Physical analysis of recombinant forms of the human mitochondrial DNA helicase

Stimulation of Variant Forms of the Mitochondrial DNA Helicase Twinkle by the Mitochondrial Single-Stranded DNA-Binding Protein

Defects in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) maintenance may lead to disturbances in mitochondrial homeostasis and energy production in eukaryotic cells, causing diseases. During mtDNA replication, the mitochondrial single-stranded DNA-binding protein (mtSSB) stabilizes and protects the exposed single-stranded mtDNA from nucleolysis; perhaps more importantly, it appears to coordinate the actions of both the replicative mtDNA helicase Twinkle and DNA polymerase gamma at the replication fork. Here, we describe a helicase stimulation protocol to test in vitro the functional interaction between mtSSB and variant forms of Twinkle. We show for the first time that the C-terminal tail of Twinkle is important for such an interaction, and that it negatively regulates helicase unwinding activity in a salt-dependent manner.

The N-terminal domain of the Drosophila mitochondrial replicative DNA helicase contains an iron-sulfur cluster and binds DNA

The metazoan mitochondrial DNA helicase is an integral part of the minimal mitochondrial replisome. It exhibits strong sequence homology with the bacteriophage T7 gene 4 protein primase-helicase (T7 gp4). Both proteins contain distinct N- and C-terminal domains separated by a flexible linker. The C-terminal domain catalyzes its characteristic DNA-dependent NTPase activity, and can unwind duplex DNA substrates independently of the N-terminal domain. Whereas the N-terminal domain in T7 gp4 contains a DNA primase activity, this function is lost in metazoan mtDNA helicase. Thus, although the functions of the C-terminal domain and the linker are partially understood, the role of the N-terminal region in the metazoan replicative mtDNA helicase remains elusive. Here, we show that the N-terminal domain of Drosophila melanogaster mtDNA helicase coordinates iron in a 2Fe-2S cluster that enhances protein stability in vitro. The N-terminal domain binds the cluster through conserved cysteine residues (Cys(68), Cys(71), Cys(102), and Cys(105)) that are responsible for coordinating zinc in T7 gp4. Moreover, we show that the N-terminal domain binds both single- and double-stranded DNA oligomers, with an apparent Kd of ∼120 nm. These findings suggest a possible role for the N-terminal domain of metazoan mtDNA helicase in recruiting and binding DNA at the replication fork.