Mechanisms of targeted frameshift mutations: Insertions arising during error-prone or SOS synthesis of DNA containing cis-syn cyclobutane thymine dimers

It is still unclear how frameshift mutations arise at cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers. The polymerase model is commonly used to explain the mechanisms of various mutations. An alternative polymerase-tautomer model was developed for UV-induced mutagenesis. A mechanism was proposed for targeted insertions caused by cis-syn cyclobutane thymine dimers. Targeted insertions are frameshift mutations due to addition of one or more nucleotides in a DNA sequence opposite to a lesion capable of stopping DNA synthesis. Among other factors, cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers can cause targeted insertions. UV irradiation can change the tautomeric form of DNA bases. Five rare tautomeric forms are possible for thymine, and they are stable when the thymine is a component of a cyclobutane dimer. A structural analysis showed that none of the canonical nucleotides can be added opposite to a specific rare thymine tautomer so that hydrogen bonds form between the two bases. A single nucleotide gap is consequently left in the corresponding site of the nascent strand when a specialized or modified DNA polymerase drives SOS or error-prone DNA synthesis on a template containing cis-syn cyclobutane thymine dimers with a base occurring in the rare tautomeric form. If the DNA composition is homogenous within the region, the end of the growing DNA strand may slip to form a complementary pair with the nucleotide adjacent to the dimer according to the Streisinger model, thus producing a loop. A targeted insertion is thereby generated to make the daughter strand longer. Targeted insertions were for the first time assumed to result from the cis-syn cyclobutane thymine dimers wherein one or both of the bases occur in the specific tautomeric form that does not allow the addition and hydrogen bonding of any canonical nucleotide in the opposite position. A model was developed to explain how targeted insertions of one or more nucleotides are caused by cis-syn cyclobutane thymine dimers. Thus, the polymerase-tautomer model can explain the nature and formation of targeted frameshift mutations in addition to hot and cold spots or targeted or untargeted nucleotide substitutions.     

Biflavonoids from Araucaria angustifolia protect against DNA UV-induced damage

Ultraviolet radiation is one of the most deleterious forms of radiation to terrestrial organisms and is involved in formation of mutagenic pyrimidine dimers and oxidized nucleotides. The biflavonoid fraction (BFF), extracted from needles of Araucaria angustifolia was capable of protecting calf thymus DNA from damage induced by UV radiation. This occurred through prevention of cyclobutane thymine dimer and 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2′-deoxyguanosine formation, this being quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) in a multiple reaction monitoring mode (MRM) and by HPLC-coulometric detection, respectively.     

A Theoretical Study of the cis-syn Pyrimidine Dimers in the Gas Phase and Water Cluster and a Tautomer-Bypass Mechanism for the Origin of UV-induced Mutations

Abstract

A quantum mechanical study of all cis-syn cyclobutane pyrimidine photodimers including the normal and rare tautomeric forms of bases has been performed using the ab initio method at HF/6–31G(d,p), MP2(fc)//HF/6–31G(d,p) and MP2(fc)/6–31G(d,p) levels. A puckering angle of the cyclobutyl ring and twist angle of pyrimidine rings with respect to each other is well described by these calculations. It is predicted that in the gas phase all photodimers containing the rare imino form of cytosine are more stable than those containing its normal form. The Monte Carlo simulations show that the dimer containing the imino form of cytosine is more stabilized by water cluster than that containing its amino forms. The possible biological significance stems from the fact that the cytosine in the dimer directs the incorporation of adenine in the complementary strand during replicative bypass. Data obtained point to the cytosine tautomerism as a possible mechanism for the origin of UV-induced mutation.     

Effect of base, pentose, and phosphodiester backbone structures on binding and repair of pyrimidine dimers by Escherichia coli DNA photolyase.

Photolyases reverse the effects of UV light on cells by converting cyclobutane dipyrimidine photoproducts (pyrimidine dimers, Pyr mean value of Pyr) into pyrimidine monomers in a light-dependent reaction. Previous work has suggested that, based on substrate preference, there are two classes of photolyase: DNA photolyase as exemplified by the Escherichia coli enzyme, and RNA photolyases found in plants such as Nicotiana tabacum and Phaseolus vulgaris. In experiments aimed at identifying substrate determinants, including the pentose ring, for binding and catalysis by E. coli DNA photolyase we tested several Pyr mean value of Pyr. We found that the enzyme has relative affinities for photodimers of T mean value of T greater than or equal to U mean value of T greater than U mean value of U much greater than C mean value of C and that the E-FADH2 form of the enzyme repairs these dimers at 366 nm with absolute quantum yields of 0.9 (T mean value of T), 0.8 (U mean value of T), 0.6 (U mean value of U), and 0.05 (C mean value of C). The enzyme also repairs an isolated thymine dimer and the synthetic substrate, 1,1'-trimethylene-bis (thymine) cyclobutane dimer. Unexpectedly, we found that this enzyme, previously thought to be specific for DNA, repairs uracil cyclobutane dimers in poly(rU). The affinity of photolyase for a uracil dimer in RNA is about 10(4)-fold lower than that for a U mean value of U in DNA; however, once bound, the enzyme repairs the photodimer with the same quantum yield whether the dimer is in ribonucleoside or deoxyribonucleoside form.     

γ-Irradiation of Thymine Dimers in Aqueous Solution

Thymine dimers were irradiated in aqueous solution with ⁶⁰Co γ-rays in N₂ or O₂. Thymine and unidentified non-UV-absorbing products appeared. The thymine was identified by spectrophotometry, chromatography, and ability to support the growth of Escherichia coli 15 T^-. Residual dimer was determined by a UV-reversibility assay. The G-values for dimer breakage were approximately equal in N₂ and O₂. At low γ-doses, about two thymines were produced per dimer broken in N₂, whereas only about one thymine appeared per dimer broken in O₂. For dimer irradiated in frozen solution, the yield of thymine was at least 100 times less than in liquid.     

Enzymatic switching for efficient and accurate translesion DNA replication

When cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers stall DNA replication by DNA polymerase (Pol) δ or ε, a switch occurs to allow translesion synthesis by DNA polymerase η, followed by another switch that allows normal replication to resume. In the present study, we investigate these switches using Saccharomyces cerevisiae Pol δ, Pol ε and Pol η and a series of matched and mismatched primer templates that mimic each incorporation needed to completely bypass a cis–syn thymine–thymine (TT) dimer. We report a complementary pattern of substrate use indicating that enzymatic switching involving localized translesion synthesis by Pol η and mismatch excision and polymerization by a major replicative polymerase can account for the efficient and accurate dimer bypass known to suppress sunlight-induced mutagenesis and skin cancer.     

Crystal and Molecular Structure of a 6-Methyluracil Photodimer

IRRADIATION of a frozen aqueous solution of thymine with 254 nm light resulted in the formation of a cyclobutyl dimer of thymine (T=T)^1–3. An analogous uracil dimer (U=U) is formed when uracil is irradiated under similar conditions^1,4. These results are of great importance in understanding the photochemistry and photobiology of nucleic acids (reviews, refs. 2,5,6). Thus much work has been carried out on the mechanistic study of the photodimerization of pyrimidines⁷. The photodimerization of α,β-unsaturated ketones may be examined similarly. As part of these studies the four dimers of 6-methyl-uracil (6 MU), for example, cis-syn, cis-anti, trans-syn and trans-anti, have been isolated in a pure state from 6 MU under a variety of conditions. The stereoconfigurations of these dimers of 6 MU=6 MU have been assigned (unpublished work) using techniques such as NMR, IR and chemical reactivities; however, the complete three-dimensional structure can only be determined by X-ray diffraction analysis. The crystal and molecular structure of a cis-syn type of 6 MU=6 MU has recently been reported⁸. In this communication we report the X-ray diffraction study of the cis-anti isomer.     

Formation of the main UV-induced thymine dimeric lesions within isolated and cellular DNA as measured by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

UVB radiation-induced formation of dimeric photoproducts at bipyrimidine sites within DNA has been unambiguously associated with the lethal and mutagenic properties of sunlight. The main lesions include the cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers and the pyrimidine (6-4) pyrimidone adducts. The latter compounds have been shown in model systems to be converted into their Dewar valence isomers upon exposure to UVB light. A new direct assay, based on the use of liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry, is now available to simultaneously detect each of the thymine photoproducts. It was applied to the determination of the yields of formation of the thymine lesions within both isolated and cellular DNA exposed to either UVC or UVB radiation. The cis-syn cyclobutane thymine dimer was found to be the major photoproduct within cellular DNA, whereas the related (6-4) adduct was produced in an approximately 8-fold lower yield. Interestingly, the corresponding Dewar valence isomer could not be detected upon exposure of human cells to biologically relevant doses of UVB radiation.     

Restriction enzyme cleavage of ultraviolet-damaged simian virus 40 and pBR322 DNA

Cleavage of specific DNA sequences by the restriction enzymes EcoRI, HindIII and TaqI was prevented when the DNA was irradiated with ultraviolet light. Most of the effects were attributed to cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers in the recognition sequences; the effectiveness of irradiation was directly proportional to the number of potential dimer sites in the DNA. Combining EcoRI with dimer-specific endonuclease digestion revealed that pyrimidine dimers blocked cleavage within one base-pair on the strand opposite to the dimer but did not block cleavage three to four base-pairs away on the same strand. These are the probable limits for the range of influence of pyrimidine dimers along the DNA, at least for this enzyme. The effect of irradiation on cleavage by TaqI seemed far greater than expected for the cyclobutane dimer yield, possibly because of effects from photoproducts flanking the tetranucleotide recognition sequence and the effect of non-cyclobutane (6-4)pyrimidine photoproducts involving adjacent T and C bases.     

Chemical synthesis and translesion replication of a cis-syn cyclobutane thymine-uracil dimer

The cytosine base in DNA undergoes hydrolytic deamination at a considerable rate when UV radiation induces formation of a cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer (CPD) with an adjacent pyrimidine base. We have synthesized a phosphoramidite building block of a cis–syn cyclobutane thymine–uracil dimer (T[]U), which is the deaminated form of the CPD at a TC site, and incorporated it into oligodeoxyribonucleotides. The previously reported method for synthesis of the thymine dimer (T[]T) was applied, using partially protected thymidylyl-(3′–5′)-2′-deoxyuridine as the starting material, and after triplet- sensitized irradiation, the configuration of the base moiety in the major product was determined by NMR spectroscopy. Presence of the cis–syn cyclobutane dimer in the obtained oligonucleotides was confirmed by UV photoreversal and reaction with T4 endonuclease V. Using a 30mer containing T[]U, translesion synthesis by human DNA polymerase η was analyzed. There was no difference in the results between the templates containing T[]T and T[]U and pol η bypassed both lesions with the same efficiency, incorporating two adenylates. This enzyme showed fidelity to base pair formation, but this replication causes a C→T transition because the original sequence is TC.     

The Class III Cyclobutane Pyrimidine Dimer Photolyase Structure Reveals a New Antenna Chromophore Binding Site and Alternative Photoreduction Pathways

Photolyases are proteins with an FAD chromophore that repair UV-induced pyrimidine dimers on the DNA in a light-dependent manner. The cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer class III photolyases are structurally unknown but closely related to plant cryptochromes, which serve as blue-light photoreceptors. Here we present the crystal structure of a class III photolyase termed photolyase-related protein A (PhrA) of Agrobacterium tumefaciens at 1.67-Å resolution. PhrA contains 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate (MTHF) as an antenna chromophore with a unique binding site and mode. Two Trp residues play pivotal roles for stabilizing MTHF by a double π-stacking sandwich. Plant cryptochrome I forms a pocket at the same site that could accommodate MTHF or a similar molecule. The PhrA structure and mutant studies showed that electrons flow during FAD photoreduction proceeds via two Trp triads. The structural studies on PhrA give a clearer picture on the evolutionary transition from photolyase to photoreceptor.     

Photoreactivation in Airborne Mycobacterium parafortuitum

Photoreactivation was observed in airborne Mycobacterium parafortuitum exposed concurrently to UV radiation (254 nm) and visible light. Photoreactivation rates of airborne cells increased with increasing relative humidity (RH) and decreased with increasing UV dose. Under a constant UV dose with visible light absent, the UV inactivation rate of airborne M. parafortuitum cells decreased by a factor of 4 as RH increased from 40 to 95%; however, under identical conditions with visible light present, the UV inactivation rate of airborne cells decreased only by a factor of 2. When irradiated in the absence of visible light, cellular cyclobutane thymine dimer content of UV-irradiated airborne M. parafortuitum and Serratia marcescens increased in response to RH increases. Results suggest that, unlike in waterborne bacteria, cyclobutane thymine dimers are not the most significant form of UV-induced DNA damage incurred by airborne bacteria and that the distribution of DNA photoproducts incorporated into UV-irradiated airborne cells is a function of RH.     

T-T Cyclobutane dimers are misinstructive, rather than non-instructive, mutagenic lesions

Summary The lesions produced by SOS-dependent mutagens in Escherichia coli are commonly referred to as non-pairing or non-instructive. Although these terms are likely to be appropriate for some lesions, particularly the abasic site, for others, such as the cyclobutane dimer, their suitability is open to question. To address this question, we have compared the error frequencies and spectra that result when a uniquely located T-T sequence, carried in a single-stranded vector, contains either a cis-syn or a trans-syn cyclobutane dimer, or when either the 5T or 3T is converted to an abasic site. The data suggest that the high accuracy with which the dimer-containing templates are replicated is unlikely to be the consequence of polymerase preference for the non-instructive insertion of dAMP. Similarly, mis-pairing, rather than non-pairing, is likely to cause mutations. Cyclobutane dimers seem therefore to be misinstructive rather than non-instructive lesions, and the common feature shared by SOS-inducing lesions is more their ability to block replication than inability to form correct base pairs.     

Mechanisms of Inhibition of Pyrimidine Dimer Formation in Deoxyribonucleic Acid by Acridine Dyes

The ultraviolet (UV)-induced formation of cyclobutyl pyrimidine dimers in Escherichia coli deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) in vitro has been investigated in terms of the mechanism of inhibition by acridine dyes, the effect on dimer yield of specific singlet and triplet quenchers, and the mechanism of dimer formation. Our results indicate that (a) energy transfer is important in dimer reduction by acridines, (b) this transfer occurs from the singlet (S₁) of DNA, and (c) at room temperature triplet quenchers do not reduce dimer yield in DNA.     

Activity assay of His-tagged E. coli DNA photolyase by RP-HPLC and SE-HPLC

Escherichia coli DNA photolyase was expressed as C-terminal 6x histidine-fused protein. Purification of His-tagged E. coli DNA photolyase was developed using immobilized metal affinity chromatography with Chelating Sepharose Fast Flow. By one-step affinity chromatography, approximate 4.6 mg DNA photolyase was obtained from 400 ml E. coli culture. The purified His-tagged enzyme was combined with two chromophors, FADH and MTHF. Using the oligonucleotide containing cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer as substrate, both reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and size-exclusion high-performance liquid chromatography were developed to measure the enzyme activity. The enzyme was found to be able to repair the cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer with the turnover rate of 2.4 dimers/photolyase molecule/min.     

Antigen structural requirements for recognition by a cyclobutane thymine dimer-specific monoclonal antibody.

A monoclonal antibody (TDM-2) specific to a UV-induced cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer (T[cis-syn]T) has previously been established; however,the immunization had used UV-irradiated calf-thymus DNA containing a heterogeneous mixture of photoproduct sites. We investigated here the structural requirements of antigen recognition by the antibody using chemically synthesized antigen analogs. TDM-2 bound with cis-syn,but not trans-syn thymine dimer,and could bind strongly with four nucleotide analogs in which the cis-syn pyrimidine dimer was located in the center. Antigen analogs containing abasic linkers at the 5'- or 3'-side of the cis-syn cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer were synthesized and tested for binding to TDM-2. The results indicated that TDM-2 recognizes not only the cyclobutane ring but also both the 5'- and 3'-side nucleosides of the cyclobutane dimer. Furthermore,it was proved that either the 5'- or 3'-side phosphate group at a cyclobutane dimer site was absolutely required for the affinity to TDM-2. The antibody showed a strong binding to single stranded DNA but indicated little binding to double stranded DNA.     

Purification and characterization of a novel UV lesion-specific DNA glycosylase/AP lyase from Bacillus sphaericus

The purification and characterization of a pyrimidine dimer-specific glycosylase/AP lyase from Bacillus sphaericus (Bsp-pdg) are reported. Bsp-pdg is highly specific for DNA containing the cis-syn cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer, displaying no detectable activity on oligonucleotides with trans-syn I, trans-syn II, (6-4), or Dewar photoproducts. Like other glycosylase/AP lyases that sequentially cleave the N--glycosyl bond of the 5' pyrimidine of a cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer, and the phosphodiester backbone, this enzyme appears to utilize a primary amine as the attacking nucleophile. The formation of a covalent enzyme-DNA imino intermediate is evidenced by the ability to trap this protein-DNA complex by reduction with sodium borohydride. Also consistent with its AP lyase activity, Bsp-pdg was shown to incise an AP site-containing oligonucleotide, yielding beta- and delta-elimination products. N-terminal amino acid sequence analysis of this 26 kDa protein revealed little amino acid homology to any previously reported protein. This is the first report of a glycosylase/AP lyase enzyme from Bacillus sphaericus that is specific for cis-syn pyrimidine dimers.     

A Monte Carlo method for generating structures of short single-stranded DNA sequences

A Monte Carlo method has been developed for generating the conformations of short single-stranded DNAs from arbitrary starting states. The chain conformers are constructed from energetically favorable arrangements of the constituent mononucleotides. Minimum energy states of individual dinucleotide monophosphate molecules are identified using a torsion angle minimizer. The glycosyl and acyclic backbone torsions of the dimers are allowed to vary, while the sugar rings are held fixed in one of the two preferred puckered forms. A total of 108 conformationally distinct states per dimer are considered in this first stage of minimization. The torsion angles within 5 kcal/mole of the global minimum in the resulting optimized states are then allowed to vary by ±10° in an effort to estimate the breadth of the different local minima. The energies of a total of 2187 (3⁷) angle combinations are examined per local conformational minimum. Finally, the energies of all dinucleotide conformers are scaled so that the populations of differently puckered sugar rings in the theoretical sample match those found in nmr solution studies. This last step is necessitated by limitations in the theoretical methods to predict DNA sugar puckering accurately. The conformer populations of the individual acyclic torsion angles in the composite dimer ensembles are found to be in good agreement with the distributions of backbone conformations deduced from nmr coupling constants and the frequencies of glycosyl conformations in x-ray crystal structures, suggesting that the low energy states are reasonable. The low energy dimer forms (consisting of 150–325 conformational states per dimer step) are next used as variables in a Monte Carlo algorithm, which generates the conformations of single-stranded d(CX_nG) chains, where X = A, T and n = 3, 4, 5. The oligonucleotides are built sequentially from the 5′ end of the chain using random numbers to select the conformations of overlapping dimer units. The simulations are very fast, involving a total of 10⁶ conformations per chain sequence. The potential errors in the buildup procedure are minimized by taking advantage of known rotational interdependences in the sugar–phosphate backbone. The distributions of oligonucleotide conformations are examined in terms of the magnitudes, positions, and orientations of the end-to-end vectors of the chains. The differences in overall flexibility and extension of the oligomers are discussed in terms of the conformations of the constituent dinucleotide steps, while the general methodology is discussed and compared with other nucleic acid model building techniques. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.