Physical map of bacteriophage BF23 DNA: terminal redundancy and localization of single-chain interruptions.

The DNA of bacteriophage BF23 possesses two structural features, localized single-chain interruptions and a large terminal repetition, previously described for T5, a closely related virus. As is the case for T5, single-chain interruptions occur with variable frequencies at a small number of fixed sites within one strand of the double-stranded BF23 genome. The sites where interruptions occur with the highest frequencies were napped by an electrophoretic analysis of the single-stranded fragments produced by denaturation of BF23 DNA. The positions of these fragments were determined by degrading BF23 DNA to various extents with lambda exonuclease and observing the relative order with which they were (i) degraded or (ii) released intact from the undenatured duplex. The exact locations of the interruptions were determined from analysis of analogous duplex fragments produced by degrading exonuclease III-treated BF23 DNA with a single-strand-specific endonuclease. BF23 has five principal sites (located at 7.9, 18.7, 32.4, 65.8, and 99.6% from the left end of the DNA) where interruptions occur in most molecules. The principal interruptions in T5 DNA occur at similar positions. The locations of eight secondary interruptions in BF23 DNA were also determined. In general, BF23 DNA has fewer secondary interruptions than t5 dna, although there is at least one location where an interruption occurs with a greater frequency in BF23. The presence of a terminal repetition in BF23 DNA was demonstrated by annealing ligase-repaired molecules that had been partially digested with lambda exonuclease. If the complementary sequences at both ends of the DNA were exposed by exonuclease treatment, the duplex segment that resulted from annealing could be released by digestion with a single-strand-specific endonuclease. This segment was analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis and found to represent 8.4% of BF23 DNA.     

Interruption-deficient mutants of bacteriophage T5. II. Properties of a mutant lacking a specific interruption.

An examination was made of the properties of T5HA4, a mutant of bacteriophage T5 that lacks the single-chain interruption that occurs at 7.9% from the left end of the genome. The DNAs of T5HA4 and the wild type were compared by electrophoresis in agarose gels of both single-stranded fragments produced by denaturation and duplex fragments generated by sequential treatment with exonuclease III and SI nuclease. These studies demonstrated that T5HA4 also lacks an interruption that occurs at 99.6% in wild-type DNA. The interruptions at 7.9 and 99.6% therefore occur within the 8.3% of T5 DNA that is terminally repetitious. Evidence on the location of other interruptions within the terminal repetition was also obtained. Analysis of T5HA4 with a restriction endonuclease indicated that the interruption deficiency is not due to a deletion or addition mutation. The injection of T5HA4 DNA into a host bacterium was found to occur, as with the wild type, in a two-step manner. The interruption at 7.9% is therefore not required for stopping DNA transfer after the initial 8% segment has been injected.     

Mechanism of degradation of duplex DNA by the DNase induced by herpes simplex virus

Reaction intermediates formed during the degradation of linear PM2, T5, and λ DNA by herpes simplex virus (HSV) DNase have been examined by agarose gel electrophoresis. Digestion of T5 DNA by HSV type 2 (HSV-2) DNase in the presence of Mn²⁺ (endonuclease only) gave rise to 6 major and 12 minor fragments. Some of the fragments produced correspond to those observed after cleavage of T5 DNA by the single-strand-specific S1 nuclease, indicating that the HSV DNase rapidly cleaves opposite a nick or gap in a duplex DNA molecule. In contrast, HSV DNase did not produce distinct fragments upon digestion of linear PM2 or λ DNA, which do not contain nicks. In the presence of Mg²⁺, when both endonuclease and exonuclease activities of the HSV DNase occur, most of the same distinct fragments from digestion of T5 DNA were observed. However, these fragments were then further degraded preferentially from the ends, presumably by the action of the exonuclease activity. Unit-length λ DNA, EcoRI restriction fragments of λ DNA, and linear PM2 DNA were also degraded from the ends by HSV DNase in the same manner. Previous studies have suggested that the HSV exonuclease degrades in the 3′ → 5′ direction. If this is correct, and since only 5′-monophosphate nucleosides are produced, then HSV DNase should “activate” DNA for DNA polymerase. However, unlike pancreatic DNase I, neither HSV-1 nor HSV-2 DNase, in the presence of Mg²⁺ or Mn²⁺, activated calf thymus DNA for HSV DNA polymerase. This suggests that HSV DNase degrades both strands of a linear double-stranded DNA molecule from the same end at about the same rate. That is, HSV DNase is apparently capable of degrading DNA strands in the 3′ → 5′ direction as well as in the 5′ → 3′ direction, yielding progressively smaller double-stranded molecules with flush ends. Except with minor differences, HSV-1 and HSV-2 DNases act in a similar manner.     

Physical map of the bacteriophage T5 genome based on the cleavage products of the restriction endonucleases SalI, SmaI, BamI, and HpaI.

A physical map of the bacteriophage T5 genome was constructed by ordering the fragments produced by cleavage of T5 DNA with the restriction endonucleases SalI (4 fragments), SmaI (4 fragments), BamI (5 fragments), and HpaI (28 fragments). The following techniques were used to order the fragments. (i) Digestion of DNA from T5 heat-stable deletion mutants was used to identify fragments located in the deletable region. (ii) Fragments near the ends of the T5 DNA molecule were located by treating T5 DNA with lambda exonuclease before restriction endonuclease cleavage. (iii) Fragments spanning other restriction endonuclease cleavage sites were identified by combined digestion of T5 DNA with two restriction endonucleases. (iv) The general location of some fragments was determined by isolating individual restriction fragments from agarose gels and redigesting the isolated fragments with a second restriction enzyme. (v) Treatment of restriction digests with lambda exonuclease before digestion with a second restriction enzyme was used to identify fragments near, but not spanning, restriction cleavage sites. (vi) Exonucleases III treatment of T5 DNA before restriction endonuclease cleavage was used to locate fragments spanning or near the natural T5 single-chain interruptions. (vii) Analysis of the products of incomplete restriction endonuclease cleavage was used to identify adjacent fragments.     

New physical map of bacteriophage T5 DNA.

The locations of 103 cleavage sites, produced by 13 restriction endonucleases, were mapped on the DNA of bacteriophage T5. Single- and double-digest fragment sizes were determined by agarose gel electrophoresis, using restriction fragments of phi X174 DNA and lambda DNA as molecular weight standards. Map coordinates were determined by a computer-based least-squares procedures (J. Schroeder and F. Blattner, Gene [Amst] 4:167-174, 1978). The fragment sizes predicted by the final map are all within 2% of the measured values. Based on this analysis, T5st(+) DNA contains 121,300 base pairs (Mr, 80.3 X 10(6) and has a terminal repetition of 10,160 base pairs (Mr, 6.7 X 10(6)). Restriction endonuclease analysis after treatment with exonuclease III and a single-strand-specific endonuclease allowed precise localization of five of the natural single-chain interruptions in T5 DNA. Revised locations for several T5 deletions were also determined.     

Localization of single-chain interruptions in bacteriophage T5 DNA I. Electron microscopic studies.

Bacteriophage T5 DNA was examined in an electron microscope after limited digestion with exonuclease III from Escherichia coli. The effect of the exonuclease treatment was to convert each naturally occurring single-chain interruption in T5 DNA into a short segment of single-stranded DNA. The locations of these segments were determined for T5st(+) DNA, T5st(0) DNA, and fragments of T5st(0) DNA generated by EcoRI restriction endonuclease. The results indicate that single-chain interruptions occurr in a variable, but nonrandom, manner in T5 DNA. T5st(+) DNA has four principal interruptions located at sites approximately 7.9, 18.5, 32.6, and 64.8% from one end of the molecule. Interruptions occur at these sites in 80 to 90% of the population. A large number of additional sites, located primarily at the ends of the DNA, contain interruptions at lower frequencies. The average number of interruptions per genome, as determined by this method, is 8. A similar distribution of breaks occurs in T5st(0) DNA, except that the 32.6% site is missing. At least one of the principal interruptions is reproducibly located within an interval of 0.2% of the entire DNA.     

An electron microscopic method for studying and mapping the region of weak sequence homology between simian virus 40 and polyoma DNAs.

A procedure for investigating the possibility of small amounts of partial DNA sequence homology between two defined DNA molecules has been developed and used to test for sequence homology between simian virus 40 and polyoma DNAs. This procedure, which does not necessitate the use of separated viral DNA strands, involves the construction of hybrid DNA molecules containing a simian virus 40 DNA molecule covalently joined to a polyoma DNA molecule, using the sequential action of EcoRI restriction endonuclease and Escherichia coli DNA ligase. Denaturation of such hybrid DNA molecules then makes it possible to examine intramolecularly rather than intermolecularly renatured molecules. Visualization of these intramolecularly renatured “snapback” molecules with duplex regions of homology by electron microscopy reveals a 15% region of weak sequence homology. This region is denatured at about 35 °C below the melting temperature of simian virus 40 DNA and therefore corresponds to about 75% homology. This region was mapped on both the simian virus 40 and polyoma genomes by the use of Hemophilus parainfluenzae II restriction endonuclease cleavage of the simian virus 40 DNA prior to EcoRI cleavage and construction of the hybrid molecule. The 15% region of weak homology maps immediately to the left of the EcoRI restriction endonuclease cleavage site in the simian virus 40 genome and halfway around from the EcoRI restriction endonuclease cleavage site in the polyoma genome.     

The structures and fidelity of replication of mouse mitochondrial DNA-pSC101 EcoRI recombinant plasmids grown in E. coli K12

Recombinant DNAs containing the E. coli plasmid pSC101 and mouse cell (LA9) mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) were formed in vitro via ligation of DNA fragments from limit EcoRI endonuclease digests and were used to transform E. coli K12. Four structurally different recombinant plasmid DNAs from transformed clones were characterized. Two of these were analyzed extensively and the mtDNA portions compared with mtDNA from LA9 cells. No differences were detected in the physical or chemical properties examined, except that the E. coli mtDNA lacked the alkali lability characteristic of animal mtDNAs.Heteroduplexes between the LA9 portions of the recombinant plasmids and LA9 mtDNA were analyzed by absorbance melting. The melting temperatures were indistinguishable from reannealed LA9 mtDNA homoduplexes, indicating that single-base replication errors occur at a frequency of fewer than 1 nucleotide in 300. Electron microscopic analyses of plasmid-LA9 mtDNA heteroduplexes and a comparison of agarose gel electrophoresis of restriction endonuclease fragments also indicated no differences. These results were independent of the order or the relative orientation of the pSC101 and mtDNA fragments.A third EcoRI fragment in LA9 mtDNA, not found in an earlier study (Brown and Vinograd, 1974), has been positioned in the LA9, EcoRI map. This fragment contains 165±10 nucleotide pairs.     

Viral DNA in transformed cells: II. A study of the sequences of adenovirus 2 DNA in nine lines of transformed rat cells using specific fragments of the viral genome

³²P-labeled adenovirus 2 DNA was treated with restricting endonuclease from Escherichia coli strain RY-13 (Yoshimori, 1972) (EcoRI) or restricting endonuclease from Hemophilus parainfluenzae (Hpa I) and the resulting fragments of DNA were separated by gel electrophoresis. The kinetics of renaturation of each of the fragments and of complete adenovirus 2 DNA were measured in the presence of DNA extracted from nine lines of adenovirus 2-transformed rat cells and from control cells. Six of the transformed cell lines contained viral DNA sequences homologous to two of the seven Hpa I⁴ fragments and to part of one of the six EcoRI fragments. From the order of the fragments formed by EcoRI and Hpa I on the adenovirus 2 map we conclude that these cell lines contain only the segment of viral DNA that stretches from the left-hand end to a point about 14% along the viral genome. Thus, any viral function expressed in transformed cells must be coded by this small section of viral DNA. The three remaining lines of adenovirus 2-transformed rat cells are more complicated and contain not only the sequences from the left-hand end of the viral DNA, but also other segments of the viral genome. However, no adenovirus 2-transformed rat cell contained DNA sequences homologous to the complete viral genome.     

Studies on the cleavage of bacteriophage lambda DNA with EcoRI restriction endonuclease

The five EcoRI² restriction sites in bacteriophage lambda DNA have been mapped at 0.445, 0.543, 0.656, 0.810, and 0.931 fractional lengths from the left end of the DNA molecule. These positions were determined electron-microscopically by single-site cleavage of hydrogen-bonded circular λ DNA molecules and by cleavage of various DNA heteroduplexes between λ DNA and DNA from well defined λ mutants. The DNA lengths of the EcoRI fragments are in agreement with their electrophoretic mobility on agarose gels but are not in agreement with their mobilities on polyacrylamide gels. These positions are different from those previously published by Allet et al. (1973). Partial cleavage of pure λ DNA by addition of small amounts of EcoRI endonuclease does not lead to random cleavage between molecules. Also, the first site cleaved is not randomly distributed among the five sites within a molecule. The site nearest the right end is cleaved first about ten times more frequently than either of the two center sites.     

Molecular cloning and mapping of a deletion derivative of the plasmid Rts 1

The plasmid pTW20 is a deletion derivative of the kanamycin resistance plasmid Rts1. By digesting pTW20 DNA with EcoRI endonuclease six fragments were generated, and each was cloned in the vector plasmid pACYC184. These cloned EcoRI fragments were further digested with various endonucleases, and the cleavage map of pTW20 was constructed. A SalI fragment (1.5 Md) in E1 (the largest EcoRI fragment; 11.5 Md) contained the genes kan (kanamycin resistance) and puv (uv sensitization of host). An electron microscopy study of a BamHI fragment containing kan revealed the presence of a transposon-like structure in the fragment. The smallest EcoRI fragment E6 (2.0 Md) was capable of autonomous replication in a polA host, indicating that E6 contained replication genes of pTW20. These genes were found to be located on a 1.1-Md HindIII fragment in E6. Two incompatibility genes were identified on the pTW20 genome, one located on each of the fragments E6 and E5 (3.5 Md), and expressed T incompatibility independently. The nature of the temperature sensitivity of pTW20 was discussed.     

Preliminary x-ray diffraction studies of EcoRI restriction endonuclease-DNA complex

A complex between EcoRI restriction endonuclease and cognate DNA fragment, 5′-G-A-A-T-T-C C-T-T-A-A-G-5′, has been crystallized. The space group is P42₁2 with $\text{a = b = 183.2}\text{A}\text{?}\text{, c = 49.7}\text{A}\text{?}\text{, α = β = γ = 90 °}$. The unit cell contains four enzyme monomers plus two duplex DNA fragments in an asymmetric unit. High quality crystals of the enzyme alone have also been obtained.     

Action of Escherichia coli P1 restriction endonuclease on simian virus 40 DNA

The P1 restriction endonuclease (EcoP1) prepared from a P1 lysogen of Escherichia coli makes one double-strand break in simian virus (SV40) DNA. In the presence of cofactors S-adenosylmethionine and ATP the enzyme cleaves 70% of the closed circular SV40 DNA molecules once to produce unit-length linear molecules and renders the remaining 30% resistant to further cleavage. No molecules were found by electron microscopy or by gel electrophoresis that were cleaved more than once. It would appear that the double-strand break is made by two nearly simultaneous single-strand breaks, since no circular DNA molecules containing one single-strand break were found as intermediates during the cleavage reaction. The EcoP1 endonuclease-cleaved linear SV40 DNA molecules are not cleaved at a unique site, as shown by the generation of about 65% circular molecules after denaturation and renaturation. These EcoP1 endonuclease-cleaved, renatured circular molecules are resistant to further cleavage by EcoP1 endonuclease.The EcoP1 endonuclease cleavage sites on SV40 DNA were mapped relative to the partial denaturation map and to the EcoRI and HpaII restriction endonuclease cleavage sites. These maps suggest there are a minimum of four unique but widely spaced cleavage sites at 0.09, 0.19, 0.52, and 0.66 SV40 units relative to the EcoRI site. The frequency of cleavage at any particular site differs from that at another site. If S-adenosylmethionine is omitted from the enzyme reaction mix, SV40 DNA is cleaved into several fragments.An average of 4.6 ± 1 methyl groups are transferred to SV40 DNA from S-adenosylmethionine during the course of a normal reaction containing the cofactors. Under conditions which optimize this methylation, 7 ± 1 methyl groups can be transferred to DNA. This methylation protects most of the molecules from further cleavage. The methyl groups were mapped relative to the Hemophilus influenzae restriction endonuclease fragments. The A fragment receives three to four methyl groups and the B and G fragments each receive one to two methyl groups. These fragments correspond to those in which cleavage sites are located.     

Restriction insensitivity in bacteriophage T5. III. Characterization of EcoRI-sensitive mutants by restriction analysis.

Despite the fact that its DNA carries six EcoRI cleavage sites, bacteriophage T5 is able to grow on an EcoRI restricting host, suggesting that it specifies a restriction protection system. In the hope of identifying this protection system, mutants of T5 have been isolated which are unable to grow on an EcoRI restricting host. Analysis of the DNA of such mutants shows that they have each acquired two new EcoRI sites per molecule as a consequence of a single EcoRI site (ris) mutation located in the terminally repetitious, first step transfer (FST) region of the genome. The EcoRI sites generated by the ris mutations differ from the natural EcoRI sites in that the latter are situated on the second step transfer (SST) DNA, which suggests that the in vivo sensitivity of ris mutants is a consequence of having an EcoRI site on the FST DNA. This is understandable, if the hypothetical restriction protection genes are also located on the FST DNA. While expression of these genes would protect natural sites on the SST DNA, the ris sites would, on the contrary, enter an environment in which the protection, products had not yet been synthesized.Construction of double and triple ris mutants has allowed the ordering of the ris sites and the construction of an EcoRI restriction map of the FST region. In addition, the ris mutants allow estimation of the size of the terminal repetition of T5 DNA as 5.9 × 10⁶ to 6.0 × 10⁶ daltons. Correlation of the physical map of the FST region with the already established genetic map of this region allows orientation of the pre-early genes on the genetic and physical maps, and approximate localization of two amber mutations on the physical map.     

A simplified method for mapping deletion/substitution mutants of bacteriophage lambda.

A convenient and rapid method for mapping deletion/substitution mutants of phage λ is presented. The method involves: (a) forming heteroduplex DNA molecules between the wild-type and the mutant: (b) digestion of the single-stranded regions with S₁ nuclease; (c) cleavage of a portion of the remaining duplex DNA with EcoRI nuclease or any convenient restriction endonuclease; and (d) separation of the resulting DNA fragments by gel electrophoresis. Using three deletion/substitution mutants with known endpoints, we show that the values obtained by this method deviate, on the average, by ±120 base pairs from the values obtained by electron microscopy.     

Chloroplast ribosomal RNA genes in Euglena gracilis exist as three clustered tandem repeats

Chloroplast ribosomal DNA from Euglena gracilis was partially purified, digested with restriction endonucleases BamHI or EcoRI and cloned into bacterial plasmids. Plasmids containing the ribosomal DNA were identified by their ability to hybridize to chloroplast ribosomal RNA and were physically mapped using restriction endonucleases BamHI, EcoRI, HindIII and HpaI. The nucleotide sequences coding for the 16S and the 23S chloroplast ribosomal RNAs were located on these plasmids by hybridizing the individual RNAs to denatured restriction endonuclease DNA fragments immobilized on nitrocellulose filters. Restriction endonuclease fragments from chloroplast DNA were analyzed in a similar fashion. These data permitted the localization on a BamHI map of the chloroplast DNA three tandemly arranged chloroplast ribosomal RNA genes. Each ribosomal RNA gene consisted of a 4.6 kilobase pair region coding for the 16S and 23S ribosomal RNAs and a 0.8 kilobase pair spacer region. The chloroplast ribosomal DNA represented 12% of the chloroplast DNA and is G + C rich.     

Ribosomal DNA in Drosophila melanogaster. I. Isolation and characterization of cloned fragments.

Fragments of rDNA3 from Drosophila melanogaster produced by the restriction endonuclease EcoRI were cloned in the form of recombinant plasmids in Escheriehia coli. Maps were prepared showing the location of the coding regions and of several restriction endonuclease sites. Most rDNA repeats have a single EcoRI site in the 18 S gene region. Thus, 19 of 24 recombinant clones contained a full repeat of rDNA. Ten repeats with continuous 28 S genes and repeats containing insertions in the 28 S gene of 0.5, 1 and 5 kb were isolated. The 0.5 and 1 kb insertion sequences are homologous to segments of the 5 kb insertions; because of this homology they are grouped together and identified as type 1 insertions. Four recombinant clones contain an rDNA fragment that corresponds to only a portion of a repeating unit. In these fragments the 28 S gene is interrupted by a sequence which had been cleaved by EcoRI. The interrupting sequences in these clones are not homologous to any portion of type 1 insertions and are therefore classified as type 2. In one of the above clones the 28 S gene is interrupted at an unusual position; such a structure is rare or absent in genomic rDNA from the fly. Another unusual rDNA fragment was isolated as a recombinant molecule. In this fragment the entire 18 S gene and portions of the spacer regions surrounding it are missing from one repeat. A molecule with the same structure has been found in uncloned genomic rDNA by electron microscopic examination of RNA/DNA hybrids.     

Flap Endonuclease Activity of Gene 6 Exonuclease of Bacteriophage T7

Flap endonucleases remove flap structures generated during DNA replication. Gene 6 protein of bacteriophage T7 is a 5′–3′-exonuclease specific for dsDNA. Here we show that gene 6 protein also possesses a structure-specific endonuclease activity similar to known flap endonucleases. The flap endonuclease activity is less active relative to its exonuclease activity. The major cleavage by the endonuclease activity occurs at a position one nucleotide into the duplex region adjacent to a dsDNA-ssDNA junction. The efficiency of cleavage of the flap decreases with increasing length of the 5′-overhang. A 3′-single-stranded tail arising from the same end of the duplex as the 5′-tail inhibits gene 6 protein flap endonuclease activity. The released flap is not degraded further, but the exonuclease activity then proceeds to hydrolyze the 5′-terminal strand of the duplex. T7 gene 2.5 single-stranded DNA-binding protein stimulates the exonuclease and also the endonuclease activity. This stimulation is attributed to a specific interaction between the two proteins because Escherichia coli single-stranded DNA binding protein does not produce this stimulatory effect. The ability of gene 6 protein to remove 5′-terminal overhangs as well as to remove nucleotides from the 5′-termini enables it to effectively process the 5′-termini of Okazaki fragments before they are ligated.     

The Arrangement of Information in DNA Molecules

The anatomy of DNA molecules isolated from mature bacteriophage is reviewed. These molecules are linear, duplex DNA consisting mainly of uninterrupted polynucleotide chains. Certain phage (T5 and PB) contain four specifically located interruptions. While the nucleotide sequence of most of these molecules is unique (T5, T3, T7, λ), some are circular permutations of each other (T2, T4, P22). Partial degradation of these DNA molecules by exonuclease III predisposes some of them to form circles upon annealing, but indicating they are terminally redundant.