from the template, the DNA polymerase drifts towards the low exonuclease state. The recovery of the high exonuclease state would require several successive incorporations.

Free energy cost and accuracy in branched selection processes of biosynthesis

Selection in biochemical synthesis processes is a very important task: processes as protein or nucleic acid synthesis must be very accurate although the cell abounds with closely related molecules which, intuitively, should be difficult to distinguish. The mechanisms of selection and the underlying processes have been extensively studied in the last years, and the ideas have been developed into mathematical models to visualize the potentials of recognition and error correction. There are several aspects on this, the main aspect of the present work being the important fact that the cell must pay for the increased accuracy in terms of available free energy: processes are driven from equilibrium, and do away with appreciable dissipation.

Contribution of 3' leads to 5' exonuclease activity of DNA polymerase III holoenzyme from Escherichia coli to specificity

The effects of deoxynucleoside monophosphates on the 3' leads to 5' exonuclease activity of DNA polymerase III holoenzyme have been correlated with their effects on the fidelity of DNA replication. In particular, dGMP inhibits the proofreading activity of the enzyme and decreases the fidelity in those cases where a "following nucleotide effect" is also noted. This is strong evidence for proofreading. However, the absence of the effects of proofreading inhibitors or following nucleotides need not be evidence against the occurrence of proofreading: a theoretical analysis shows that these effects may not be observed even though there is active proofreading. This is suggested to be the case with the phage T4 enzyme system. The proofreading activity of Pol III appears to be directed primarily towards removing purine x pyrimidine-mediated rather than purine x purine-mediated misincorporations. recA protein inhibits the proofreading activity of Pol III on synthetic templates containing mismatched 3' termini. This is paralleled by a decrease in the fidelity of DNA replication in vitro. The inhibition is increased in the presence of dGMP or dAMP but there is no further increase in the infidelity of replication. The presence of both dNMPs and recA protein does not enable Pol III to copy past pyrimidine photodimers.

Kinetics of base misinsertion by DNA polymerase I of Escherichia coli

A simple kinetic analysis of the values of kcat and KM for base insertion and misinsertion during DNA replication is presented and applied to the problem of base misinsertion by DNA polymerase I of Escherichia coli. The role of minor tautomeric forms of deoxynucleoside triphosphates (dNTPs) in purine x pyrimidine mismatching has been examined and it has been shown that the misinsertion frequency via this route should be close to the tautomerization constant in solution and is independent of any effect of the polymerase on the tautomerization of a dNTP when bound. Kinetic data on purine x pyrimidine mismatching indicate that the dNTP in a polymerase-DNA-mismatched-dNTP complex is predominantly in the major tautomeric form. The mutagenic effect of Mn2+ in DNA replication is shown to be mediated by decreasing the values of kcat/KM for the insertion of correct dNTPs, whilst the values of this rate constant for misinsertion are relatively unaffected or increased.

Fidelity of replication of bacteriophage phi X174 DNA in vitro and in vivo

Seven different revertants of bacteriophage phi X174am16 (AB5276G leads to T) have been isolated and the nature of the reversions determined by sequencing their DNA. The revertants each differ from am16 by just a single base substitution. These may be distinguished with varying degrees of ease by characteristic temperature sensitivities of growth. This has facilitated the determination of the frequency at which DNA polymerase III catalyses different types of substitution mutations in copying phi X174 DNA in vitro and in vivo. During the replicative form (RF) leads to single-stranded (SS) stage of replication in vitro, four different revertants may be readily produced according to well-defined rate laws on biasing the concentrations of dNTPs. Transversion mutations are found to be formed predominantly by purine x purine mismatching, whilst transitions are formed predominantly by G x T mismatching. The substitutions via G x T and G x A mismatches are estimated to occur at similar frequencies in vivo. The two most common revertants isolated in vivo, however, are not those readily produced during the RF leads to SS stage in vitro but are those produced on purine x purine mismatching in the SS leads to RF stage. The accuracy of the DNA polymerase in vitro appears to be similar to that in this stage in vivo. However, the overall accuracy of the RF leads to SS replication in vivo is more accurate than predicted from the measurements of the accuracy in vitro.

Mutator strains of Escherichia coli, mutD and dnaQ, with defective exonucleolytic editing by DNA polymerase III holoenzyme

The closely linked mutD and dnaQ mutations confer a vastly increased mutation rate on Escherichia coli and thus might define a gene with a central role in the fidelity of DNA replication. To look for the biochemical function of the mutD gene product, we have measured the 3' leads to 5' exonucleolytic editing activity of polymerase III holoenzyme from mutD5 and dnaQ49 mutants. The editing activities of the mutant enzymes are defective compared to wild type, as judged by two assays: (i) decreased excision of a terminal mispaired base from a copolymer substrate and (ii) turnover of dTTP to dTMP during replication with a phage G4 DNA template. Thus, the mutD (dnaQ) gene product is likely to control the editing (proofreading) capacity of polymerase III holoenzyme.

Conservation and diversification of genes by mismatch correction and SOS induction

Regulation of genetic stability is discussed in terms of interactions between constitutive and inducible DNA repair processes with specific emphasis on the results of our experimental studies of mismatch correction and SOS induction in Escherichia coli.