Synthesis and structure of duplex DNA containing the genotoxic nucleobase lesion N7-methylguanine

Chemical Synthesis of Modified RNA

Ribonucleic acids (RNAs) play a vital role in living organisms. Many of their cellular functions depend critically on chemical modification. Methods to modify RNA in a controlled manner-both in vitro and in vivo-are thus essential to evaluate and understand RNA biology at the molecular and mechanistic levels. The diversity of modifications, combined with the size and uniformity of RNA (made up of only 4 nucleotides) makes its site-specific modification a challenging task that needs to be addressed by complementary approaches. One such approach is solid-phase RNA synthesis. We discuss recent developments in this field, starting with new protection concepts in the ongoing effort to overcome current size limitations. We continue with selected modifications that have posed significant challenges for their incorporation into RNA. These include deazapurine bases required for atomic mutagenesis to elucidate mechanistic aspects of catalytic RNAs, and RNA containing xanthosine, N4-acetylcytidine, 5-hydroxymethylcytidine, 3-methylcytidine, 2'-OCF3, and 2'-N3 ribose modifications. We also discuss the all-chemical synthesis of 5'-capped mRNAs and the enzymatic ligation of chemically synthesized oligoribonucleotides to obtain long RNA with multiple distinct modifications, such as those needed for single-molecule FRET studies. Finally, we highlight promising developments in RNA-catalyzed RNA modification using cofactors that transfer bioorthogonal functionalities.

Synthesis of Fluorinated Nucleosides/Nucleotides and Their Antiviral Properties

The FDA has approved several drugs based on the fluorinated nucleoside pharmacophore, and numerous drugs are currently in clinical trials. Fluorine-containing nucleos(t)ides offer significant antiviral and anticancer activity. The insertion of a fluorine atom, either in the base or sugar of nucleos(t)ides, alters its electronic and steric parameters and transforms the lipophilicity, pharmacodynamic, and pharmacokinetic properties of these moieties. The fluorine atom restricts the oxidative metabolism of drugs and provides enzymatic metabolic stability towards the glycosidic bond of the nucleos(t)ide. The incorporation of fluorine also demonstrates additional hydrogen bonding interactions in receptors with enhanced biological profiles. The present article discusses the synthetic methodology and antiviral activities of FDA-approved drugs and ongoing fluoro-containing nucleos(t)ide drug candidates in clinical trials.

Acceleration of hydrolytic ring opening of N7-alkylguanine by the terminal carbamoyl group of glycidamide

Hydrolytic ring opening of guanine N7-adducts with compounds containing an oxacyclopropane ring, namely glycidamide, glycidol and 1,2-epoxybutane, was analyzed, and the reaction of the glycidamide adduct was the fastest. The differences in the reaction rates were confirmed by theoretical calculations.

A formamidopyrimidine derivative from the deoxyguanosine adduct produced by food contaminant acrylamide induces DNA replication block and mutagenesis

Acrylamide, a common food contaminant, is metabolically activated to glycidamide, which reacts with DNA at the N7 position of dG, forming N7-(2-carbamoyl-2-hydroxyethyl)-dG (GA7dG). Owing to its chemical lability, the mutagenic potency of GA7dG has not yet been clarified. We found that GA7dG undergoes ring-opening hydrolysis to form N6-(2-deoxy-d-erythro-pentofuranosyl)-2,6-diamino-3,4-dihydro-4-oxo-5-[N-(2-carbamoyl-2-hydroxyethyl)formamido]pyrimidine (GA-FAPy-dG), even at neutral pH. Therefore, we aimed to examine the effects of GA-FAPy-dG on the efficiency and fidelity of DNA replication using an oligonucleotide carrying GA-FAPy-9-(2-deoxy-2-fluoro-β-d-arabinofuranosyl)guanine (dfG), a 2'-fluorine substituted analog of GA-FAPy-dG. GA-FAPy-dfG inhibited primer extension by both human replicative DNA polymerase ε and the translesion DNA synthesis polymerases (Polη, Polι, Polκ, and Polζ) and reduced the replication efficiency by less than half in human cells, with single base substitution at the site of GA-FAPy-dfG. Unlike other formamidopyrimidine derivatives, the most abundant mutation was G:C > A:T transition, which was decreased in Polκ- or REV1-KO cells. Molecular modeling suggested that a 2-carbamoyl-2-hydroxyethyl group at the N5 position of GA-FAPy-dfG can form an additional H-bond with thymidine, thereby contributing to the mutation. Collectively, our results provide further insight into the mechanisms underlying the mutagenic effects of acrylamide.

Genotoxic effects of the major alkylation damage N7-methylguanine and methyl formamidopyrimidine

Various alkylating agents are known to preferentially modify guanine in DNA, resulting in the formation of N7-alkylguanine (N7-alkylG) and the imidazole ring opened alkyl-formamidopyrimidine (alkyl-FapyG) lesions. Evaluating the mutagenic effects of N7-alkylG has been challenging due to the instability of the positively charged N7-alkylG. To address this issue, we developed a 2'-fluorine-mediated transition-state destabilization approach, which stabilizes N7-alkylG and prevents spontaneous depurination. We also developed a postsynthetic conversion of 2'-F-N7-alkylG DNA into 2'-F-alkyl-FapyG DNA. Using these methods, we incorporated site-specific N7-methylG and methyl-FapyG into pSP189 plasmid and determined their mutagenic properties in bacterial cells using the supF-based colony screening assay. The mutation frequency of N7-methylG was found to be less than 0.5%. Our crystal structure analysis revealed that N7-methylation did not significantly alter base pairing properties, as evidenced by a correct base pairing between 2'-F-N7-methylG and dCTP in Dpo4 polymerase catalytic site. In contrast, the mutation frequency of methyl-FapyG was 6.3%, highlighting the mutagenic nature of this secondary lesion. Interestingly, all mutations arising from methyl-FapyG in the 5'-GGT(methyl-FapyG)G-3' context were single nucleotide deletions at the 5'-G of the lesion. Overall, our results demonstrate that 2'-fluorination technology is a useful tool for studying the chemically labile N7-alkylG and alkyl-FapyG lesions.

Promoter–motif extraction from co-regulated genes and their relevance to co-expression using E. coli as a model

Gene expression varies due to the intrinsic stochasticity of transcription or as a reaction to external perturbations that generate cellular mutations. Co-regulation, co-expression and functional similarity of substances have been employed for indoctrinating the process of the transcriptional paradigm. The difficult process of analysing complicated proteomes and biological switches has been made easier by technical improvements, and microarray technology has flourished as a viable platform. Therefore, this research enables Microarray to cluster genes that are co-expressed and co-regulated into specific segments. Copious search algorithms have been employed to ascertain diacritic motifs or a combination of motifs that are performing regular expression, and their relevant information corresponding to the gene patterns is also documented. The associated genes co-expression and relevant cis-elements are further explored by engaging Escherichia coli as a model organism. Various clustering algorithms have also been used to generate classes of genes with similar expression profiles. A promoter database ‘EcoPromDB’ has been developed by referring RegulonDB database; this promoter database is freely available at www.ecopromdb.eminentbio.com and is divided into two sub-groups, depending upon the results of co-expression and co-regulation analyses.

Structural Dynamics of a Common Mutagenic Oxidative DNA Lesion in Duplex DNA and during DNA Replication

N6-(2-Deoxy-α,β-d-erythro-pentofuranosyl)-2,6-diamino-4-hydroxy-5-formamido pyrimidine (Fapy•dG) is a prevalent form of genomic DNA damage. Fapy•dG is formed in greater amounts under anoxic conditions than the well-studied, chemically related 7,8-dihydro-8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxodGuo). Fapy•dG is more mutagenic in mammalian cells than 8-oxodGuo. A distinctive property of Fapy•dG is facile epimerization, but prior works with Fapy•dG analogues have precluded determining its effect on chemistry. We present crystallographic characterization of natural Fapy•dG in duplex DNA and as the template base for DNA polymerase β (Pol β). Fapy•dG adopts the β-anomer when base paired with cytosine but exists as a mixture of α- and β-anomers when promutagenically base paired with adenine. Rotation about the bond between the glycosidic nitrogen atom and the pyrimidine ring is also affected by the opposing nucleotide. Sodium cyanoborohydride soaking experiments trap the ring-opened Fapy•dG, demonstrating that ring opening and epimerization occur in the crystalline state. Ring opening and epimerization are facilitated by propitious water molecules that are observed in the structures. Determination of Fapy•dG mutagenicity in wild type and Pol β knockdown HEK 293T cells indicates that Pol β contributes to G → T transversions but also suppresses G → A transitions. Complementary kinetic studies have determined that Fapy•dG promotes mutagenesis by decreasing the catalytic efficiency of dCMP insertion opposite Fapy•dG, thus reducing polymerase fidelity. Kinetic studies have determined that dCMP incorporation opposite the β-anomer is ∼90 times faster than the α-anomer. This research identifies the importance of anomer dynamics, a feature unique to formamidopyrimidines, when considering the incorporation of nucleotides opposite Fapy•dG and potentially the repair of this structurally unusual lesion.

Effects of N7-Alkylguanine Conformation and Metal Cofactors on the Translesion Synthesis by Human DNA Polymerase η

Non-enzymatic alkylation on DNA often generates N7-alkyl-2'-deoxyguanosine (N7alkylG) adducts as major lesions. N7alkylG adducts significantly block replicative DNA polymerases and can be bypassed by translesion synthesis (TLS) polymerases such as polymerase η (polη). To gain insights into the bypass of N7alkylG by TLS polymerases, we conducted kinetic and structural studies of polη catalyzing across N7BnG, a genotoxic lesion generated by the carcinogenic N-nitrosobenzylmethylamine. The presence of templating N7BnG in the polη catalytic site decreased the replication fidelity by ∼9-fold, highlighting the promutagenicity of N7BnG. The catalytic efficiency for dCTP incorporation opposite N7BnG decreased ∼22-fold and ∼7-fold compared to the incorporation opposite undamaged guanine in the presence of Mg²⁺ and Mn²⁺, respectively. A crystal structure of the complexes grown with polη, templating N7BnG, incoming dCTP, and Mg²⁺ ions showed the lack of the incoming nucleotide and metal cofactors in the polη catalytic site. Interestingly, the templating N7BnG adopted a syn conformation, which has not been observed in the published N7alkylG structures. The preferential formation of syn-N7BnG conformation at the templating site may deter the binding of an incoming dCTP, causing the inefficient bypass by polη. In contrast, the use of Mn²⁺ in place of Mg²⁺ in co-crystallization yielded a ternary complex displaying an anti-N7BnG:dCTP base pair and catalytic metal ions, which would be a close mimic of a catalytically competent state. We conclude that certain bulky N7-alkylG lesions can slow TLS polymerase-mediated bypass by adopting a catalytically unfavorable syn conformation in the replicating base pair site.

Etheno adducts: from tRNA modifications to DNA adducts and back to miscoding ribonucleotides

Etheno (and ethano) derivatives of nucleic acid bases have an extra 5-membered ring attached. These were first noted as wyosine bases in tRNAs. Some were fluorescent, and the development of etheno derivatives of adenosine, cytosine, and guanosine led to the synthesis of fluorescent analogs of ATP, NAD+, and other cofactors for use in biochemical studies. Early studies with the carcinogen vinyl chloride revealed that these modified bases were being formed in DNA and RNA and might be responsible for mutations and cancer. The etheno bases are also derived from other carcinogenic vinyl monomers. Further work showed that endogenous etheno DNA adducts were present in animals and humans and are derived from lipid peroxidation. The chemical mechanisms of etheno adduct formation involve reactions with bis-electrophiles generated by cytochrome P450 enzymes or lipid peroxidation, which have been established in isotopic labeling studies. The mechanisms by which etheno DNA adducts miscode have been studied with several DNA polymerases, aided by the X-ray crystal structures of these polymerases in mispairing situations and in extension beyond mispairs. Repair of etheno DNA adduct damage is done primarily by glycosylases and also by the direct action of dioxygenases. Some human DNA polymerases (η, κ) can insert bases opposite etheno adducts in DNA and RNA, and the reverse transcriptase activity may be of relevance with the RNA etheno adducts. Further questions involve the extent that the etheno adducts contribute to human cancer.

Translesion synthesis of the major nitrogen mustard-induced DNA lesion by human DNA polymerase η

Nitrogen mustards are among the first modern anticancer chemotherapeutics that are still widely used as non-specific anticancer alkylating agents. While the mechanism of action of mustard drugs involves the generation of DNA interstrand cross-links, the predominant lesions produced by these drugs are nitrogen half-mustard-N7-dG (NHMG) adducts. The bulky major groove lesion NHMG, if left unrepaired, can be bypassed by translesion synthesis (TLS) DNA polymerases. However, studies of the TLS past NHMG have not been reported so far. Here, we present the first synthesis of an oligonucleotide containing a site-specific NHMG. We also report kinetic and structural characterization of human DNA polymerase η (polη) bypassing NHMG. The templating NHMG slows dCTP incorporation ∼130-fold, while it increases the misincorporation frequency ∼10-30-fold, highlighting the promutagenic nature of NHMG. A crystal structure of polη incorporating dCTP opposite NHMG shows a Watson-Crick NHMG:dCTP base pair with a large propeller twist angle. The nitrogen half-mustard moiety fits snugly into an open cleft created by the Arg61-Trp64 loop of polη, suggesting a role of the Arg61-Trp64 loop in accommodating bulky major groove adducts during lesion bypass. Overall, our results presented here to provide first insights into the TLS of the major DNA adduct formed by nitrogen mustard drugs.

Guanine-guided time-resolved luminescence recognition of DNA modification and i-motif formation by a terbium(III)-platinum(II) complex

Site-specific recognition of DNA modification or the formation of noncanonical structures has important applications in molecular biology, disease diagnosis, and gene expression analysis. In this study, we introduce a guanine-guided sensing tool using a terbium(III)-platinum(II) complex (TPC) as a time-resolved luminescence probe to site-specifically recognize DNA modification and i-motif formation in aqueous solution. The probe is composed of a Tb^III center as the luminescent reporter and two Pt^II units as the receptor for guanine (G) nucleobase. TPC exhibits remarkable reaction selectivity for guanine nucleotides over other nucleotides, giving rise to a significant increase in luminescence. The luminescence enhancement of TPC is mainly attributed to an energy transfer from G base to the Tb^III center after the specific coordination of Pt^II with N7 of guanine (N7-G), which would be facilitated by the phosphates through promoting the departure of coordinated water and bringing G closer to Tb^IIIvia noncovalent interactions. Based on such sensing feature, the enhanced luminescence of TPC sensitized by G nucleotides can correspondingly decrease upon N7-G modifications of DNA or i-motif formation through constructing simple guanine-guided sensing tools. This probe would provide a useful strategy for site-specific recognition of DNA for extensive purposes.

Bypass of the Major Alkylative DNA Lesion by Human DNA Polymerase η

A wide range of endogenous and exogenous alkylating agents attack DNA to generate various alkylation adducts. N7-methyl-2-deoxyguanosine (Fm7dG) is the most abundant alkylative DNA lesion. If not repaired, Fm7dG can undergo spontaneous depurination, imidazole ring-opening, or bypass by translesion synthesis DNA polymerases. Human DNA polymerase η (polη) efficiently catalyzes across Fm7dG in vitro, but its structural basis is unknown. Herein, we report a crystal structure of polη in complex with templating Fm7dG and an incoming nonhydrolyzable dCTP analog, where a 2'-fluorine-mediated transition destabilization approach was used to prevent the spontaneous depurination of Fm7dG. The structure showed that polη readily accommodated the Fm7dG:dCTP base pair with little conformational change of protein and DNA. In the catalytic site, Fm7dG and dCTP formed three hydrogen bonds with a Watson-Crick geometry, indicating that the major keto tautomer of Fm7dG is involved in base pairing. The polη-Fm7dG:dCTP structure was essentially identical to the corresponding undamaged structure, which explained the efficient bypass of the major methylated lesion. Overall, the first structure of translesion synthesis DNA polymerase bypassing Fm7dG suggests that in the catalytic site of Y-family DNA polymerases, small N7-alkylguanine adducts may be well tolerated and form the canonical Watson-Crick base pair with dCTP through their keto tautomers.

The abundant DNA adduct N 7-methyl deoxyguanosine contributes to miscoding during replication by human DNA polymerase η

Aside from abasic sites and ribonucleotides, the DNA adduct N ⁷-methyl deoxyguanosine (N⁷ -CH₃ dG) is one of the most abundant lesions in mammalian DNA. Because N⁷ -CH₃ dG is unstable, leading to deglycosylation and ring-opening, its miscoding potential is not well-understood. Here, we employed a 2'-fluoro isostere approach to synthesize an oligonucleotide containing an analog of this lesion (N⁷ -CH₃ 2'-F dG) and examined its miscoding potential with four Y-family translesion synthesis DNA polymerases (pols): human pol (hpol) η, hpol κ, and hpol ι and Dpo4 from the archaeal thermophile Sulfolobus solfataricus We found that hpol η and Dpo4 can bypass the N⁷ -CH₃ 2'-F dG adduct, albeit with some stalling, but hpol κ is strongly blocked at this lesion site, whereas hpol ι showed no distinction with the lesion and the control templates. hpol η yielded the highest level of misincorporation opposite the adduct by inserting dATP or dTTP. Moreover, hpol η did not extend well past an N ⁷-CH₃ 2'-F dG:dT mispair. MS-based sequence analysis confirmed that hpol η catalyzes mainly error-free incorporation of dC, with misincorporation of dA and dG in 5-10% of products. We conclude that N ⁷-CH₃ 2'-F dG and, by inference, N ⁷-CH₃ dG have miscoding and mutagenic potential. The level of misincorporation arising from this abundant adduct can be considered as potentially mutagenic as a highly miscoding but rare lesion.

Effect of Histone Lysine Methylation on DNA Lesion Reactivity in Nucleosome Core Particles

Lysine methylation is a common post-translational histone modification that regulates transcription and gene expression. The lysine residues in the histone tail also react with damaged nucleotides in chromatin, including abasic sites and N7-methyl-2'-deoxyguanosine, the major product of DNA methylating agents. Lysine monomethylation transforms the ε-amine into a secondary amine, which could be more nucleophilic and/or basic than the ε-amine in lysine, and therefore more reactive with damaged DNA. The effect of lysine methylation on the reactivity with abasic sites and N7-methyl-2'-deoxyguanosine was examined in nucleosome core particles using a methylated lysine analogue derived from cysteine. ε-Amine methylation increases the rate constant for abasic site reaction within nucleosome core particles. Reactivity at the two positions examined increased less than twofold. Mechanistic experiments indicate that faster β-elimination from an intermediate iminium ion accounts for accelerated abasic reactivity. The rate constants for nucleophilic attack (Schiff base/iminium ion formation) by the lysine and methylated lysine analogues are indistinguishable. Similarly, the rate constants describing nucleophilic attack by the lysine and methylated lysine analogues on β-2'-fluoro-N7-methyl-2'-deoxyguanosine to form DNA-protein cross-links are also within experimental error of one another. These data indicate that abasic site containing DNA will be destabilized by lysine methylation. However, these experiments do not indicate that DNA-protein cross-link formation, a recently discovered form of damage resulting from N7-guanine methylation, will be affected by this post-translational modification.

Defining the Role of Nucleotide Flipping in Enzyme Specificity Using 19F NMR

A broad range of proteins employ nucleotide flipping to recognize specific sites in nucleic acids, including DNA glycosylases, which remove modified nucleobases to initiate base excision repair. Deamination, a pervasive mode of damage, typically generates lesions that are recognized by glycosylases as being foreign to DNA. However, deamination of 5-methylcytosine (mC) generates thymine, a canonical DNA base, presenting a challenge for damage recognition. Nevertheless, repair of mC deamination is important because the resulting G·T mispairs cause C → T transition mutations, and mC is abundant in all three domains of life. Countering this threat are three types of glycosylases that excise thymine from G·T mispairs, including thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG). These enzymes must minimize excision of thymine that is not generated by mC deamination, in A·T pairs and in polymerase-generated G·T mispairs. TDG preferentially removes thymine from DNA contexts in which cytosine methylation is prevalent, including CG and one non-CG site. This remarkable context specificity could be attained through modulation of nucleotide flipping, a reversible step that precedes base excision. We tested this idea using fluorine NMR and DNA containing 2'-fluoro-substituted nucleotides. We find that dT nucleotide flipping depends on DNA context and is efficient only in contexts known to feature cytosine methylation. We also show that a conserved Ala residue limits thymine excision by hindering nucleotide flipping. A linear free energy correlation reveals that TDG attains context specificity for thymine excision through modulation of nucleotide flipping. Our results provide a framework for characterizing nucleotide flipping in nucleic acids using ¹⁹F NMR.

Structural and Kinetic Studies of the Effect of Guanine N7 Alkylation and Metal Cofactors on DNA Replication

A wide variety of endogenous and exogenous alkylating agents attack DNA to preferentially generate N7-alkylguanine (N7-alkylG) adducts. Studies of the effect of N7-alkylG lesions on biological processes have been difficult in part because of complications arising from the chemical lability of the positively charged N7-alkylG, which can readily produce secondary lesions. To assess the effect of bulky N7-alkylG on DNA replication, we prepared chemically stable N7-benzylguanine (N7bnG)-containing DNA and evaluated nucleotide incorporation opposite the lesion by human DNA polymerase β (polβ), a model enzyme for high-fidelity DNA polymerases. Kinetic studies showed that the N7-benzyl-G lesion greatly inhibited dCTP incorporation by polβ. The crystal structure of polβ incorporating dCTP opposite N7bnG showed a Watson-Crick N7bnG:dCTP structure. The polβ-N7bnG:dCTP structure showed an open protein conformation, a relatively disordered dCTP, and a lack of catalytic metal, which explained the inefficient nucleotide incorporation opposite N7bnG. This indicates that polβ is sensitive to major groove adducts in the templating base side and deters nucleotide incorporation opposite bulky N7-alkylG adducts by adopting a catalytically incompetent conformation. Substituting Mg²⁺ for Mn²⁺ induced an open-to-closed conformational change due to the presence of catalytic metal and stably bound dCTP and increased the catalytic efficiency by ∼10-fold, highlighting the effect of binding of the incoming nucleotide and catalytic metal on protein conformation and nucleotidyl transfer reaction. Overall, these results suggest that, although bulky alkyl groups at guanine-N7 may not alter base pairing properties of guanine, the major groove-positioned lesions in the template could impede nucleotidyl transfer by some DNA polymerases.

Synthesis and biological applications of fluoro-modified nucleic acids

Owing to the unique physical properties of a fluorine atom, incorporating fluoro-modifications into nucleic acids offers striking biophysical and biochemical features, and thus significantly extends the breadth and depth of biological applications of nucleic acids. In this review, fluoro-modified nucleic acids that have been synthesized through either solid phase synthesis or the enzymatic approach are briefly summarised, followed by a section describing their biomedical applications in nucleic acid-based therapeutics, ¹⁸F PET imaging and mechanistic studies of DNA modifying enzymes. In the last part, the utility of ¹⁹F NMR and MRI for probing the structure, dynamics and molecular interactions of fluorinated nucleic acids is reviewed.

2'-(R)-Fluorinated mC, hmC, fC and caC triphosphates are substrates for DNA polymerases and TET-enzymes

A deeper investigation of the chemistry that occurs on the newly discovered epigenetic DNA bases 5-hydroxymethyl-(hmdC), 5-formyl-(fdC), and 5-carboxy-deoxycytidine (cadC) requires chemical tool compounds, which are able to dissect the different potential reaction pathways in cells. Here we report that the 2'-(R)-fluorinated derivatives F-hmdC, F-fdC, and F-cadC, which are resistant to removal by base excision repair, are good substrates for DNA polymerases and TET enzymes. This result shows that the fluorinated compounds are ideal tool substances to investigate potential C-C-bond cleaving reactions in the context of active demethylation.

Toxicity and repair of DNA adducts produced by the natural product yatakemycin

Yatakemycin (YTM) is an extraordinarily toxic DNA alkylating agent with potent antimicrobial and antitumor properties and the most recent addition to the CC-1065 and duocarmycin family of natural products. While bulky DNA lesions the size of those produced by YTM are normally removed from the genome by the nucleotide excision repair (NER) pathway, YTM adducts are also a substrate for the bacterial DNA glycosylases AlkD and YtkR2, unexpectedly implicating base excision repair (BER) in their elimination. The reason for the extreme toxicity of these lesions and the molecular basis for how they are eliminated by BER have been unclear. Here, we describe the structural and biochemical properties of YTM adducts responsible for their toxicity, and define the mechanism by which they are excised by AlkD. These findings delineate an alternative strategy for repair of bulky DNA damage and establish the cellular utility of this pathway relative to that of NER.

Preparation of Stable Nitrogen Mustard DNA Interstrand Cross-Link Analogs for Biochemical and Cell Biological Studies

Nitrogen mustards (NMs) react with two bases on opposite strands of a DNA duplex to form a covalent linkage, yielding adducts called DNA interstrand cross-links (ICLs). This prevents helix unwinding, blocking essential processes such as replication and transcription. Accumulation of ICLs causes cell death in rapidly dividing cells, especially cancer cells, making ICL-forming agents like NMs valuable in chemotherapy. However, the repair of ICLs can contribute to chemoresistance through a number of pathways that remain poorly understood. One of the impediments in studying NM ICL repair mechanisms has been the difficulty of generating site-specific and stable NM ICLs. Here, we describe two methods to synthesize stable NM ICL analogs that make it possible to study DNA ICL repair. As a proof of principle of the suitability of these NM ICLs for biochemical and cell biological studies, we use them in primer extension assays with Klenow polymerase. We show that the NM ICL analogs block the polymerase activity and remain intact under our experimental conditions.

Structural Basis for Excision of 5-Formylcytosine by Thymine DNA Glycosylase

Thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG) is a base excision repair enzyme with key functions in epigenetic regulation. Performing a critical step in a pathway for active DNA demethylation, TDG removes 5-formylcytosine and 5-carboxylcytosine, oxidized derivatives of 5-methylcytosine that are generated by TET (ten-eleven translocation) enzymes. We determined a crystal structure of TDG bound to DNA with a noncleavable (2'-fluoroarabino) analogue of 5-formyldeoxycytidine flipped into its active site, revealing how it recognizes and hydrolytically excises fC. Together with previous structural and biochemical findings, the results illustrate how TDG employs an adaptable active site to excise a broad variety of nucleobases from DNA.

Structural basis of damage recognition by thymine DNA glycosylase: Key roles for N-terminal residues

Thymine DNA Glycosylase (TDG) is a base excision repair enzyme functioning in DNA repair and epigenetic regulation. TDG removes thymine from mutagenic G·T mispairs arising from deamination of 5-methylcytosine (mC), and it processes other deamination-derived lesions including uracil (U). Essential for DNA demethylation, TDG excises 5-formylcytosine and 5-carboxylcytosine, derivatives of mC generated by Tet (ten-eleven translocation) enzymes. Here, we report structural and functional studies of TDG^82-308, a new construct containing 29 more N-terminal residues than TDG^111-308, the construct used for previous structures of DNA-bound TDG. Crystal structures and NMR experiments demonstrate that most of these N-terminal residues are disordered, for substrate- or product-bound TDG^82-308 Nevertheless, G·T substrate affinity and glycosylase activity of TDG^82-308 greatly exceeds that of TDG^111-308 and is equivalent to full-length TDG. We report the first high-resolution structures of TDG in an enzyme-substrate complex, for G·U bound to TDG^82-308 (1.54 Å) and TDG^111-308 (1.71 Å), revealing new enzyme-substrate contacts, direct and water-mediated. We also report a structure of the TDG^82-308 product complex (1.70 Å). TDG^82-308 forms unique enzyme-DNA interactions, supporting its value for structure-function studies. The results advance understanding of how TDG recognizes and removes modified bases from DNA, particularly those resulting from deamination.

N7 methylation alters hydrogen-bonding patterns of guanine in duplex DNA

N7-Alkyl-2'-deoxyguanosines are major adducts in DNA that are generated by various alkylating mutagens and drugs. However, the effect of the N7 alkylation on the hydrogen-bonding patterns of the guanine remains poorly understood. We prepared N7-methyl-2'-deoxyguanosine (N7mdG)-containing DNA using a transition-state destabilization strategy, developed a novel polβ-host-guest complex system, and determined eight crystal structures of N7mdG or dG paired with dC, dT, dG, and dA. The structures of N7mdG:dC and N7mdG:dG are very similar to those of dG:dC and dG:dG, respectively, indicating the involvement of the keto tautomeric form of N7mdG in the base pairings with dC and dG. On the other hand, the structure of N7mdG:dT shows that the mispair forms three hydrogen bonds and adopts a Watson-Crick-like geometry rather than a wobble geometry, suggesting that the enol tautomeric form of N7mdG involves in its base pairing with dT. In addition, N7mdG:dA adopts a novel shifted anti:syn base pair presumably via the enol tautomeric form of N7mdG. The polβ-host-guest complex structures reveal that guanine-N7 methylation changes the hydrogen-bonding patterns of the guanine when paired with dT or dA and suggest that N7 alkylation may alter the base pairing patterns of guanine by promoting the formation of the rare enol tautomeric form of guanine.

Structural Basis for Error-Free Bypass of the 5-N-Methylformamidopyrimidine-dG Lesion by Human DNA Polymerase η and Sulfolobus solfataricus P2 Polymerase IV

N(6)-(2-Deoxy-D-erythro-pentofuranosyl)-2,6-diamino-3,4-dihydro-4-oxo-5-N-methylformamidopyrimidine (MeFapy-dG) arises from N7-methylation of deoxyguanosine followed by imidazole ring opening. The lesion has been reported to persist in animal tissues. Previous in vitro replication bypass investigations of the MeFapy-dG adduct revealed predominant insertion of C opposite the lesion, dependent on the identity of the DNA polymerase (Pol) and the local sequence context. Here we report crystal structures of ternary Pol·DNA·dNTP complexes between MeFapy-dG-adducted DNA template:primer duplexes and the Y-family polymerases human Pol η and P2 Pol IV (Dpo4) from Sulfolobus solfataricus. The structures of the hPol η and Dpo4 complexes at the insertion and extension stages, respectively, are representative of error-free replication, with MeFapy-dG in the anti conformation and forming Watson-Crick pairs with dCTP or dC.

Transition-state destabilization reveals how human DNA polymerase β proceeds across the chemically unstable lesion N7-methylguanine

N7-Methyl-2′-deoxyguanosine (m7dG) is the predominant lesion formed by methylating agents. A systematic investigation on the effect of m7dG on DNA replication has been difficult due to the chemical instability of m7dG. To gain insights into the m7dG effect, we employed a 2′-fluorine-mediated transition-state destabilzation strategy. Specifically, we determined kinetic parameters for dCTP insertion opposite a chemically stable m7dG analogue, 2′-fluoro-m7dG (Fm7dG), by human DNA polymerase β (polβ) and solved three X-ray structures of polβ in complex with the templating Fm7dG paired with incoming dCTP or dTTP analogues. The kinetic studies reveal that the templating Fm7dG slows polβ catalysis ∼300-fold, suggesting that m7dG in genomic DNA may impede replication by some DNA polymerases. The structural analysis reveals that Fm7dG forms a canonical Watson–Crick base pair with dCTP, but metal ion coordination is suboptimal for catalysis in the polβ-Fm7dG:dCTP complex, which partially explains the slow insertion of dCTP opposite Fm7dG by polβ. In addition, the polβ-Fm7dG:dTTP structure shows open protein conformations and staggered base pair conformations, indicating that N7-methylation of dG does not promote a promutagenic replication. Overall, the first systematic studies on the effect of m7dG on DNA replication reveal that polβ catalysis across m7dG is slow, yet highly accurate.

Bacterial sigma factors: a historical, structural, and genomic perspective

Transcription initiation is the crucial focal point of gene expression in prokaryotes. The key players in this process, sigma factors (σs), associate with the catalytic core RNA polymerase to guide it through the essential steps of initiation: promoter recognition and opening, and synthesis of the first few nucleotides of the transcript. Here we recount the key advances in σ biology, from their discovery 45 years ago to the most recent progress in understanding their structure and function at the atomic level. Recent data provide important structural insights into the mechanisms whereby σs initiate promoter opening. We discuss both the housekeeping σs, which govern transcription of the majority of cellular genes, and the alternative σs, which direct RNA polymerase to specialized operons in response to environmental and physiological cues. The review concludes with a genome-scale view of the extracytoplasmic function σs, the most abundant group of alternative σs.

Actions of the Klenow fragment of DNA polymerase I and some DNA glycosylases on chemically stable analogues of N7-methyl-2'-deoxyguanosine

N7-methyl-9-deaza-dG was synthesized and incorporated into oligonucleotides. Thermal melting studies showed that replacement of dG by N7-methyl-9-deaza-dG only slightly decreased DNA duplex stability. Replication of DNA templates containing N7-methyl-9-deaza-dG and the related 7-methyl-7-deaza-dG and 7-deaza-dG by the Klenow fragment of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I was examined. The dNTP misinsertion frequencies on all three templates were comparably low, although the 7-methyl group significantly slowed down the turnover rates of the polymerase when dCTP was incorporated. The stabilities of N7-methyl-9-deaza-dG and 7-methyl-7-deaza-dG against the actions of formamidopyrimidine DNA glycosylase (Fpg) and human alkyladenine DNA glycosylase (hAAG) were also examined. N7-methyl-9-deaza-dG was stable in the presence of both enzymes. In contrast, 7-methyl-7-deaza-dG was cleaved by Fpg, and possibly by hAAG but at an extremely slow rate. This study suggests that N7-alkyl-9-deaza-dG is a better analogue than 7-alkyl-7-deaza-dG for cellular studies.

RNA polymerase: in search of promoters

Transcription initiation is a key event in the regulation of gene expression. RNA polymerase (RNAP), the central enzyme of transcription, is able to efficiently locate promoters in the genome, carry out promoter opening, and initiate RNA synthesis. All the substeps of transcription initiation are subject to complex cellular regulation. Understanding the molecular details of each step in the promoter-opening pathway is essential for a complete mechanistic and quantitative picture of gene expression. In this minireview, primarily using bacterial RNAP as an example, I briefly summarize some of the key recent advances in our understanding of the mechanisms of promoter search and promoter opening.

Trifluoroethanol solvent facilitates selective N-7 methylation of purines

Purines protected at N-9 by p-methoxybenzyl are methylated or ethylated in 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol at N-7 by trimethyl- or triethyl-oxonium borofluorate, respectively. Subjecting the resulting cationic species to microwave irradiation releases an N(7)-methyl- or ethyl-purine. This one-pot procedure is an efficient regiospecific method applicable to diverse substrates.

Synthesis of DNA oligos containing 2'-deoxy-2'-fluoro-D-arabinofuranosyl-5-carboxylcytosine as hTDG inhibitor

As an important step of the active demethylation of 5-methylcytosine (5mC), human thymine DNA glycosylase (hTDG) efficiently excises 5-carboxylcytosine (5caC) from double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). Here, we present synthesis of DNA oligos containing a 2'-deoxy-2'-fluoro-D-arabinofuranosyl-5-carboxylcytidine (F-5caC) modification that act as hTDG inhibitors. The glycosylase activity assay showed that F-5caC oligos were resistant to excision by the hTDG catalytic domain (hTDG(cat), residues 111-308) and they could inhibit the excision of DNA oligos containing 5caC. The electrophoretic mobility shift assay confirmed that DNA oligos containing F-5caC could bind well with unmodified hTDG(cat) to form a stable complex, which makes it possible to obtain the crystal structure of the complex to reveal details on how hTDG(cat) recognizes the DNA substrate.

Dynamic metabolic labeling of DNA in vivo with arabinosyl nucleosides

Commonly used metabolic labels for DNA, including 5-ethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine (EdU) and BrdU, are toxic antimetabolites that cause DNA instability, necrosis, and cell-cycle arrest. In addition to perturbing biological function, these properties can prevent metabolic labeling studies where subsequent tissue survival is needed. To bypass the metabolic pathways responsible for toxicity, while maintaining the ability to be metabolically incorporated into DNA, we synthesized and evaluated a small family of arabinofuranosyl-ethynyluracil derivatives. Among these, (2'S)-2'-deoxy-2'-fluoro-5-ethynyluridine (F-ara-EdU) exhibited selective DNA labeling, yet had a minimal impact on genome function in diverse tissue types. Metabolic incorporation of F-ara-EdU into DNA was readily detectable using copper(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne "click" reactions with fluorescent azides. F-ara-EdU is less toxic than both BrdU and EdU, and it can be detected with greater sensitivity in experiments where long-term cell survival and/or deep-tissue imaging are desired. In contrast to previously reported 2'-arabino modified nucleosides and EdU, F-ara-EdU causes little or no cellular arrest or DNA synthesis inhibition. F-ara-EdU is therefore ideally suited for pulse-chase experiments aimed at "birth dating" DNA in vivo. As a demonstration, Zebrafish embryos were microinjected with F-ara-EdU at the one-cell stage and chased by BrdU at 10 h after fertilization. Following 3 d of development, complex patterns of quiescent/senescent cells containing only F-ara-EdU were observed in larvae along the dorsal side of the notochord and epithelia. Arabinosyl nucleoside derivatives therefore provide unique and effective means to introduce bioorthogonal functional groups into DNA for diverse applications in basic research, biotechnology, and drug discovery.

Kinetic mechanism for the excision of hypoxanthine by Escherichia coli AlkA and evidence for binding to DNA ends

The Escherichia coli 3-methyladenine DNA glycosylase II protein (AlkA) recognizes a broad range of oxidized and alkylated base lesions and catalyzes the hydrolysis of the N-glycosidic bond to initiate the base excision repair pathway. Although the enzyme was one of the first DNA repair glycosylases to be discovered more than 25 years ago and there are multiple crystal structures, the mechanism is poorly understood. Therefore, we have characterized the kinetic mechanism for the AlkA-catalyzed excision of the deaminated purine, hypoxanthine. The multiple-turnover glycosylase assays are consistent with Michaelis-Menten kinetics. However, under single-turnover conditions that are commonly employed for studying other DNA glycosylases, we observe an unusual biphasic protein saturation curve. Initially, the observed rate constant for excision increases with an increasing level of AlkA protein, but at higher protein concentrations, the rate constant decreases. This behavior can be most easily explained by tight binding to DNA ends and by crowding of multiple AlkA protamers on the DNA. Consistent with this model, crystal structures have shown the preferential binding of AlkA to DNA ends. By varying the position of the lesion, we identified an asymmetric substrate that does not show inhibition at higher concentrations of AlkA, and we performed pre-steady state and steady state kinetic analysis. Unlike the situation in other glycosylases, release of the abasic product is faster than N-glycosidic bond cleavage. Nevertheless, AlkA exhibits significant product inhibition under multiple-turnover conditions, and it binds approximately 10-fold more tightly to an abasic site than to a hypoxanthine lesion site. This tight binding could help protect abasic sites when the adaptive response to DNA alkylation is activated and very high levels of AlkA protein are present.

Dependence of substrate binding and catalysis on pH, ionic strength, and temperature for thymine DNA glycosylase: Insights into recognition and processing of G·T mispairs

Repair of G·T mismatches arising from deamination of 5-methylcytosine (m(5)C) involves excision of thymine and restoration of a G·C pair via base excision repair (BER). Thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG) is one of two mammalian enzymes that can specifically remove thymine from G·T mispairs. While TDG can excise other bases, it maintains stringent specificity for a CpG context, suggesting deaminated m(5)C is an important biological substrate. Recent studies reveal TDG is essential for embryogenesis; it helps to maintain an active chromatin complex and initiates BER to counter aberrant de novo CpG methylation, which may involve excision of actively deaminated m(5)C. The relatively weak G·T activity of TDG has been implicated in the hypermutability of CpG sites, which largely involves C→T transitions arising from m(5)C deamination. Thus, it is important to understand how TDG recognizes and process substrates, particularly G·T mispairs. Here, we extend our detailed studies of TDG by examining the dependence of substrate binding and catalysis on pH, ionic strength, and temperature. Catalytic activity is relatively constant for pH 5.5-9, but falls sharply for pH>9 due to severely weakened substrate binding, and, potentially, ionization of the target base. Substrate binding and catalysis diminish sharply with increasing ionic strength, particularly for G·T substrates, due partly to effects on nucleotide flipping. TDG aggregates rapidly and irreversibly at 37°C, but can be stabilized by specific and nonspecific DNA. The temperature dependence of catalysis reveals large and unexpected differences for G·U and G·T substrates, where G·T activity exhibits much steeper temperature dependence. The results suggest that reversible nucleotide flipping is much more rapid for G·T substrates, consistent with our previous findings that steric effects limit the active-site lifetime of thymine, which may account for the relatively weak G·T activity. Our findings provide important insight into catalysis by TDG, particularly for mutagenic G·T mispairs.

Stoichiometry and affinity for thymine DNA glycosylase binding to specific and nonspecific DNA

Deamination of 5-methylcytosine to thymine creates mutagenic G·T mispairs, contributing to cancer and genetic disease. Thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG) removes thymine from these G·T lesions, and follow-on base excision repair yields a G·C pair. A previous crystal structure revealed TDG (catalytic domain) bound to abasic DNA product in a 2:1 complex, one subunit at the abasic site and the other bound to undamaged DNA. Biochemical studies showed TDG can bind abasic DNA with 1:1 or 2:1 stoichiometry, but the dissociation constants were unknown, as was the stoichiometry and affinity for binding substrates and undamaged DNA. We showed that 2:1 binding is dispensable for G·U activity, but its role in G·T repair was unknown. Using equilibrium binding anisotropy experiments, we show that a single TDG subunit binds very tightly to G·U mispairs and abasic (G·AP) sites, and somewhat less tightly G·T mispairs. Kinetics experiments show 1:1 binding provides full G·T activity. TDG binds undamaged CpG sites with remarkable affinity, modestly weaker than G·T mispairs, and exhibits substantial affinity for nonspecific DNA. While 2:1 binding is observed for large excess TDG concentrations, our findings indicate that a single TDG subunit is fully capable of locating and processing G·U or G·T lesions.

Structure of Escherichia coli AlkA in complex with undamaged DNA

Because DNA damage is so rare, DNA glycosylases interact for the most part with undamaged DNA. Whereas the structural basis for recognition of DNA lesions by glycosylases has been studied extensively, less is known about the nature of the interaction between these proteins and undamaged DNA. Here we report the crystal structures of the DNA glycosylase AlkA in complex with undamaged DNA. The structures revealed a recognition mode in which the DNA is nearly straight, with no amino acid side chains inserted into the duplex, and the target base pair is fully intrahelical. A comparison of the present structures with that of AlkA recognizing an extrahelical lesion revealed conformational changes in both the DNA and protein as the glycosylase transitions from the interrogation of undamaged DNA to catalysis of nucleobase excision. Modeling studies with the cytotoxic lesion 3-methyladenine and accompanying biochemical experiments suggested that AlkA actively interrogates the minor groove of the DNA while probing for the presence of lesions.

An unprecedented nucleic acid capture mechanism for excision of DNA damage

DNA glycosylases that remove alkylated and deaminated purine nucleobases are essential DNA repair enzymes that protect the genome, and at the same time confound cancer alkylation therapy, by excising cytotoxic N3-methyladenine bases formed by DNA-targeting anticancer compounds. The basis for glycosylase specificity towards N3- and N7-alkylpurines is believed to result from intrinsic instability of the modified bases and not from direct enzyme functional group chemistry. Here we present crystal structures of the recently discovered Bacillus cereus AlkD glycosylase in complex with DNAs containing alkylated, mismatched and abasic nucleotides. Unlike other glycosylases, AlkD captures the extrahelical lesion in a solvent-exposed orientation, providing an illustration for how hydrolysis of N3- and N7-alkylated bases may be facilitated by increased lifetime out of the DNA helix. The structures and supporting biochemical analysis of base flipping and catalysis reveal how the HEAT repeats of AlkD distort the DNA backbone to detect non-Watson-Crick base pairs without duplex intercalation.

Incorporation of gemcitabine and cytarabine into DNA by DNA polymerase beta and ligase III/XRCC1

1-Beta-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine (cytarabine, araC) and 2',2'-difluoro-2'-deoxycytidine (gemcitabine, dFdC), are effective cancer chemotherapeutic agents due to their ability to become incorporated into DNA and then subsequently inhibit DNA synthesis by replicative DNA polymerases. However, the impact of these 3'-modified nucleotides on the activity of specialized DNA polymerases has not been investigated. The role of polymerase beta and base excision repair may be of particular importance due to the increased oxidative stress in tumors, increased oxidative stress caused by chemotherapy treatment, and the variable amounts of polymerase beta in tumors. Here we directly investigate the incorporation of the 5'-triphosphorylated form of araC, dFdC, 2'-fluoro-2'-deoxycytidine (FdC), and cytidine into two nicked DNA substrates and the subsequent ligation. Opposite template dG, the relative k(pol)/K(d) for incorporation was dCTP > araCTP, dFdCTP >> rCTP. The relative k(pol)/K(d) for FdCTP depended on sequence. The effect on k(pol)/K(d) was due largely to changes in k(pol) with no differences in the affinity of the nucleoside triphosphates to the polymerase. Ligation efficiency by T4 ligase and ligase III/XRCC1 was largely unaffected by the nucleotide analogues. Our results show that BER is capable of incorporating araC and dFdC into the genome.

A single-strand specific lesion drives MMS-induced hyper-mutability at a double-strand break in yeast

Localized hyper-mutability (LHM) can be important in evolution, immunity, and genetic diseases. We previously reported that single-strand DNA (ssDNA) can be an important source of damage-induced LHM in yeast. Here, we establish that the generation of LHM by methyl methanesulfonate (MMS) during repair of a chromosomal double-strand break (DSB) can result in over 0.2 mutations/kb, which is approximately 20,000-fold higher than the MMS-induced mutation density without a DSB. The MMS-induced mutations associated with DSB repair were primarily due to substitutions via translesion DNA synthesis at damaged cytosines, even though there are nearly 10 times more MMS-induced lesions at other bases. Based on this mutation bias, the promutagenic lesion dominating LHM is likely 3-methylcytosine, which is single-strand specific. Thus, the dramatic increase in mutagenesis at a DSB is concluded to result primarily from the generation of non-repairable lesions in ssDNA associated with DSB repair along with efficient induction of highly mutagenic ssDNA-specific lesions. These findings with MMS-induced LHM have broad biological implications for unrepaired damage generated in ssDNA and possibly ssRNA.

Effects of nucleophile, oxidative damage, and nucleobase orientation on the glycosidic bond cleavage in deoxyguanosine

Deglycosylation of nucleotides occurs during many essential biological processes, including DNA repair, and is initiated by a variety of nucleophiles. In the present work, density functional theory (B3LYP) was used to investigate the thermodynamics and kinetics of the glycosidic bond cleavage reaction in the model nucleoside forms of guanine and its major oxidation product, 8-oxoguanine. Base excision facilitated by four different nucleophiles (hydroxyl anion (fully activated water), formate-water complex (partially activated water), lysine, and proline) was considered, which spans nucleophiles involved in a collection of spontaneous and enzyme-catalyzed processes. Because some enzymes that catalyze deglycosylation can accommodate more than one orientation of the base with respect to the sugar moiety, the effects of the (anti/syn) base orientation on the barrier height were also considered. We find that the nucleophile has a very large effect on the overall (gas-phase) reaction energetics. Although this effect decreases in different (polar) environments, the nucleophile has the greatest influence on the overall reaction as compared to whether the base is damaged or to the base orientation. Furthermore, the effects are significant in environments that most closely resemble (nonpolar) enzymatic active sites. Our results provide a greater understanding of the relative effects of the nucleophile, damage to the nucleobase, and the nucleobase orientation with respect to the sugar moiety on the deglycosylation pathway, which provide qualitative explanations for relative base excision rates observed in some biological systems.

Structure determination of DNA methylation lesions N1-meA and N3-meC in duplex DNA using a cross-linked protein-DNA system

N(1)-meA and N(3)-meC are cytotoxic DNA base methylation lesions that can accumulate in the genomes of various organisms in the presence of S(N)2 type methylating agents. We report here the structural characterization of these base lesions in duplex DNA using a cross-linked protein-DNA crystallization system. The crystal structure of N(1)-meA:T pair shows an unambiguous Hoogsteen base pair with a syn conformation adopted by N(1)-meA, which exhibits significant changes in the opening, roll and twist angles as compared to the normal A:T base pair. Unlike N(1)-meA, N(3)-meC does not establish any interaction with the opposite G, but remains partially intrahelical. Also, structurally characterized is the N(6)-meA base modification that forms a normal base pair with the opposite T in duplex DNA. Structural characterization of these base methylation modifications provides molecular level information on how they affect the overall structure of duplex DNA. In addition, the base pairs containing N(1)-meA or N(3)-meC do not share any specific characteristic properties except that both lesions create thermodynamically unstable regions in a duplex DNA, a property that may be explored by the repair proteins to locate these lesions.

Atomic substitution reveals the structural basis for substrate adenine recognition and removal by adenine DNA glycosylase

Adenine DNA glycosylase catalyzes the glycolytic removal of adenine from the promutagenic A.oxoG base pair in DNA. The general features of DNA recognition by an adenine DNA glycosylase, Bacillus stearothermophilus MutY, have previously been revealed via the X-ray structure of a catalytically inactive mutant protein bound to an A:oxoG-containing DNA duplex. Although the structure revealed the substrate adenine to be, as expected, extruded from the DNA helix and inserted into an extrahelical active site pocket on the enzyme, the substrate adenine engaged in no direct contacts with active site residues. This feature was paradoxical, because other glycosylases have been observed to engage their substrates primarily through direct contacts. The lack of direct contacts in the case of MutY suggested that either MutY uses a distinctive logic for substrate recognition or that the X-ray structure had captured a noncatalytically competent state in lesion recognition. To gain further insight into this issue, we crystallized wild-type MutY bound to DNA containing a catalytically inactive analog of 2'-deoxyadenosine in which a single 2'-H atom was replaced by fluorine. The structure of this fluorinated lesion-recognition complex (FLRC) reveals the substrate adenine buried more deeply into the active site pocket than in the prior structure and now engaged in multiple direct hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interactions. This structure appears to capture the catalytically competent state of adenine DNA glycosylases, and it suggests a catalytic mechanism for this class of enzymes, one in which general acid-catalyzed protonation of the nucleobase promotes glycosidic bond cleavage.

Positively charged base surrogate for highly stable "base pairing" through electrostatic and stacking interactions

"Base pairs" of cationic dyes (p-methylstilbazole) were incorporated into oligodeoxyribonucleotides (ODNs). This "base pair" greatly stabilized the duplex through electrostatic and stacking interactions. The melting temperature of modified ODN was higher than those of neutral dyes and native base pairs. Further stabilization of the duplex was observed when the number of cationic dyes increased.