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Biology subjects

Pasero, P.

Publications and source records attributed to Pasero, P..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

DDK has a primary role in processing stalled replication forks to initiate downstream checkpoint signaling

CDC7-DBF4 kinase (DDK) is required to initiate DNA replication in eukaryotes by activating the replicative MCM helicase. DDK has also been reported to have diverse and sometimes conflicting roles in the replication checkpoint response in various organisms but the underlying mechanisms are far from settled. Here we show that human DDK promotes limited resection of newly synthesized DNA at stalled replication forks or sites of DNA damage to initiate replication checkpoint signaling. DDK is also required for efficient fork restart and G2/M cell cycle arrest. DDK exhibits genetic interactions with the ssDNA exonuclease EXO1, and we show that EXO1 is also required for nascent strand degradation following exposure to HU, raising the possibility that DDK regulates EXO1 directly. Thus, DDK has a primary and previously undescribed role in the replication checkpoint to promote ssDNA accumulation at stalled forks, which is required to initiate a robust checkpoint response and cell cycle arrest to maintain genome integrity.

cell biology

Integrated analysis of DSB patterns reveals precisely DSB formation mechanisms following replication fork collapse

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) can be detected by label-based sequencing or pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Sequencing yields population-average DSB frequencies genome-wide, while PFGE reveals percentages of broken chromosomes. We constructed a mathematical framework to combine advantages of both: high-resolution DSB locations and their population distribution. We also use sequencing read patterns to identify replication-induced DSBs and active replication origins. We describe changes in spatiotemporal replication program upon hydroxyurea-induced replication stress. We found that one-ended DSBs, resulting from collapsed replication forks, are population-representative, while majority of two-ended DSBs (79-100%) are not. To study replication fork collapse, we used strains lacking the checkpoint protein Mec1 and the endonuclease Mus81 and quantified that 19% and 13% of hydroxyurea-induced one-ended DSBs are Mec1-and Mus81-dependent, respectively. We also clarified that Mus81-induced one-ended DSBs are Mec1-dependent.

genomics

Quantitative DSB sequencing (qDSB-Seq): a method for genome-wide accurate estimation of absolute DNA double-strand break frequencies per cell

Sequencing-based methods for mapping DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) allow measurement only of relative frequencies of DSBs between loci, which limits our understanding of the physiological relevance of detected DSBs. We propose quantitative DSB sequencing (qDSB-Seq), a method providing both DSB frequencies per cell and their precise genomic coordinates. We induced spike-in DSBs by a site-specific endonuclease and used them to quantify labeled DSBs (e.g. using i-BLESS). Utilizing qDSB-Seq, we determined numbers of DSBs induced by a radiomimetic drug and various forms of replication stress, and revealed several orders of magnitude differences in DSB frequencies. We also measured for the first time Top1-dependent absolute DSB frequencies at replication fork barriers. qDSB-Seq is compatible with various DSB labeling methods in different organisms and allows accurate comparisons of absolute DSB frequencies across samples.

genomics