The mitochondrial nucleoid protein, Mgm101p, of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is involved in the maintenance of rho(+) and ori/rep-devoid petite genomes but is not required for hypersuppressive rho(-) mtDNA

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae MGM101 gene encodes a DNA-binding protein targeted to mitochondrial nucleoids. MGM101 is essential for maintenance of a functional rho(+) genome because meiotic segregants, with a disrupted mgm101 allele, cannot undergo more than 10 divisions on glycerol medium. Quantitative analysis of mtDNA copy number in a rho(+) strain carrying a temperature-sensitive allele, mgm101-1, revealed that the amount of mtDNA is halved each cell division upon a shift to the restrictive temperature. These data suggest that mtDNA replication is rapidly blocked in cells lacking MGM101. However, a small proportion of meiotic segregants, disrupted in MGM101, have rho(-) genomes that are stably maintained. Interestingly, all surviving rho(-) mtDNAs contain an ori/rep sequence. Disruption of MGM101 in hypersuppressive (HS) strains does not have a significant effect on the propagation of HS rho(-) mtDNA. However, in petites lacking an ori/rep, disruption of MGM101 leads to either a complete loss or a dramatically decreased stability of mtDNA. This discriminatory effect of MGM101 suggests that replication of rho(+) and ori/rep-devoid rho(-) mtDNAs is carried out by the same process. By contrast, the persistence of ori/rep-containing mtDNA in HS petites lacking MGM101 identifies a distinct replication pathway. The alternative mtDNA replication mechanism provided by ori/rep is independent of mitochondrial RNA polymerase encoded by RPO41 as a HS rho(-) genome is stably maintained in a mgm101, rpo41 double mutant.     

Replication and preferential inheritance of hypersuppressive petite mitochondrial DNA

Wild-type yeast mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is inherited biparentally, whereas mtDNA of hypersuppressive petite mutants is inherited uniparentally in crosses to strains with wild-type mtDNA. Genomes of hypersuppressive petites contain a conserved ori sequence that includes a promoter, but it is unclear whether the ori confers a segregation or replication advantage. Fluorescent in situ hybridization analysis of wild-type and petite mtDNAs in crosses reveals no preferential segregation of hypersuppressive petite mtDNA to first zygotic buds. We identify single-stranded DNA circles and RNA-primed DNA replication intermediates in hypersuppressive petite mtDNA that are absent from non-hypersuppressive petites. Mutating the promoter blocks hypersuppressiveness in crosses to wild-type strains and eliminates the distinctive replication intermediates. We propose that promoter-dependent RNA-primed replication accounts for the uniparental inheritance of hypersuppressive petite mtDNA.     

The a2 Mating-Type Locus Genes lga2 and rga2 Direct Uniparental Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) Inheritance and Constrain mtDNA Recombination During Sexual Development of Ustilago maydis

Uniparental inheritance of mitochondria dominates among sexual eukaryotes. However, little is known about the mechanisms and genetic determinants. We have investigated the role of the plant pathogen Ustilago maydis genes lga2 and rga2 in uniparental mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) inheritance during sexual development. The lga2 and rga2 genes are specific to the a2 mating-type locus and encode small mitochondrial proteins. On the basis of identified sequence polymorphisms due to variable intron numbers in mitochondrial genotypes, we could demonstrate that lga2 and rga2 decisively influence mtDNA inheritance in matings between a1 and a2 strains. Deletion of lga2 favored biparental inheritance and generation of recombinant mtDNA molecules in combinations in which inheritance of mtDNA of the a2 partner dominated. Conversely, deletion of rga2 resulted in predominant loss of a2-specific mtDNA and favored inheritance of the a1 mtDNA. Furthermore, expression of rga2 in the a1 partner protected the associated mtDNA from elimination. Our results indicate that Lga2 in conjunction with Rga2 directs uniparental mtDNA inheritance by mediating loss of the a1-associated mtDNA. This study shows for the first time an interplay of mitochondrial proteins in regulating uniparental mtDNA inheritance.     

Din7 and Mhr1 expression levels regulate double-strand-break–induced replication and recombination of mtDNA at ori5 in yeast

The Ntg1 and Mhr1 proteins initiate rolling-circle mitochondrial (mt) DNA replication to achieve homoplasmy, and they also induce homologous recombination to maintain mitochondrial genome integrity. Although replication and recombination profoundly influence mitochondrial inheritance, the regulatory mechanisms that determine the choice between these pathways remain unknown. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, double-strand breaks (DSBs) introduced by Ntg1 at the mitochondrial replication origin ori5 induce homologous DNA pairing by Mhr1, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) enhance production of DSBs. Here, we show that a mitochondrial nuclease encoded by the nuclear gene DIN7 (DNA damage inducible gene) has 5′-exodeoxyribonuclease activity. Using a small ρ⁻ mtDNA bearing ori5 (hypersuppressive; HS) as a model mtDNA, we revealed that DIN7 is required for ROS-enhanced mtDNA replication and recombination that are both induced at ori5. Din7 overproduction enhanced Mhr1-dependent mtDNA replication and increased the number of residual DSBs at ori5 in HS-ρ⁻ cells and increased deletion mutagenesis at the ori5 region in ρ⁺ cells. However, simultaneous overproduction of Mhr1 suppressed all of these phenotypes and enhanced homologous recombination. Our results suggest that after homologous pairing, the relative activity levels of Din7 and Mhr1 modulate the preference for replication versus homologous recombination to repair DSBs at ori5.     

A Nuclear Mutation Reversing a Biased Transmission of Yeast Mitochondrial DNA

The highly biased transmission of ρ(-) mitochondrial DNA that occurs in hypersuppressive matings between ρ(-) and ρ(+) cells of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is thought to be a consequence of the replication advantage of the ρ(-) mtDNA. A nuclear gene, MGT1, that is required for this displacement of ρ(+) mtDNA from zygotic clones has been identified through mutation. When one haploid parent carries the mgt1 allele, transmission of ρ(-) mtDNA is substantially reduced. When both haploid parents carry the mgt1 allele, ρ(-) mtDNA is essentially eliminated from the zygotic progeny. Thus in the absence of the MGT1 gene there is a switch in the transmission bias; ρ(+) mtDNA rather than the hypersuppressive ρ(-) mtDNA is inherited by most zygotic clones. In contrast to its semi-dominant behavior in haploid matings, mgt1 behaves as a recessive allele in diploid matings since the ρ(+) genome in MGT1/mgt1 diploids is efficiently displaced when mated with a MGT1/mgt1 hypersuppressive ρ(-) diploid strain. We find that ρ(+) genomes can be comaintained along with hypersuppressive ρ(-) mtDNA for extended periods in clonal lines derived from MGT1 X mgt1 matings. However, as expected from the recessive nature of the mgt1 mutation, these ρ(+) genomes are eventually eliminated. Our work indicates that MGT1 plays a crucial role in the competition for inheritance between hypersuppressive ρ(-) mtDNAs and the ρ(+) mitochondrial genome. The MGT1 gene product may be a component of a mtDNA replication system that acts preferentially at the rep sequences found in hypersuppressive mtDNAs.     

Caenorhabditis elegans,a pluricellular model organism to screen new genes involved in mitochondrial genome maintenance

The inheritance of functional mitochondria depends on faithful replication and transmission of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). A large and heterogeneous group of human disorders is associated with mitochondrial genome quantitative and qualitative anomalies. Several nuclear genes have been shown to account for these severe OXPHOS disorders. However, in several cases, the disease-causing mutations still remain unknown.Caenorhabditis elegans has been largely used for studying various biological functions because this multicellular organism has short life cycle and is easy to grow in the laboratory. Mitochondrial functions are relatively well conserved between human and C. elegans, and heteroplasmy exists in this organism as in human. C. elegans therefore represents a useful tool for studying mtDNA maintenance. Suppression by RNA interference of genes involved in mtDNA replication such as polg-1, encoding the mitochondrial DNA polymerase, results in reduced mtDNA copy number but in a normal phenotype of the F1 worms. By combining RNAi of genes involved in mtDNA maintenance and EtBr exposure, we were able to reveal a strong and specific phenotype (developmental larval arrest) associated to a severe decrease of mtDNA copy number. Moreover, we tested and validated the screen efficiency for human orthologous genes encoding mitochondrial nucleoid proteins. This allowed us to identify several genes that seem to be closely related to mtDNA maintenance in C. elegans.This work reports a first step in the further development of a large-scale screening in C. elegans that should allow to identify new genes of mtDNA maintenance whose human orthologs will obviously constitute new candidate genes for patients with quantitative or qualitative mtDNA anomalies.     

An enzyme in yeast mitochondria that catalyzes a step in branched-chain amino acid biosynthesis also functions in mitochondrial DNA stability.

The yeast mitochondrial high mobility group protein Abf2p is required, under certain growth conditions, for the maintenance of wild-type (rho+) mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). We have identified a multicopy suppressor of the mtDNA instability phenotype of cells with a null allele of the ABF2 gene (delta abf2). The suppressor is a known gene, ILV5, encoding the mitochondrial protein, acetohydroxy acid reductoisomerase, which catalyzes a step in branched-chain amino acid biosynthesis. Efficient suppression occurs with just a 2- to 3-fold increase in ILV5 copy number. Moreover, in delta abf2 cells with a single copy of ILV5, changes in mtDNA stability correlate directly with changes in conditions that are known to affect ILV5 expression. Wild-type mtDNA is unstable in cells with an ILV5 null mutation (delta ilv5), leading to the production of mostly rho- petite mutants. The instability of rho+ mtDNA in delta ilv5 cells is not simply a consequence of a block in branched-chain amino acid biosynthesis, since mtDNA is stable in cells with a null allele of the ILV2 gene, which encodes another enzyme of that pathway. The most severe instability of rho+ mtDNA is observed in cells with null alleles of both ABF2 and ILV5. We suggest that ILV5 encodes a bifunctional protein required for branched-chain amino acid biosynthesis and for the maintenance of rho+ mtDNA.     

Mitochondrial DNA content of mature spermatozoa and oocytes in the genetic model Drosophila

Although crucial to the success of fertilization and embryogenesis, little is known about the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) content of mature spermatozoa and oocytes across taxa and across different fertilization systems. Oocytes are assumed to hold a large population of mtDNAs that populate emerging cells during early embryogenesis, whereas spermatozoa harbor only a limited pool of mtDNAs that is believed to sustain functionality but fails to contribute paternal mtDNA to the zygote. Recent work suggests that mature sperm of the genetic model Drosophila melanogaster lack mtDNA, questioning the significance of zygotic mechanisms for the selective elimination of paternal mtDNA and their necessity for fertilization success. This finding further contradicts previous observations of the inheritance of paternal mtDNA in drosophilids. Using quantitative polymerase chain reaction, we estimate the mtDNA content of several laboratory strains of D. melanogaster and D. simulans to shed light on this discrepancy and to describe the mitochondrial/mtDNA load of gametes within this system. These measurements led to an average estimate of 22.91±4.61 mtDNA molecules/copies per spermatozoon across both species and to 1.07E+07±2.71E+06 molecules/copies per oocyte for D. simulans. As a consequence, the ratio of paternal and maternal mtDNA in the zygote was estimated at 1:4.65E+05.     

MMS Exposure Promotes Increased MtDNA Mutagenesis in the Presence of Replication-Defective Disease-Associated DNA Polymerase γ Variants

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) encodes proteins essential for ATP production. Mutant variants of the mtDNA polymerase cause mutagenesis that contributes to aging, genetic diseases, and sensitivity to environmental agents. We interrogated mtDNA replication in Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains with disease-associated mutations affecting conserved regions of the mtDNA polymerase, Mip1, in the presence of the wild type Mip1. Mutant frequency arising from mtDNA base substitutions that confer erythromycin resistance and deletions between 21-nucleotide direct repeats was determined. Previously, increased mutagenesis was observed in strains encoding mutant variants that were insufficient to maintain mtDNA and that were not expected to reduce polymerase fidelity or exonuclease proofreading. Increased mutagenesis could be explained by mutant variants stalling the replication fork, thereby predisposing the template DNA to irreparable damage that is bypassed with poor fidelity. This hypothesis suggests that the exogenous base-alkylating agent, methyl methanesulfonate (MMS), would further increase mtDNA mutagenesis. Mitochondrial mutagenesis associated with MMS exposure was increased up to 30-fold in mip1 mutants containing disease-associated alterations that affect polymerase activity. Disrupting exonuclease activity of mutant variants was not associated with increased spontaneous mutagenesis compared with exonuclease-proficient alleles, suggesting that most or all of the mtDNA was replicated by wild type Mip1. A novel subset of C to G transversions was responsible for about half of the mutants arising after MMS exposure implicating error-prone bypass of methylated cytosines as the predominant mutational mechanism. Exposure to MMS does not disrupt exonuclease activity that suppresses deletions between 21-nucleotide direct repeats, suggesting the MMS-induce mutagenesis is not explained by inactivated exonuclease activity. Further, trace amounts of CdCl₂ inhibit mtDNA replication but suppresses MMS-induced mutagenesis. These results suggest a novel mechanism wherein mutations that lead to hypermutation by DNA base-damaging agents and associate with mitochondrial disease may contribute to previously unexplained phenomena, such as the wide variation of age of disease onset and acquired mitochondrial toxicities.     

The Role of Heteroplasmy in the Diagnosis and Management of Maternally Inherited Diabetes and Deafness

Objective: Maternally inherited diabetes and deafness (MIDD) is a rare diabetic syndrome mainly caused by a point mutation in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), mt3243 adenine to guanine (A>G). The objective of this paper is to review the genetic inheritance, clinical manifestations, and treatment of patients with MIDD.Methods: The current review used a literature search of scientific papers on this rare syndrome.Results: mtDNA is primarily inherited through the maternal oocyte; therefore, the genetic abnormalities in MIDD are associated with maternal inheritance. Mitochondria contain circular mtDNA, which codes for various mitochondrial genes. The mtDNA can be heteroplasmic, containing more than one type of mtDNA sequence; if one of the mtDNAs contains the mt3243 A>G mutation, a patient may develop MIDD. Patients can inherit different amounts of mutated mtDNA and normal mtDNA that affect the severity of the clinical manifestations of MIDD. The most common clinical manifestations include diabetes mellitus, deafness, ophthalmic disease, cardiac disease, renal disease, gastrointestinal disease, short stature, and myopathies. In order to effectively treat patients with MIDD, it is important to recognize the underlying pathophysiology of this specific form of diabetes and the pathophysiology associated with the organ-specific complications present in this disease.Conclusion: The heteroplasmic inheritance of mutated mtDNA plays an important role in the clinical manifestations of various mitochondrial diseases, specifically MIDD. This review will alert endocrinologists of the signs and symptoms of MIDD and important clinical considerations when managing this disease.Abbreviations: ATP = adenosine triphosphate; CoQ10 = coenzyme Q10; MELAS = mitochondrial myopathy, encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke; MIDD = maternally inherited diabetes and deafness; mtDNA = mitochondrial DNA; tRNA = transfer ribonucleic acid; ROS = reactive oxygen species; T2DM = type 2 diabetes mellitus     

Reactive oxygen species regulate DNA copy number in isolated yeast mitochondria by triggering recombination-mediated replication

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) encodes proteins that are essential for cellular ATP production. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are respiratory byproducts that damage mtDNA and other cellular components. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the oxidized base excision-repair enzyme Ntg1 introduces a double-stranded break (DSB) at the mtDNA replication origin ori5; this DSB initiates the rolling-circle mtDNA replication mediated by the homologous DNA pairing protein Mhr1. Thus, ROS may play a role in the regulation of mtDNA copy number. Here, we show that the treatment of isolated mitochondria with low concentrations of hydrogen peroxide increased mtDNA copy number in an Ntg1- and Mhr1-dependent manner. This treatment elevated the DSB levels at ori5 of hypersuppressive [rho^–] mtDNA only if Ntg1 was active. In vitro Ntg1-treatment of hypersuppressive [rho^–] mtDNA extracted from hydrogen peroxide-treated mitochondria revealed increased oxidative modifications at ori5 loci. We also observed that purified Ntg1 created breaks in single-stranded DNA harboring oxidized bases, and that ori5 loci have single-stranded character. Furthermore, chronic low levels of hydrogen peroxide increased in vivo mtDNA copy number. We therefore propose that ROS act as a regulator of mtDNA copy number, acting through the Mhr1-dependent initiation of rolling-circle replication promoted by Ntg1-induced DSB in the single-stranded regions at ori5.     

Paternal transmission of mitochondrial DNA as an integral part of mitochondrial inheritance in metapopulations of Drosophila simulans

Maternal inheritance is one of the hallmarks of animal mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and central to its success as a molecular marker. This mode of inheritance and subsequent lack of heterologous recombination allows us to retrace evolutionary relationships unambiguously down the matriline and without the confounding effects of recombinant genetic information. Accumulating evidence of biparental inheritance of mtDNA (paternal leakage), however, challenges our current understanding of how this molecule is inherited. Here, using Drosophila simulans collected from an East African metapopulation exhibiting recurring mitochondrial heteroplasmy, we conducted single fly matings and screened F1 offspring for the presence of paternal mtDNA using allele-specific PCR assays (AS–PCR). In all, 27 out of 4092 offspring were identified as harboring paternal mtDNA, suggesting a frequency of 0.66% paternal leakage in this species. Our findings strongly suggest that recurring mtDNA heteroplasmy as observed in natural populations of Drosophila simulans is most likely caused by repeated paternal leakage. Our findings further suggest that this phenomenon to potentially be an integral part of mtDNA inheritance in these populations and consequently of significance for mtDNA as a molecular marker.