Endonuclease IV Is the Major Apurinic/Apyrimidinic Endonuclease in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Is Important for Protection against Oxidative Damage

During the establishment of an infection, bacterial pathogens encounter oxidative stress resulting in the production of DNA lesions. Majority of these lesions are repaired by base excision repair (BER) pathway. Amongst these, abasic sites are the most frequent lesions in DNA. Class II apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) endonucleases play a major role in BER of damaged DNA comprising of abasic sites. Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a deadly pathogen, resides in the human macrophages and is continually subjected to oxidative assaults. We have characterized for the first time two AP endonucleases namely Endonuclease IV (End) and Exonuclease III (XthA) that perform distinct functions in M.tuberculosis. We demonstrate that M.tuberculosis End is a typical AP endonuclease while XthA is predominantly a 3′→5′ exonuclease. The AP endonuclease activity of End and XthA was stimulated by Mg²⁺ and Ca²⁺ and displayed a preferential recognition for abasic site paired opposite to a cytosine residue in DNA. Moreover, End exhibited metal ion independent 3′→5′ exonuclease activity while in the case of XthA this activity was metal ion dependent. We demonstrate that End is not only a more efficient AP endonuclease than XthA but it also represents the major AP endonuclease activity in M.tuberculosis and plays a crucial role in defense against oxidative stress.