Instability of CTG Repeats is Governed by the Position of a DNA Base Lesion through Base Excision Repair

Trinucleotide repeat (TNR) expansions and deletions are associated with human neurodegeneration and cancer. However, their underlying mechanisms remain to be elucidated. Recent studies have demonstrated that CAG repeat expansions can be initiated by oxidative DNA base damage and fulfilled by base excision repair (BER), suggesting active roles for oxidative DNA damage and BER in TNR instability. Here, we provide the first evidence that oxidative DNA damage can induce CTG repeat deletions along with limited expansions in human cells. Biochemical characterization of BER in the context of (CTG)₂₀ repeats further revealed that repeat instability correlated with the position of a base lesion in the repeat tract. A lesion located at the 5′-end of CTG repeats resulted in expansion, whereas a lesion located either in the middle or the 3′-end of the repeats led to deletions only. The positioning effects appeared to be determined by the formation of hairpins at various locations on the template and the damaged strands that were bypassed by DNA polymerase β and processed by flap endonuclease 1 with different efficiency. Our study indicates that the position of a DNA base lesion governs whether TNR is expanded or deleted through BER.     

105 Activity of DNA ligase on substrates containing non-canonical structures

The expansion of trinucleotide repeat tracts (e.g. (CAG)_n tracts) has been shown to contribute to genomic instability and has been implicated in the pathogenesis of several neurodegenerative diseases, including Huntington’s Disease and Fragile X syndrome (Kovtun et al., 2008). While the molecular mechanism of this expansion is unknown, the ability of trinucleotide repeat sequences to form non-canonical secondary structures, such as hairpins, has been implicated as a multifaceted source of error (Gacy et al., 1995). Non-canonical DNA secondary structures have been shown to impact the action of enzymes in the base excision repair (BER) pathway, by which oxidatively damaged bases are removed. More specifically, there is evidence that trinucleotide repeat-containing DNA mistakenly enters long-patch BER, which can potentially lead to the incorporation of extra nucleobases by DNA polymerase (Jarem et al., 2011). The final enzyme in the BER pathway is DNA Ligase, which catalyses the formation of a phosphodiester bond to seal a nick site (Taylor et al., 2011). When extra nucleotides have been added during an erroneous long-patch BER process, the action of DNA ligase may expand the repeat tract by incorporating these additional bases into duplex DNA. In this study, DNA constructs containing (CAG)_n hairpins at various distances from a nick site are used to investigate the ability of DNA Ligase to ligate substrates containing non-canonical secondary structure back into duplex DNA.     

The nucleotide sequence, DNA damage location, and protein stoichiometry influence the base excision repair outcome at CAG/CTG repeats

Expansion of CAG/CTG repeats is the underlying cause of >14 genetic disorders, including Huntington's disease (HD) and myotonic dystrophy. The mutational process is ongoing, with increases in repeat size enhancing the toxicity of the expansion in specific tissues. In many repeat diseases, the repeats exhibit high instability in the striatum, whereas instability is minimal in the cerebellum. We provide molecular insights into how base excision repair (BER) protein stoichiometry may contribute to the tissue-selective instability of CAG/CTG repeats by using specific repair assays. Oligonucleotide substrates with an abasic site were mixed with either reconstituted BER protein stoichiometries mimicking the levels present in HD mouse striatum or cerebellum, or with protein extracts prepared from HD mouse striatum or cerebellum. In both cases, the repair efficiency at CAG/CTG repeats and at control DNA sequences was markedly reduced under the striatal conditions, likely because of the lower level of APE1, FEN1, and LIG1. Damage located toward the 5' end of the repeat tract was poorly repaired, with the accumulation of incompletely processed intermediates as compared to an AP lesion in the center or at the 3' end of the repeats or within control sequences. Moreover, repair of lesions at the 5' end of CAG or CTG repeats involved multinucleotide synthesis, particularly at the cerebellar stoichiometry, suggesting that long-patch BER processes lesions at sequences susceptible to hairpin formation. Our results show that the BER stoichiometry, nucleotide sequence, and DNA damage position modulate repair outcome and suggest that a suboptimal long-patch BER activity promotes CAG/CTG repeat instability.     

DNA polymerase θ promotes CAG•CTG repeat expansions in Huntington’s disease via insertion sequences of its catalytic domain

Huntington''s disease (HD), a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive dementia, psychiatric problems, and chorea, is known to be caused by CAG repeat expansions in the HD gene HTT. However, the mechanism of this pathology is not fully understood. The translesion DNA polymerase θ (Polθ) carries a large insertion sequence in its catalytic domain, which has been shown to allow DNA loop-outs in the primer strand. As a result of high levels of oxidative DNA damage in neural cells and Polθ''s subsequent involvement in base excision repair of oxidative DNA damage, we hypothesized that Polθ contributes to CAG repeat expansion while repairing oxidative damage within HTT. Here, we performed Polθ-catalyzed in vitro DNA synthesis using various CAG•CTG repeat DNA substrates that are similar to base excision repair intermediates. We show that Polθ efficiently extends (CAG)_n•(CTG)_n hairpin primers, resulting in hairpin retention and repeat expansion. Polθ also triggers repeat expansions to pass the threshold for HD when the DNA template contains 35 repeats upward. Strikingly, Polθ depleted of the catalytic insertion fails to induce repeat expansions regardless of primers and templates used, indicating that the insertion sequence is responsible for Polθ''s error-causing activity. In addition, the level of chromatin-bound Polθ in HD cells is significantly higher than in non-HD cells and exactly correlates with the degree of CAG repeat expansion, implying Polθ''s involvement in triplet repeat instability. Therefore, we have identified Polθ as a potent factor that promotes CAG•CTG repeat expansions in HD and other neurodegenerative disorders.     

Base excision repair of oxidative DNA damage coupled with removal of a CAG repeat hairpin attenuates trinucleotide repeat expansion

Trinucleotide repeat (TNR) expansion is responsible for numerous human neurodegenerative diseases. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Recent studies have shown that DNA base excision repair (BER) can mediate TNR expansion and deletion by removing base lesions in different locations of a TNR tract, indicating that BER can promote or prevent TNR expansion in a damage location–dependent manner. In this study, we provide the first evidence that the repair of a DNA base lesion located in the loop region of a CAG repeat hairpin can remove the hairpin, attenuating repeat expansion. We found that an 8-oxoguanine located in the loop region of CAG hairpins of varying sizes was removed by OGG1 leaving an abasic site that was subsequently 5′-incised by AP endonuclease 1, introducing a single-strand breakage in the hairpin loop. This converted the hairpin into a double-flap intermediate with a 5′- and 3′-flap that was cleaved by flap endonuclease 1 and a 3′-5′ endonuclease Mus81/Eme1, resulting in complete or partial removal of the CAG hairpin. This further resulted in prevention and attenuation of repeat expansion. Our results demonstrate that TNR expansion can be prevented via BER in hairpin loops that is coupled with the removal of TNR hairpins.     

8-Oxoguanine DNA damage: at the crossroad of alternative repair pathways

Radical oxygen species (ROS) generate various modified DNA bases. Among them 8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanine (8oxoG) is the most abundant and seems to play a major role in mutagenesis and in carcinogenesis. 8oxoG is removed from DNA by the specific glycosylase OGG1. An additional post-replication repair is needed to correct the 8oxoG/A mismatches that are produced by persistent 8oxoG residues. This review is focused on the mechanisms of base excision repair (BER) of this oxidized base. It is shown that, in vitro, efficient and complete repair of 8oxoG/C pairs requires a core of four proteins, namely OGG1, APE1, DNA polymerase (Pol) beta, and DNA ligase I. Repair occurs predominantly by one nucleotide replacement reactions (short-patch BER) and Pol beta is the polymerase of election for the resynthesis step. However, alternative mechanisms can act on 8oxoG residues since Pol beta-null cells are able to repair these lesions. 8oxoG/A mismatches are repaired by human cell extracts via two BER events which occur sequentially on the two strands. The removal of the mismatched adenine is followed by preferential insertion of a cytosine leading to the formation of 8oxoG/C pairs which are then corrected by OGG1-mediated BER. Both repair events are inhibited by aphidicolin, suggesting that a replicative DNA polymerase is involved in the repair synthesis step. We propose that Pol delta/epsilon-mediated BER (long-patch BER) is the mode of repair when lesions persist or are formed at replication. Finally, we address the issues of the relative contribution of the two BER pathways to oxidative damage repair in vivo and the possible role of BER gene variants as cancer susceptibility genes.     

Continuous and periodic expansion of CAG repeats in Huntington's disease R6/1 mice

Huntington's disease (HD) is one of several neurodegenerative disorders caused by expansion of CAG repeats in a coding gene. Somatic CAG expansion rates in HD vary between organs, and the greatest instability is observed in the brain, correlating with neuropathology. The fundamental mechanisms of somatic CAG repeat instability are poorly understood, but locally formed secondary DNA structures generated during replication and/or repair are believed to underlie triplet repeat expansion. Recent studies in HD mice have demonstrated that mismatch repair (MMR) and base excision repair (BER) proteins are expansion inducing components in brain tissues. This study was designed to simultaneously investigate the rates and modes of expansion in different tissues of HD R6/1 mice in order to further understand the expansion mechanisms in vivo. We demonstrate continuous small expansions in most somatic tissues (exemplified by tail), which bear the signature of many short, probably single-repeat expansions and contractions occurring over time. In contrast, striatum and cortex display a dramatic--and apparently irreversible--periodic expansion. Expansion profiles displaying this kind of periodicity in the expansion process have not previously been reported. These in vivo findings imply that mechanistically distinct expansion processes occur in different tissues.     

DNA base excision repair: a mechanism of trinucleotide repeat expansion

The expansion of trinucleotide repeat (TNR) sequences in human DNA is considered to be a key factor in the pathogenesis of more than 40 neurodegenerative diseases. TNR expansion occurs during DNA replication and also, as suggested by recent studies, during the repair of DNA lesions produced by oxidative stress. In particular, the oxidized guanine base 8-oxoguanine within sequences containing CAG repeats may induce formation of pro-expansion intermediates through strand slippage during DNA base excision repair (BER). In this article, we describe how oxidized DNA lesions are repaired by BER and discuss the importance of the coordinated activities of the key repair enzymes, such as DNA polymerase β, flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1) and DNA ligase, in preventing strand slippage and TNR expansion.     

Enzyme Kinetics of an Alternative Splicing Isoform of Mitochondrial 8‐Oxoguanine DNA Glycosylase,OGG1‐1b,and Compared with the Nuclear OGG1‐1a

Eight alternatively spliced isoforms of human 8‐oxoguanine DNA glycosylase (OGG1) (OGG1‐1a to ‐1c and ‐2a to ‐2e) are registered in the National Center for Biotechnology Information. OGG1(s) in mitochondria have not yet been fully characterized biochemically. In this study, we purified mitochondrial recombinant OGG1‐1b protein and compared its activity with nuclear OGG1‐1a protein. The reaction rate constant (k_g) of the 7,8‐dihydro‐8‐oxoguanine (8‐oxoG) glycosylase activity of OGG1‐1b was 8‐oxoG:C >> 8‐oxoG:T >> 8‐oxoG:G > 8‐oxoG:A (7.96, 0.805, 0.070, and 0.015 min^?1, respectively) and that of the N‐glycosylase/DNA lyase activity (k_gl) of OGG1‐1b was 8‐oxoG:C > 8‐oxoG:T ?8‐oxoG:G >> 8‐oxoG:A (0.286, 0.079, 0.040, and negligible min^?1, respectively). These reaction rate constants were similar to those of OGG1‐1a except for k_gl against 8‐oxoG:A. APEX nuclease 1 was required to promote DNA strand breakage by OGG1‐1b. These results suggest that OGG1‐1b is associated with 8‐oxoG cleavage in human mitochondria and that the mechanism of this repair is similar to that of nuclear OGG1‐1a.     

Energetic coupling between clustered lesions modulated by intervening triplet repeat bulge loops: Allosteric implications for DNA repair and triplet repeat expansion

Clusters of closely spaced oxidative DNA lesions present challenges to the cellular repair machinery. When located in opposing strands, base excision repair (BER) of such lesions can lead to double strand DNA breaks (DSB). Activation of BER and DSB repair pathways has been implicated in inducing enhanced expansion of triplet repeat sequences. We show here that energy coupling between distal lesions (8oxodG and/or abasic sites) in opposing DNA strands can be modulated by a triplet repeat bulge loop located between the lesion sites. We find this modulation to be dependent on the identity of the lesions (8oxodG vs. abasic site) and the positions of the lesions (upstream vs. downstream) relative to the intervening bulge loop domain. We discuss how such bulge loop‐mediated lesion crosstalk might influence repair processes, while favoring DNA expansion, the genotype of triplet repeat diseases. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 93: 355–369, 2010. This article was originally published online as an acceptedpreprint. The “Published Online” date corresponds to the preprint version. You can reqest a copy of the preprint byemailing the Biopolymers editorial office at biopolymers@wiley.com     

Stoichiometry of Base Excision Repair Proteins Correlates with Increased Somatic CAG Instability in Striatum over Cerebellum in Huntington's Disease Transgenic Mice

Huntington''s disease (HD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder caused by expansion of an unstable CAG repeat in the coding sequence of the Huntingtin (HTT) gene. Instability affects both germline and somatic cells. Somatic instability increases with age and is tissue-specific. In particular, the CAG repeat sequence in the striatum, the brain region that preferentially degenerates in HD, is highly unstable, whereas it is rather stable in the disease-spared cerebellum. The mechanisms underlying the age-dependence and tissue-specificity of somatic CAG instability remain obscure. Recent studies have suggested that DNA oxidation and OGG1, a glycosylase involved in the repair of 8-oxoguanine lesions, contribute to this process. We show that in HD mice oxidative DNA damage abnormally accumulates at CAG repeats in a length-dependent, but age- and tissue-independent manner, indicating that oxidative DNA damage alone is not sufficient to trigger somatic instability. Protein levels and activities of major base excision repair (BER) enzymes were compared between striatum and cerebellum of HD mice. Strikingly, 5′-flap endonuclease activity was much lower in the striatum than in the cerebellum of HD mice. Accordingly, Flap Endonuclease-1 (FEN1), the main enzyme responsible for 5′-flap endonuclease activity, and the BER cofactor HMGB1, both of which participate in long-patch BER (LP–BER), were also significantly lower in the striatum compared to the cerebellum. Finally, chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments revealed that POLβ was specifically enriched at CAG expansions in the striatum, but not in the cerebellum of HD mice. These in vivo data fit a model in which POLβ strand displacement activity during LP–BER promotes the formation of stable 5′-flap structures at CAG repeats representing pre-expanded intermediate structures, which are not efficiently removed when FEN1 activity is constitutively low. We propose that the stoichiometry of BER enzymes is one critical factor underlying the tissue selectivity of somatic CAG expansion.     

Triplet repeat DNA structures and human genetic disease: dynamic mutations from dynamic DNA

Fourteen genetic neurodegenerative diseases and three fragile sites have been associated with the expansion of (CTG)_n•(CAG)_n, (CGG)_n•(CCG)_n, or (GAA)_n•(TTC)_n repeat tracts. Different models have been proposed for the expansion of triplet repeats, most of which presume the formation of alternative DNA structures in repeat tracts. One of the most likely structures, slipped strand DNA, may stably and reproducibly form within triplet repeat sequences. The propensity to form slipped strand DNA is proportional to the length and homogeneity of the repeat tract. The remarkable stability of slipped strand DNA may, in part, be due to loop-loop interactions facilitated by the sequence complementarity of the loops and the dynamic structure of three-way junctions formed at the loop-outs.     

The Role of XPG in Processing (CAG)n/(CTG)n DNA Hairpins

Background

During DNA replication or repair, disease-associated (CAG)_n/(CTG)_n expansion can result from formation of hairpin structures in the repeat tract of the newly synthesized or nicked DNA strand. Recent studies identified a nick-directed (CAG)_n/(CTG)_n hairpin repair (HPR) system that removes (CAG)_n/(CTG)_n hairpins from human cells via endonucleolytic incisions. Because the process is highly similar to the mechanism by which XPG and XPF endonucleases remove bulky DNA lesions during nucleotide excision repair, we assessed the potential role of XPG in conducting (CAG)_n/(CTG)_n HPR.

Results

To determine if the XPG endonuclease is involved in (CAG)_n/(CTG)_n hairpin removal, two XPG-deficient cell lines (GM16024 and AG08802) were examined for their ability to process (CAG)_n/(CTG)_n hairpins in vitro. We demonstrated that the GM16024 cell line processes all hairpin substrates as efficiently as HeLa cells, and that the AG08802 cell line is partially defective in HPR. Analysis of repair intermediates revealed that nuclear extracts from both XPG-deficient lines remove CAG/CTG hairpins via incisions, but the incision products are distinct from those generated in HeLa extracts. We also show that purified recombinant XPG protein greatly stimulates HPR in XPG-deficient extracts by promoting an incision 5' to the hairpin.

Conclusions

Our results strongly suggest that 1) human cells possess multiple pathways to remove (CAG)_n/(CTG)_n hairpins located in newly synthesized (or nicked) DNA strand; and 2) XPG, although not essential for (CAG)_n/(CTG)_n hairpin removal, stimulates HPR by facilitating a 5' incision to the hairpin. This study reveals a novel role for XPG in genome-maintenance and implicates XPG in diseases caused by trinucleotide repeat expansion.     

Telomere proteins POT1, TRF1 and TRF2 augment long-patch base excision repair in vitro

Human telomeres consist of multiple tandem hexameric repeats, each containing a guanine triplet. Guanosine-rich clusters are highly susceptible to oxidative base damage, necessitating base excision repair (BER). Previous demonstration of enhanced strand displacement synthesis by the BER component DNA polymerase β in the presence of telomere protein TRF2 suggests that telomeres employ long-patch (LP) BER. Earlier analyses in vitro showed that efficiency of BER reactions is reduced in the DNA-histone environment of chromatin. Evidence presented here indicates that BER is promoted at telomeres. We found that the three proteins that contact telomere DNA, POT1, TRF1 and TRF2, enhance the rate of individual steps of LP-BER and stimulate the complete reconstituted LP-BER pathway. Thought to protect telomere DNA from degradation, these proteins still apparently evolved to allow selective access of repair proteins.Key words: telomeres, base excision repair, shelterin complex, oxidative damage, LP-BER     

Characterization of plant XRCC1 and its interaction with proliferating cell nuclear antigen

In plants, there are no DNA polymerase β (Pol β) and DNA ligase III (Lig3) genes. Thus, the plant short-patch base excision repair (short-patch BER) pathway must differ considerably from that in mammals. We characterized the rice (Oryza Sativa L. cv. Nipponbare) homologue of the mammalian X-ray repair cross complementing 1 (XRCC1), a well-known BER protein. The plant XRCC1 lacks the N-terminal domain (NTD) which is required for Pol β binding and is essential for mammalian cell survival. The recombinant rice XRCC1 (OsXRCC1) protein binds single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) as well as double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) and also interacts with rice proliferating cell nuclear antigen (OsPCNA) in a pull-down assay. Through immunoprecipitation, we demonstrated that OsXRCC1 forms a complex with PCNA in vivo. OsXRCC1 mRNA was expressed in all rice organs and was induced by application of bleomycin, but not of MMS, H₂O₂ or UV-B. Bleomycin also increased the fraction of OsXRCC1 associated with chromatin. These results suggest that OsXRCC1 contributes to DNA repair pathways that differ from the mammalian BER system.     

极端嗜热古菌8oxoG DNA糖苷酶的研究进展

7,8二氢-8-氧鸟嘌呤(7,8-dihydro-8-oxoguanine,8oxoG)是一种常见的DNA损伤碱基.由于8oxoG能够与腺嘌呤配对,在DNA中的8oxoG被修复之前进行复制,DNA将会产生GC→TA的突变,从而造成基因组的不稳定.目前,碱基切除修复(Base excision repair,BER)是修...     

Repair of oxidative DNA damage

Cellular genomes suffer extensive damage from exogenous agents and reactive oxygen species formed during normal metabolism. The MutT homologs (MutT/MTH) remove oxidized nucleotide precursors so that they cannot be incorporated into DNA during replication. Among many repair pathways, the base excision repair (BER) pathway is the most important cellular protection mechanism responding to oxidative DNA damage. The 8-oxoG glycosylases (Fpg or MutM/OGG) and the MutY homologs (MutY/MYH) glycosylases along with MutT/MTH protect cells from the mutagenic effects of 8-oxoG, the most stable and deleterious product known caused by oxidative damage to DNA. The key enzymes in the BER process are DNA glycosylases, which remove different damaged bases by cleavage of the N-glycosylic bonds between the bases and the deoxyribose moieties of the nucleotide residues. Biochemical and structural studies have demonstrated the substrate recognition and reaction mechanism of BER enzymes. Cocrystal structures of strated the substrate recognition and reaction mechanism of BER enzymes. Cocrystal structures of several glycosylases show that the substrate base flips out of the sharply bent DNA helix and the minor groove is widened to be accessed by the glycosylases. To complete the repair after glycosylase action, the apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) site is further processed by an incision step, DNA synthesis, an excision step, and DNA ligation through two alternative pathways. The short-patch BER (1-nucleotide patch size) and long-patch BER (2–6-nucleotide patch size) pathways need AP endonuclease to generate a 3′ hydroxyl group but require different sets of enzymes for DNA synthesis and ligation. Protein-protein interactions have been reported among the enzymes involved in BER. It is possible that the successive players in the repair pathway are assembled in a complex to perform concerted actions. The BER pathways are proposed to protect cells and organisms from mutagenesis and carcinogenesis.     

Involvement of the nucleotide excision repair protein UvrA in instability of CAG*CTG repeat sequences in Escherichia coli.

Several human genetic diseases have been associated with the genetic instability, specifically expansion, of trinucleotide repeat sequences such as (CTG)(n).(CAG)(n). Molecular models of repeat instability imply replication slippage and the formation of loops and imperfect hairpins in single strands. Subsequently, these loops or hairpins may be recognized and processed by DNA repair systems. To evaluate the potential role of nucleotide excision repair in repeat instability, we measured the rates of repeat deletion in wild type and excision repair-deficient Escherichia coli strains (using a genetic assay for deletions). The rate of triplet repeat deletion decreased in an E. coli strain deficient in the damage recognition protein UvrA. Moreover, loops containing 23 CTG repeats were less efficiently excised from heteroduplex plasmids after their transformation into the uvrA(-) strain. As a result, an increased proportion of plasmids containing the full-length repeat were recovered after the replication of heteroduplex plasmids containing unrepaired loops. In biochemical experiments, UvrA bound to heteroduplex substrates containing repeat loops of 1, 2, or 17 CAG repeats with a K(d) of about 10-20 nm, which is an affinity about 2 orders of magnitude higher than that of UvrA bound to the control substrates containing (CTG)(n).(CAG)(n) in the linear form. These results suggest that UvrA is involved in triplet repeat instability in cells. Specifically, UvrA may bind to loops formed during replication slippage or in slipped strand DNA and initiate DNA repair events that result in repeat deletion. These results imply a more comprehensive role for UvrA, in addition to the recognition of DNA damage, in maintaining the integrity of the genome.     

Structural and Biochemical Analysis of DNA Helix Invasion by the Bacterial 8-Oxoguanine DNA Glycosylase MutM

MutM is a bacterial DNA glycosylase that serves as the first line of defense against the highly mutagenic 8-oxoguanine (oxoG) lesion, catalyzing glycosidic bond cleavage of oxoG to initiate base excision DNA repair. Previous work has shown that MutM actively interrogates DNA for the presence of an intrahelical oxoG lesion. This interrogation process involves significant buckling and bending of the DNA to promote extrusion of oxoG from the duplex. Structural snapshots have revealed several different highly conserved residues that are prominently inserted into the duplex in the vicinity of the target oxoG before and after base extrusion has occurred. However, the roles of these helix-invading residues during the lesion recognition and base extrusion process remain unclear. In this study, we set out to probe the function of residues Phe¹¹⁴ and Met⁷⁷ in oxoG recognition and repair. Here we report a detailed biochemical and structural characterization of MutM variants containing either a F114A or M77A mutation, both of which showed significant decreases in the efficiency of oxoG repair. These data reveal that Met⁷⁷ plays an important role in stabilizing the lesion-extruded conformation of the DNA. Phe¹¹⁴, on the other hand, appears to destabilize the intrahelical state of the oxoG lesion, primarily by buckling the target base pair. We report the observation of a completely unexpected interaction state, in which the target base pair is ruptured but remains fully intrahelical; this structure vividly illustrates the disruptive influence of MutM on the target base pair.