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Uracil occurs at replication forks via misincorporation of deoxyuridine monophosphate (dUMP) or via deamination of existing cytosines, which occurs 2–3 orders of magnitude faster in ssDNA than in dsDNA and is 100% miscoding. Tethering of UNG2 to proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) allows rapid post-replicative removal of misincorporated uracil, but potential ‘pre-replicative’ removal of deaminated cytosines in ssDNA has been questioned since this could mediate mutagenic translesion synthesis and induction of double-strand breaks. Here, we demonstrate that uracil-DNA glycosylase (UNG), but not SMUG1 efficiently excises uracil from replication protein A (RPA)-coated ssDNA and that this depends on functional interaction between the flexible winged-helix (WH) domain of RPA2 and the N-terminal RPA-binding helix in UNG. This functional interaction is promoted by mono-ubiquitination and diminished by cell-cycle regulated phosphorylations on UNG. Six other human proteins bind the RPA2-WH domain, all of which are involved in DNA repair and replication fork remodelling. Based on this and the recent discovery of the AP site crosslinking protein HMCES, we propose an integrated model in which templated repair of uracil and potentially other mutagenic base lesions in ssDNA at the replication fork, is orchestrated by RPA. The UNG:RPA2-WH interaction may also play a role in adaptive immunity by promoting efficient excision of AID-induced uracils in transcribed immunoglobulin loci., Graphical Abstract Graphical AbstractThe WH-domain of RPA facilitates efficient UNG-mediated excision from RPA-coated ssDNA and may orchestrate error-free templated repair of the resultant AP-site.

Human uracil N-glycosylase isoform 2—UNG2 consists of an N-terminal intrinsically disordered regulatory domain (UNG2 residues 1–92, 9.3 kDa) and a C-terminal structured catalytic domain (UNG2 residues 93–313, 25.1 kDa). Here, we report the backbone 1H, 13C, and 15N chemical shift assignment as well as secondary structure analysis of the N-and C-terminal domains of UNG2 representing the full-length UNG2 protein.

UNG is the major uracil-DNA glycosylase in mammalian cells and is involved in both error-free base excision repair of genomic uracil and mutagenic uracil-processing at the antibody genes. However, the regulation of UNG in these different processes is currently not well understood. The UNG gene encodes two isoforms, UNG1 and UNG2, each possessing unique N-termini that mediate translocation to the mitochondria and the nucleus, respectively. A strict subcellular localization of each isoform has been widely accepted despite a lack of models to study them individually. To determine the roles of each isoform, we generated and characterized several UNG isoform-specific mouse and human cell lines. We identified a distinct UNG1 isoform variant that is targeted to the cell nucleus where it supports antibody class switching and repairs genomic uracil. We propose that the nuclear UNG1 variant, which in contrast to UNG2 lacks a PCNA-binding motif, may be specialized to act on ssDNA through its ability to bind RPA. RPA-coated ssDNA regions include both transcribed antibody genes that are targets for deamination by AID and regions in front of the moving replication forks. Our findings provide new insights into the function of UNG isoforms in adaptive immunity and DNA repair. Copyright © 2019, Oxford University Press. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons CC BY license, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. You are not required to obtain permission to reuse this article.

To ensure genome stability, mammalian cells employ several DNA repair pathways. Nonhomologous DNA end joining (NHEJ) is the DNA repair process that fixes double-strand breaks throughout the cell cycle. NHEJ is involved in the development of B and T lymphocytes through its function in V(D)J recombination and class switch recombination (CSR). NHEJ consists of several core and accessory factors, including Ku70, Ku80, XRCC4, DNA ligase 4, DNA-PKcs, Artemis, and XLF. Paralog of XRCC4 and XLF (PAXX) is the recently described accessory NHEJ factor that structurally resembles XRCC4 and XLF and interacts with Ku70/Ku80. To determine the physiological role of PAXX in mammalian cells, we purchased and characterized a set of custom-generated and commercially available NHEJ-deficient human haploid HAP1 cells, PAXXΔ, XRCC4Δ, and XLFΔ. In our studies, HAP1 PAXXΔ cells demonstrated modest sensitivity to DNA damage, which was comparable to wild-type controls. By contrast, XRCC4Δ and XLFΔ HAP1 cells possessed significant DNA repair defects measured as sensitivity to double-strand break inducing agents and chromosomal breaks. To investigate the role of PAXX in CSR, we generated and characterized Paxx−/− and Aid−/− murine lymphoid CH12F3 cells. CSR to IgA was nearly at wild-type levels in the Paxx−/− cells and completely ablated in the absence of activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID). In addition, Paxx−/− CH12F3 cells were hypersensitive to zeocin when compared to wild-type controls. We concluded that Paxx-deficient mammalian cells maintain robust NHEJ and CSR. © 2018 The Authors. Published by FEBS Press and John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Genomic uracil is normally processed essentially error-free by base excision repair (BER), with mismatch repair (MMR) as an apparent backup for U:G mismatches. Nuclear uracil-DNA glycosylase UNG2 is the major enzyme initiating BER of uracil of U:A pairs as well as U:G mismatches. Deficiency in UNG2 results in several-fold increases in genomic uracil in mammalian cells. Thus, the alternative uracil-removing glycosylases, SMUG1, TDG and MBD4 cannot efficiently complement UNG2-deficiency. A major function of SMUG1 is probably to remove 5-hydroxymethyluracil from DNA with general back-up for UNG2 as a minor function. TDG and MBD4 remove deamination products U or T mismatched to G in CpG/mCpG contexts, but may have equally or more important functions in development, epigenetics and gene regulation. Genomic uracil was previously thought to arise only from spontaneous cytosine deamination and incorporation of dUMP, generating U:G mismatches and U:A pairs, respectively. However, the identification of activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) and other APOBEC family members as DNA-cytosine deaminases has spurred renewed interest in the processing of genomic uracil. Importantly, AID triggers the adaptive immune response involving error-prone processing of U:G mismatches, but also contributes to B-cell lymphomagenesis. Furthermore, mutational signatures in a substantial fraction of other human cancers are consistent with APOBEC-induced mutagenesis, with U:G mismatches as prime suspects. Mutations can be caused by replicative polymerases copying uracil in U:G mismatches, or by translesion polymerases that insert incorrect bases opposite abasic sites after uracil-removal. In addition, kataegis, localized hypermutations in one strand in the vicinity of genomic rearrangements, requires APOBEC protein, UNG2 and translesion polymerase REV1. What mechanisms govern error-free versus error prone processing of uracil in DNA remains unclear. In conclusion, genomic uracil is an essential intermediate in adaptive immunity and innate antiviral responses, but may also be a fundamental cause of a wide range of malignancies.

5-Hydroxyuracil (5-OHU) in DNA, arising during endogenous DNA damage and caused by ionizing radiation, is removed by the base excision repair pathway. However, in addition to base lesions, ionizing radiation also generates DNA single-strand breaks (SSBs). When these DNA lesions are located in the proximity of each other, this may result in a profound effect on both repair of the damaged base and the SSB. We therefore examined the repair of DNA substrates containing 5-OHU lesions in the proximity of the 3'-end of a SSB. We found that SSB repair by DNA ligase IIIalpha and DNA polymerase beta is impaired by the presence of the nearby 5-OHU lesion, indicating the requirement for a DNA glycosylase which would be able to remove 5-OHU before SSB repair. Subsequently, we found that although both SMUG1 and NEIL1 are able to excise 5-OHU lesions located in the proximity of the 3'-end of a DNA SSB, NEIL1 is more efficient in the repair of these DNA lesions.

In human cell nuclei, UNG2 is the major uracil-DNA glycosylase initiating DNA base excision repair of uracil. In activated B cells it has an additional role in facilitating mutagenic processing of AID-induced uracil at Ig loci and UNG-deficient patients develop hyper-IgM syndrome characterized by impaired class-switch recombination and disturbed somatic hypermutation. How UNG2 is recruited to either error-free or mutagenic uracil processing remains obscure, but likely involves regulated interactions with other proteins. The UNG2 N-terminal domain contains binding motifs for both proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and replication protein A (RPA), but the relative contribution of these interactions to genomic uracil processing is not understood. Interestingly, a heterozygous germline single-nucleotide variant leading to Arg88Cys (R88C) substitution in the RPA-interaction motif of UNG2 has been observed in humans, but with unknown functional relevance. Here we demonstrate that UNG2-R88C protein is expressed from the variant allele in a lymphoblastoid cell line derived from a heterozygous germ line carrier. Enzyme activity as well as localization in replication foci of UNG2-R88C was similar to that of WT. However, binding to RPA was essentially abolished by the R88C substitution, whereas binding to PCNA was unaffected. Moreover, we show that disruption of the PCNA-binding motif impaired recruitment of UNG2 to S-phase replication foci, demonstrating that PCNA is a major factor for recruitment of UNG2 to unperturbed replication forks. Conversely, in cells treated with hydroxyurea, RPA mediated recruitment of UNG2 to stalled replication forks independently of functional PCNA binding. Modulation of PCNA- versus RPA-binding may thus constitute a functional switch for UNG2 in cells subsequent to genotoxic stress and potentially also during the processing of uracil at the immunoglobulin locus in antigen-stimulated B cells.

Genomic uracil resulting from spontaneously deaminated cytosine generates mutagenic U:G mismatches that are usually corrected by error-free base excision repair (BER). However, in B-cells, activation-induced cytosine deaminase (AID) generates U:G mismatches in hot-spot sequences at Ig loci. These are subject to mutagenic processing during somatic hypermutation (SHM) and class switch recombination (CSR). Uracil N-glycosylases UNG2 and SMUG1 (single strand-selective monofunctional uracil-DNA glycosylase 1) initiate error-free BER in most DNA contexts, but UNG2 is also involved in mutagenic processing of AID-induced uracil during the antibody diversification process, the regulation of which is not understood. AID is strictly single strand-specific. Here we show that in the presence of Mg2+ and monovalent salts, human and mouse SMUG1 are essentially double strand-specific, whereas UNG2 efficiently removes uracil from both single and double stranded DNA under all tested conditions. Furthermore, SMUG1 and UNG2 display widely different sequence preferences. Interestingly, uracil in a hot-spot sequence for AID is 200-fold more efficiently removed from single stranded DNA by UNG2 than by SMUG1. This may explain why SMUG1, which is not excluded from Ig loci, is unable to replace UNG2 in antibody diversification. We suggest a model for mutagenic processing in which replication protein A (RPA) recruits UNG2 to sites of deamination and keeps DNA in a single stranded conformation, thus avoiding error-free BER of the deaminated cytosine.

Cytotoxicity of 5-fluorouracil (FU) and 5-fluoro-2′-deoxyuridine (FdUrd) due to DNA fragmentation during DNA repair has been proposed as an alternative to effects from thymidylate synthase (TS) inhibition or RNA incorporation. The goal of the present study was to investigate the relative contribution of the proposed mechanisms for cytotoxicity of 5-fluoropyrimidines. We demonstrate that in human cancer cells, base excision repair (BER) initiated by the uracil–DNA glycosylase UNG is the major route for FU–DNA repair in vitro and in vivo. SMUG1, TDG and MBD4 contributed modestly in vitro and not detectably in vivo. Contribution from mismatch repair was limited to FU:G contexts at best. Surprisingly, knockdown of individual uracil–DNA glycosylases or MSH2 did not affect sensitivity to FU or FdUrd. Inhibitors of common steps of BER or DNA damage signalling affected sensitivity to FdUrd and HmdUrd, but not to FU. In support of predominantly RNA-mediated cytotoxicity, FU-treated cells accumulated ~3000- to 15 000-fold more FU in RNA than in DNA. Moreover, FU-cytotoxicity was partially reversed by ribonucleosides, but not deoxyribonucleosides and FU displayed modest TS-inhibition compared to FdUrd. In conclusion, UNG-initiated BER is the major route for FU–DNA repair, but cytotoxicity of FU is predominantly RNA-mediated, while DNA-mediated effects are limited to FdUrd. The Author(s) 2011. Published by Oxford University Press. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nc/3.0), which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Genomic uracil is a DNA lesion but also an essential key intermediate in adaptive immunity. In B cells, activation-induced cytidine deaminase deaminates cytosine to uracil (U:G mispairs) in Ig genes to initiate antibody maturation. Uracil-DNA glycosylases (UDGs) such as uracil N-glycosylase (UNG), single strand-selective monofunctional uracil-DNA glycosylase 1 (SMUG1), and thymine-DNA glycosylase remove uracil from DNA. Gene-targeted mouse models are extensively used to investigate the role of these enzymes in DNA repair and Ig diversification. However, possible species differences in uracil processing in humans and mice are yet not established. To address this, we analyzed UDG activities and quantities in human and mouse cell lines and in splenic B cells from Ung+/+ and Ung−/− backcrossed mice. Interestingly, human cells displayed ∼15-fold higher total uracil excision capacity due to higher levels of UNG. In contrast, SMUG1 activity was ∼8-fold higher in mouse cells, constituting ∼50% of the total U:G excision activity compared with less than 1% in human cells. In activated B cells, both UNG and SMUG1 activities were at levels comparable with those measured for mouse cell lines. Moreover, SMUG1 activity per cell was not down-regulated after activation. We therefore suggest that SMUG1 may work as a weak backup activity for UNG2 during class switch recombination in Ung−/− mice. Our results reveal significant species differences in genomic uracil processing. These findings should be taken into account when mouse models are used in studies of uracil DNA repair and adaptive immunity.

Deamination of cytosine in DNA results in mutagenic U:G mispairs, whereas incorporation of dUMP leads to U:A pairs that may be genotoxic directly or indirectly. In both cases, uracil is mainly removed by a uracil-DNA glycosylase (UDG) that initiates the base excision repair pathway. The major UDGs are mitochondrial UNG1 and nuclear UNG2 encoded by the UNG-gene, and nuclear SMUG1. TDG and MBD4 remove uracil from special sequence contexts, but their roles remain poorly understood. UNG2 is cell cycle regulated and has a major role in post-replicative removal of incorporated uracils. UNG2 and SMUG1 are both important for prevention of mutations caused by cytosine deamination, and their functions are non-redundant. In addition, SMUG1 has a major role in removal of hydroxymethyl uracil from oxidized thymines. Furthermore, UNG-proteins and SMUG1 may have important functions in removal of oxidized cytosines, e.g. isodialuric acid, alloxan and 5-hydroxyuracil after exposure to ionizing radiation. UNG2 is also essential in the acquired immune response, including somatic hypermutation (SHM) required for antibody affinity maturation and class switch recombination (CSR) mediating new effector functions, e.g. from IgM to IgG. Upon antigen exposure B-lymphocytes express activation induced cytosine deaminase that generates U:G mispairs at the Ig locus. These result in GC to AT transition mutations upon DNA replication and apparently other mutations as well. Some of these may result from the generation of abasic sites and translesion bypass synthesis across such sites. SMUG1 can not complement UNG2 deficiency, probably because it works very inefficiently on single-stranded DNA and is down-regulated in B cells. In humans, UNG-deficiency results in the hyper IgM syndrome characterized by recurrent infections, lymphoid hyperplasia, extremely low IgG, IgA and IgE and elevated IgM. Ung(-/-) mice have a similar phenotype, but in addition display dysregulated cytokine production and develop B cell lymphomas late in life.

Uracil is present in small amounts in DNA due to spontaneous deamination of cytosine and incorporation of dUMP during replication. While deamination generates mutagenic U:G mismatches, incorporated dUMP results in U:A pairs that are not directly mutagenic, but may be cytotoxic. In most cells, mutations resulting from uracil in DNA are prevented by error-free base excision repair. However, in B-cells uracil in DNA is also a physiological intermediate in acquired immunity. Here, activation-induced cytosine deaminase (AID) introduces template uracils that give GC to AT transition mutations in the Ig locus after replication. When uracil–DNA glycosylase (UNG2) removes uracil, error-prone translesion synthesis over the abasic site causes other mutations in the Ig locus. Together, these processes are central to somatic hypermutation (SHM) that increases immunoglobulin diversity. AID and UNG2 are also essential for generation of strand breaks that initiate class switch recombination (CSR). Patients lacking UNG2 display a hyper-IgM syndrome with recurrent infections, increased IgM, strongly decreased IgG, IgA and IgE and skewed SHM. UNG2 is also involved in innate immune response against retroviral infections. Ung−/− mice have a similar phenotype and develop B-cell lymphomas late in life. However, there is no evidence indicating that UNG deficiency causes lymphomas in humans.

The generation of high-affinity antibodies requires somatic hypermutation (SHM) and class switch recombination (CSR) at the immunoglobulin (Ig) locus. Both processes are triggered by activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) and require UNG-encoded uracil-DNA glycosylase. AID has been suggested to function as an mRNA editing deaminase or as a single-strand DNA deaminase. In the latter model, SHM may result from replicative incorporation of dAMP opposite U or from error-prone repair of U, whereas CSR may be triggered by strand breaks at abasic sites. Here, we demonstrate that extracts of UNG-proficient human B cell lines efficiently remove U from single-stranded DNA. In B cell lines from hyper-IgM patients carrying UNG mutations, the single-strand–specific uracil-DNA glycosylase, SMUG1, cannot complement this function. Moreover, the UNG mutations lead to increased accumulation of genomic uracil. One mutation results in an F251S substitution in the UNG catalytic domain. Although this UNG form was fully active and stable when expressed in Escherichia coli, it was mistargeted to mitochondria and degraded in mammalian cells. Our results may explain why SMUG1 cannot compensate the UNG2 deficiency in human B cells, and are fully consistent with the DNA deamination model that requires active nuclear UNG2. Based on our findings and recent information in the literature, we present an integrated model for the initiating steps in CSR.

Activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) is a 'master molecule' in immunoglobulin (Ig) class-switch recombination (CSR) and somatic hypermutation (SHM) generation, AID deficiencies are associated with hyper-IgM phenotypes in humans and mice. We show here that recessive mutations of the gene encoding uracil-DNA glycosylase (UNG) are associated with profound impairment in CSR at a DNA precleavage step and with a partial disturbance of the SHM pattern in three patients with hyper-IgM syndrome. Together with the finding that nuclear UNG expression was induced in activated B cells, these data support a model of CSR and SHM in which AID deaminates cytosine into uracil in targeted DNA (immunoglobulin switch or variable regions), followed by uracil removal by UNG.

hUNG2 and hSMUG1 are the only known glycosylases that may remove uracil from both double- and single-stranded DNA in nuclear chromatin, but their relative contribution to base excision repair remains elusive. The present study demonstrates that both enzymes are strongly stimulated by physiological concentrations of Mg2+, at which the activity of hUNG2 is 2-3 orders of magnitude higher than of hSMUG1. Moreover, Mg2+ increases the preference of hUNG2 toward uracil in ssDNA nearly 40-fold. APE1 has a strong stimulatory effect on hSMUG1 against dsU, apparently because of enhanced dissociation of hSMUG1 from AP sites in dsDNA. hSMUG1 also has a broader substrate specificity than hUNG2, including 5-hydroxymethyluracil and 3,N(4)-ethenocytosine. hUNG2 is excluded from, whereas hSMUG1 accumulates in, nucleoli in living cells. In contrast, only hUNG2 accumulates in replication foci in the S-phase. hUNG2 in nuclear extracts initiates base excision repair of plasmids containing either U:A and U:G in vitro. Moreover, an additional but delayed repair of the U:G plasmid is observed that is not inhibited by neutralizing antibodies against hUNG2 or hSMUG1. We propose a model in which hUNG2 is responsible for both prereplicative removal of deaminated cytosine and postreplicative removal of misincorporated uracil at the replication fork. We also provide evidence that hUNG2 is the major enzyme for removal of deaminated cytosine outside of replication foci, with hSMUG1 acting as a broad specificity backup.

B-lymphocytes can modify their immunoglobulin (Ig) genes to generate specific antibodies with a new isotype and enhanced affinity against an antigen. Activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID), which is positively regulated by the transcription factor E2A, is the key enzyme that initiates these processes by deaminating cytosine to uracil in Ig genes. Nuclear uracil-DNA glycosylase (UNG2) is subsequently required for uracil processing in the generation of high affinity antibodies of different isotypes. Here we show that the transcription factor E2A binds to the UNG2 promoter and represses UNG2 expression. Inhibition of E2A by binding of Ca(2+)-activated calmodulin alleviates this repression. Furthermore, we demonstrate that UNG2 preferentially accumulates in regions of the Ig heavy chain (IgH) gene containing AID hotspots. Calmodulin inhibition of E2A strongly enhances this UNG2 accumulation, indicating that it is negatively regulated by E2A as well. We show also that over-expression of E2A can suppress class switch recombination. The results suggest that E2A is a key factor in regulating the balance between AID and UNG2, both at expression and Ig targeting levels, to stimulate Ig diversification and suppress normal DNA repair processes.

tThe most common mutations in cancer are C to T transitions, but their origin has remained elusive.Recently, mutational signatures of APOBEC-family cytosine deaminases were identified in many com-mon cancers, suggesting off-target deamination of cytosine to uracil as a common mutagenic mechanism.Here we present evidence from mass spectrometric quantitation of deoxyuridine in DNA that shows sig-nificantly higher genomic uracil content in B-cell lymphoma cell lines compared to non-lymphoma cancercell lines and normal circulating lymphocytes. The genomic uracil levels were highly correlated with AIDmRNA and protein expression, but not with expression of other APOBECs. Accordingly, AID knockdownsignificantly reduced genomic uracil content. B-cells stimulated to express endogenous AID and undergoclass switch recombination displayed a several-fold increase in total genomic uracil, indicating that Bcells may undergo widespread cytosine deamination after stimulation. In line with this, we found thatclustered mutations (kataegis) in lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia predominantly carryAID-hotspot mutational signatures. Moreover, we observed an inverse correlation of genomic uracil withuracil excision activity and expression of the uracil-DNA glycosylases UNG and SMUG1. In conclusion,AID-induced mutagenic U:G mismatches in DNA may be a fundamental and common cause of mutationsin B-cell malignancies. © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-NDlicense (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

Activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) is a DNA mutator enzyme essential for adaptive immunity. AID initiates somatic hypermutation and class switch recombination (CSR) by deaminating cytosine to uracil in specific immunoglobulin (Ig) gene regions. However, other loci, including cancer-related genes, are also targeted. Thus, tight regulation of AID is crucial to balance immunity versus disease such as cancer. AID is regulated by several mechanisms including nucleocytoplasmic shuttling. Here we have studied nuclear import kinetics and subnuclear trafficking of AID in live cells and characterized in detail its nuclear localization signal. Importantly, we find that the nuclear localization signal motif also directs AID to nucleoli where it colocalizes with its interaction partner, catenin-β-like 1 (CTNNBL1), and physically associates with nucleolin and nucleophosmin. Moreover, we demonstrate that release of AID from nucleoli is dependent on its C-terminal motif. Finally, we find that CSR efficiency correlates strongly with the arithmetic product of AID nuclear import rate and DNA deamination activity. Our findings suggest that directional nucleolar transit is important for the physiological function of AID and demonstrate that nuclear/nucleolar import and DNA cytosine deamination together define the biological activity of AID. This is the first study on subnuclear trafficking of AID and demonstrates a new level in its complex regulation. In addition, our results resolve the problem related to dissociation of deamination activity and CSR activity of AID mutants.

International audience; The enzyme activation-induced deaminase (AID) triggers antibody diversification in B cells by catalyzing deamination and consequently mutation of immunoglobulin genes. To minimize off-target deamination, AID is restrained by several regulatory mechanisms including nuclear exclusion, thought to be mediated exclusively by active nuclear export. Here we identify two other mechanisms involved in controlling AID subcellular localization. AID is unable to passively diffuse into the nucleus, despite its small size, and its nuclear entry requires active import mediated by a conformational nuclear localization signal. We also identify in its C terminus a determinant for AID cytoplasmic retention, which hampers diffusion to the nucleus, competes with nuclear import and is crucial for maintaining the predominantly cytoplasmic localization of AID in steady-state conditions. Blocking nuclear import alters the balance between these processes in favor of cytoplasmic retention, resulting in reduced isotype class switching.

Uracil in DNA may result from incorporation of dUMP during replication and from spontaneous or enzymatic deamination of cytosine, resulting in U:A pairs or U:G mismatches, respectively. Uracil generated by activation-induced cytosine deaminase (AID) in B cells is a normal intermediate in adaptive immunity. Five mammalian uracil-DNA glycosylases have been identified; these are mitochondrial UNG1 and nuclear UNG2, both encoded by the UNG gene, and the nuclear proteins SMUG1, TDG and MBD4. Nuclear UNG2 is apparently the sole contributor to the post-replicative repair of U:A lesions and to the removal of uracil from U:G contexts in immunoglobulin genes as part of somatic hypermutation and class-switch recombination processes in adaptive immunity. All uracil-DNA glycosylases apparently contribute to U:G repair in other cells, but they are likely to have different relative significance in proliferating and non-proliferating cells, and in different phases of the cell cycle. There are also some indications that there may be species differences in the function of the uracil-DNA glycosylases.

The Escherichia coli AlkB protein and human homologs hABH2 and hABH3 are 2-oxoglutarate (2OG)/Fe(II)-dependent DNA/RNA demethylases that repair 1-methyladenine and 3-methylcytosine residues. Surprisingly, hABH1, which displays the strongest homology to AlkB, failed to show repair activity in two independent studies. Here, we show that hABH1 is a mitochondrial protein, as demonstrated using fluorescent fusion protein expression, immunocytochemistry, and Western blot analysis. A fraction is apparently nuclear and this fraction increases strongly if the fluorescent tag is placed at the N-terminal end of the protein, thus interfering with mitochondrial targeting. Molecular modeling of hABH1 based upon the sequence and known structures of AlkB and hABH3 suggested an active site almost identical to these enzymes. hABH1 decarboxylates 2OG in the absence of a prime substrate, and the activity is stimulated by methylated nucleotides. Employing three different methods we demonstrate that hABH1 demethylates 3-methylcytosine in single-stranded DNA and RNA in vitro. Site-specific mutagenesis confirmed that the putative Fe(II) and 2OG binding residues are essential for activity. In conclusion, hABH1 is a functional mitochondrial AlkB homolog that repairs 3-methylcytosine in single-stranded DNA and RNA.

Human UNG2 is a multifunctional glycosylase that removes uracil near replication forks and in non-replicating DNA, and is important for affinity maturation of antibodies in B cells. How these diverse functions are regulated remains obscure. Here, we report three new phosphoforms of the non-catalytic domain that confer distinct functional properties to UNG2. These are apparently generated by cyclin-dependent kinases through stepwise phosphorylation of S23, T60 and S64 in the cell cycle. Phosphorylation of S23 in late G1/early S confers increased association with replication protein A (RPA) and replicating chromatin and markedly increases the catalytic turnover of UNG2. Conversely, progressive phosphorylation of T60 and S64 throughout S phase mediates reduced binding to RPA and flag UNG2 for breakdown in G2 by forming a cyclin E/c-myc-like phosphodegron. The enhanced catalytic turnover of UNG2 p-S23 likely optimises the protein to excise uracil along with rapidly moving replication forks. Our findings may aid further studies of how UNG2 initiates mutagenic rather than repair processing of activation-induced deaminase-generated uracil at Ig loci in B cells.

DNA glycosylases UNG and SMUG1 excise uracil from DNA and belong to the same protein superfamily. Vertebrates contain both SMUG1 and UNG, but their distinct roles in base excision repair (BER) of deaminated cytosine (U:G) are still not fully defined. Here we have examined the ability of human SMUG1 and UNG2 (nuclear UNG) to initiate and coordinate repair of U:G mismatches. When expressed in Escherichia coli cells, human UNG2 initiates complete repair of deaminated cytosine, while SMUG1 inhibits cell proliferation. In vitro, we show that SMUG1 binds tightly to AP-sites and inhibits AP-site cleavage by AP-endonucleases. Furthermore, a specific motif important for the AP-site product binding has been identified. Mutations in this motif increase catalytic turnover due to reduced product binding. In contrast, the highly efficient UNG2 lacks product-binding capacity and stimulates AP-site cleavage by APE1, facilitating the two first steps in BER. In summary, this work reveals that SMUG1 and UNG2 coordinate the initial steps of BER by distinct mechanisms. UNG2 is apparently adapted to rapid and highly coordinated repair of uracil (U:G and U:A) in replicating DNA, while the less efficient SMUG1 may be more important in repair of deaminated cytosine (U:G) in non-replicating chromatin.

CENP-A is an essential histone H3 variant found in all eukaryotes examined to date. To begin to determine how CENP-A is assembled into chromatin, we developed a binding assay using sperm chromatin in cell-free extract derived from Xenopus eggs. Our data suggest that the catalytic activities of an unidentified deoxycytidine deaminase and UNG2, a uracil DNA glycosylase, are involved in CENP-A assembly. In support of this model, inhibiting deoxycytidine deaminase with zebularine, or uracil DNA glycosylase with Ugi, uracil or UTP results in a lack of detectable CENP-A on sperm DNA. Conversely, inducing DNA damage increases the level of CENP-A detected on sperm chromatin. Our data suggest that base excision repair may be involved in assembly of this histone H3 variant.

Nuclear uracil-DNA glycosylase UNG2 has an established role in repair of U/A pairs resulting from misincorporation of dUMP during replication. In antigen-stimulated B-lymphocytes UNG2 removes uracil from U/G mispairs as part of somatic hypermutation and class switch recombination processes. Using antibodies specific for the N-terminal non-catalytic domain of UNG2, we isolated UNG2-associated repair complexes (UNG2-ARC) that carry out short-patch and long-patch base excision repair (BER). These complexes contain proteins required for both types of BER, including UNG2, APE1, POLbeta, POLdelta, XRCC1, PCNA and DNA ligase, the latter detected as activity. Short-patch repair was the predominant mechanism both in extracts and UNG2-ARC from proliferating and less BER-proficient growth-arrested cells. Repair of U/G mispairs and U/A pairs was completely inhibited by neutralizing UNG-antibodies, but whereas added recombinant SMUG1 could partially restore repair of U/G mispairs, it was unable to restore repair of U/A pairs in UNG2-ARC. Neutralizing antibodies to APE1 and POLbeta, and depletion of XRCC1 strongly reduced short-patch BER, and a fraction of long-patch repair was POLbeta dependent. In conclusion, UNG2 is present in preassembled complexes proficient in BER. Furthermore, UNG2 is the major enzyme initiating BER of deaminated cytosine (U/G), and possibly the sole enzyme initiating BER of misincorporated uracil (U/A).

Alkylation lesions in DNA and RNA result from endogenous compounds, environmental agents and alkylating drugs. Simple methylating agents, e.g. methylnitrosourea, tobacco-specific nitrosamines and drugs like temozolomide or streptozotocin, form adducts at N- and O-atoms in DNA bases. These lesions are mainly repaired by direct base repair, base excision repair, and to some extent by nucleotide excision repair (NER). The identified carcinogenicity of O(6)-methylguanine (O(6)-meG) is largely caused by its miscoding properties. Mutations from this lesion are prevented by O(6)-alkylG-DNA alkyltransferase (MGMT or AGT) that repairs the base in one step. However, the genotoxicity and cytotoxicity of O(6)-meG is mainly due to recognition of O(6)-meG/T (or C) mispairs by the mismatch repair system (MMR) and induction of futile repair cycles, eventually resulting in cytotoxic double-strand breaks. Therefore, inactivation of the MMR system in an AGT-defective background causes resistance to the killing effects of O(6)-alkylating agents, but not to the mutagenic effect. Bifunctional alkylating agents, such as chlorambucil or carmustine (BCNU), are commonly used anti-cancer drugs. DNA lesions caused by these agents are complex and require complex repair mechanisms. Thus, primary chloroethyl adducts at O(6)-G are repaired by AGT, while the secondary highly cytotoxic interstrand cross-links (ICLs) require nucleotide excision repair factors (e.g. XPF-ERCC1) for incision and homologous recombination to complete repair. Recently, Escherichia coli protein AlkB and human homologues were shown to be oxidative demethylases that repair cytotoxic 1-methyladenine (1-meA) and 3-methylcytosine (3-meC) residues. Numerous AlkB homologues are found in viruses, bacteria and eukaryotes, including eight human homologues (hABH1-8). These have distinct locations in subcellular compartments and their functions are only starting to become understood. Surprisingly, AlkB and hABH3 also repair RNA. An evaluation of the biological effects of environmental mutagens, as well as understanding the mechanism of action and resistance to alkylating drugs require a detailed understanding of DNA repair processes.

Genomes are damaged by spontaneous decay, chemicals, radiation and replication errors. DNA damage may cause mutations resulting in inheritable disease, cancer and ageing. Oxidative stress from ionising radiation and oxidative metabolism causes base damage, as well as strand breaks in DNA. Base damage is mostly indirect and caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated, e.g. O2(.-) (superoxide radical), OH. (hydroxyl radical) and H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide). ROS also oxidise RNA, lipids, proteins and nucleotides. The first line of defence against ROS is enzymatic inactivation of superoxide by superoxide dismutase and inactivation of the less toxic hydrogen peroxide by catalase. As a second line of defence, incorporation of damaged bases into DNA is prevented by enzymes that hydrolyse oxidised dNTPs (e.g. 8-oxodGTP) to the corresponding dNMP. The third line of defence is repair of oxidative damage in DNA by an intricate network of DNA repair mechanisms. Base excision repair (BER), transcription-coupled repair (TCR), global genome repair (GGR), mismatch repair (MMR), translesion synthesis (TLS), homologous recombination (HR) and non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) all contribute to repair of oxidative DNA damage. These mechanisms are also integrated with other cellular processes such as cell cycle regulation, transcription and replication and even use some common proteins. BER is the major pathway for repair of oxidative base damage, with TCR and MMR being important backup pathways for repair of transcribed strands and newly replicated strands, respectively. In recent years, several new DNA glycosylases that initiate BER of oxidative damage have been identified. These have specificities overlapping with previously known DNA glycosylases and serve as backups, and may have distinct roles as well. Thus, there is both inter- and intra-pathway complementation in repair of oxidative base damage, explaining the limited effects of absence of single DNA glycosylases in animal model systems.

Cellular and humoral defence mechanisms are essential for the survival of individuals and species. Thus, DNA repair prevents mutations and cytotoxicity from DNA damage, thereby reducing the risks of inappropriate cell death, developmental defects, premature ageing and cancer. Similarly, antigen-dependent acquired immune responses prevent infections and also have a role in cancer prevention. DNA repair is highly complex and functions in an intricate network that also involves transcription, replication, cell cycle regulation, and the immune system. DNA damage is repaired by at least four major mechanisms, each requiring many different proteins. In addition there are “subpathways”, and back-up mechanisms both within and between pathways. Various defects in DNA repair result in different forms of cancer, e.g. the rare syndrome Xeroderma pigmentosum and the more common diseases early-onset breast cancer and hereditary non-polyposis colon cancer. Surprisingly, recent research has revealed molecular interactions between the ancient DNA repair mechanisms and the much younger acquired immune system. Thus, the classical base excision enzyme uracil-DNA glycosylase encoded by the UNG gene is also involved in somatic hypermutation and class switch recombination, e.g. from IgM antibodies to IgG, yielding secreted high affinity antibodies. Mutations in both alleles of UNG result in a hyper-IgM syndrome with life-threatening infections. Furthermore, it has recently become clear that not only DNA, but also RNA and proteins are repaired. Thus, certain aberrant methylations in RNA are repaired by oxidative demethylation in one step restoring the normal base, and at least in a bacterial model system this increases survival several-fold after exposure to methylating agents. Proteins are repaired both at the peptide amino acid level and at the structural level. RNA and protein repair are likely to be important to prevent the formation of cytotoxic protein aggregates of the types known to cause neurodegenerative diseases e.g. Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s diseases, and other diseases as well. In conclusion, recent research has demonstrated an unexpected complexity of cellular defence mechanisms that function in intricate networks, rather than as independent mechanisms. The new knowledge opens for interventions that are based on a deeper understanding of the mechanisms of defence.

The decision to stop smallpox vaccination and the loss of specific immunity in a large proportion of the population could jeopardise world health due to the possibility of a natural or provoked re-emergence of smallpox. Therefore, it is mandatory to improve the current capability to prevent or treat such infections. The DNA repair protein uracil-DNA glycosylase (UNG) is one of the viral enzymes important for poxvirus pathogenesis. Consequently, the inhibition of UNG could be a rational strategy for the treatment of infections with poxviruses. In order to develop inhibitor assays for UNG, as a first step, we have characterised the recombinant vaccinia virus UNG (vUNG) and compared it with the human nuclear form (hUNG2) and catalytic fragment (hUNG) UNG. In contrast to hUNG2, vUNG is strongly inhibited in the presence of 7.5 mM MgCl(2). We have shown that highly purified vUNG is not inhibited by a specific uracil-DNA glycosylase inhibitor. Interestingly, both viral and human enzymes preferentially excise uracil when it is opposite to cytosine. The present study provides the basis for the design of specific inhibitors for vUNG.

The human UNG-gene at position 12q24.1 encodes nuclear (UNG2) and mitochondrial (UNG1) forms of uracil-DNA glycosylase using differentially regulated promoters, PA and PB, and alternative splicing to produce two proteins with unique N-terminal sorting sequences. PCNA and RPA co-localize with UNG2 in replication foci and interact with N-terminal sequences in UNG2. Mitochondrial UNG1 is processed to shorter forms by mitochondrial processing peptidase (MPP) and an unidentified mitochondrial protease. The common core catalytic domain in UNG1 and UNG2 contains a conserved DNA binding groove and a tight-fitting uracil-binding pocket that binds uracil only when the uracil-containing nucleotide is flipped out. Certain single amino acid substitutions in the active site of the enzyme generate DNA glycosylases that remove either thymine or cytosine. These enzymes induce cytotoxic and mutagenic abasic (AP) sites in the E. coli chromosome and were used to examine biological consequences of AP sites. It has been assumed that a major role of the UNG gene product(s) is to repair mutagenic U:G mispairs caused by cytosine deamination. However, one major role of UNG2 is to remove misincorporated dUMP residues. Thus, knockout mice deficient in Ung activity (Ung-/- mice) have only small increases in GC-->AT transition mutations, but Ung-/- cells are deficient in removal of misincorporated dUMP and accumulate approximately 2000 uracil residues per cell. We propose that BER is important both in the prevention of cancer and for preserving the integrity of germ cell DNA during evolution.

We introduced multiple abasic sites (AP sites) in the chromosome of repair-deficient mutants of Escherichia coli, in vivo, by expressing engineered variants of uracil-DNA glycosylase that remove either thymine or cytosine. After introduction of AP sites, deficiencies in base excision repair (BER) or recombination were associated with strongly enhanced cytotoxicity and elevated mutation frequencies, selected as base substitutions giving rifampicin resistance. In these strains, increased fractions of transversions and untargeted mutations were observed. In a recA mutant, deficient in both recombination and translesion DNA synthesis (TLS), multiple AP sites resulted in rapid cell death. Preferential incorporation of dAMP opposite a chromosomal AP site (‘A rule’) required UmuC. Furthermore, we observed an ‘A rule-like’ pattern of spontaneous mutations that was also UmuC dependent. The mutation patterns indicate that UmuC is involved in untargeted mutations as well. In a UmuC-deficient background, a preference for dGMP was observed. Spontaneous mutation spectra were generally strongly dependent upon the repair background. In conclusion, BER, recombination and TLS all contribute to the handling of chromosomal AP sites in E.coli in vivo.

Uracil in DNA results from either misincorporation of dUMP residues during replication, or from deamination of cytosine residues. The latter process results in premutagenic U:G mispairs that, unless uracil is removed, will cause GC→AT transitions in the subsequent round of replication. The 13.8 kb gene for human uracil-DNA glycosylase, UNG, is highly conserved and comprises 7 exons. It encodes more than 98% of the total uracil-DNA glycosylase activity in the cell. The crystal structure of the catalytic domain of UNG in complex with target DNA has demonstrated that all essential contacts are with the uracil-containing strand. The structure also reveals the mechanism of enzyme-assisted flipping of the uracil-containing nucleotide into the deep catalytic pocket that specifically binds uracil. Nuclear (UNG2) and mitochondrial (UNG1) forms of the enzyme result from the use of two promoters, PA and PB, and alternative splicing. mRNA for UNG1 encodes 304 amino acids, the first 35 of which are unique to this form. mRNA for UNG2 encodes 313 amino acids, the first 44 of which are unique to UNG2. The unique N-terminal sequences in UNG1 and UNG2 are required for mitochondrial and nuclear sorting, respectively, but not for catalytic activity. The 269 amino acid residues common to the two forms include the compact catalytic domain of approximately 220 C-terminal residues and an N-terminal part that binds replication protein A (RPA), indicating a possible role for RPA in base excision repair.

Any uracil bases in DNA, a result of either misincorporation or deamination of cytosine, are removed by uracil-DNA glycosylase (UDG), one of the most efficient and specific of the base-excision DNA-repair enzymes. Crystal structures of human and viral UDGs complexed with free uracil have indicated that the enzyme binds an extrahelical uracil. Such binding of undamaged extrahelical bases has been seen in the structures of two bacterial methyltransferases and bacteriophage T4 endonuclease V. Here we characterize the DNA binding and kinetics of several engineered human UDG mutants and present the crystal structure of one of these, which to our knowledge represents the first structure of any eukaryotic DNA repair enzyme in complex with its damaged, target DNA. Electrostatic orientation along the UDG active site, insertion of an amino acid (residue 272) into the DNA through the minor groove, and compression of the DNA backbone flanking the uracil all result in the flipping-out of the damaged base from the DNA major groove, allowing specific recognition of its phosphate, deoxyribose and uracil moieties. Our structure thus provides a view of a productive complex specific for cleavage of uracil from DNA and also reveals the basis for the enzyme-assisted nucleotide flipping by this critical DNA-repair enzyme.

Uracil-DNA glycosylase inhibitor (Ugi) is a B. subtilis bacteriophage protein that protects the uracil-containing phage DNA by irreversibly inhibiting the key DNA repair enzyme uracil-DNA glycosylase (UDG). The 1.9 A crystal structure of Ugi complexed to human UDG reveals that the Ugi structure, consisting of a twisted five-stranded antiparallel beta sheet and two alpha helices, binds by inserting a beta strand into the conserved DNA-binding groove of the enzyme without contacting the uracil specificity pocket. The resulting interface, which buries over 1200 A2 on Ugi and involves the entire beta sheet and an alpha helix, is polar and contains 22 water molecules. Ugi binds the sequence-conserved DNA-binding groove of UDG via shape and electrostatic complementarity, specific charged hydrogen bonds, and hydrophobic packing enveloping Leu-272 from a protruding UDG loop. The apparent mimicry by Ugi of DNA interactions with UDG provides both a structural mechanism for UDG binding to DNA, including the enzyme-assisted expulsion of uracil from the DNA helix, and a crystallographic basis for the design of inhibitors with scientific and therapeutic applications.

Crystal structures of the DNA repair enzyme human uracil-DNA glycosylase (UDG), combined with mutational analysis, reveal the structural basis for the specificity of the enzyme. Within the classic α/β fold of UDG, sequence-conserved residues form a positively charged, active-site groove the width of duplex DNA, at the C-terminal edge of the central four-stranded parallel β sheet. In the UDG-6-aminouracil complex, uracil binds at the base of the groove within a rigid preformed pocket that confers selectivity for uracil over other bases by shape complementarity and by main chain and Asn-204 side chain hydrogen bonds. Main chain nitrogen atoms are positioned to stabilize the oxyanion intermediate generated by His-268 acting via nucleophilic attack or general base mechanisms. Specific binding of uracil flipped out from a DNA duplex provides a structural mechanism for damaged base recognition.

We have expressed a human recombinant uracil-DNA glycosylase (UNG delta 84) closely resembling the mature form of the human enzyme (UNG, from the UNG gene) in Escherichia coli and purified the protein to apparent homogeneity. This form, which lacks the first seven nonconserved amino acids at the amino terminus, has properties similar to a 50% homogeneous UDG purified from human placenta except for a lower salt optimum and a slightly lower specific activity. The recombinant enzyme removed U from ssDNA approximately 3-fold more rapidly than from dsDNA. In the presence of 10 mM NaCl, Km values were 0.45 and 1.6 microM with ssDNA and dsDNA, respectively, but Km values increased significantly with higher NaCl concentrations. The pH optimum for UNG delta 84 was 7.7-8.0; the activation energy, 50.6 kJ/mol; and the pI between 10.4 and 10.8. The enzyme displays a striking sequence specificity in removal of U from UA base pairs in M13 dsDNA. The sequence specificity for removal of U from UG mismatches (simulating the situation after deamination of C) was essentially similar to removal from UA matches when examined in oligonucleotides. However, removal of U from UG mismatches was in general slightly faster, and in some cases significantly faster, than removal from UA base pairs. Immunofluorescence studies using polyclonal antibodies against UNG delta 84 demonstrated that the major fraction of UNG was located in the nucleus. Furthermore, > 98% of the total uracil-DNA glycosylase activity from HeLa cell extracts was inhibited by the antibodies, indicating that the UNG protein represents the major uracil-DNA glycosylase in the cells.

by oncogene activation are restrained by cellular senescence. We have previously shown that expression of an activated oncogene in cultured normal human cells results in a permanent cell-cycle arrest caused by the activation of a robust DDR. Experimental inactivation of DDR abrogates senescence and promotes cell transformation. Oncogene-induced senescence is also associated with a global heterochromatinization of nuclear DNA. Senescenceassociated heterochromatic foci (SAHFs) are enriched in heterochromatin markers and they have been proposed to enforce cellular senescence by suppressing the expression of proliferative genes. We will discuss our most recent results on the interplay between DDR and heterochromatin formation, the differential repair of the human genome and the regulation of DDR in stem cells and its impact on their proliferation and viability.

Uracil-DNA glycosylase (UDG) protects the genome by removing mutagenic uracil residues resulting from deamination of cytosine. Uracil binds in a rigid pocket at the base of the DNA-binding groove of human UDG and the specificity for uracil over the structurally related DNA bases thymine and cytosine is conferred by shape complementarity, as well as by main chain and Asn204 side chain hydrogen bonds. Here we show that replacement of Asn204 by Asp or Tyr147 by Ala, Cys or Ser results in enzymes that have cytosine-DNA glycosylase (CDG) activity or thymine-DNA glycosylase (TDG) activity, respectively. CDG and the TDG all retain some UDG activity. CDG and TDG have kcat values in the same range as typical multisubstrate-DNA glycosylases, that is at least three orders of magnitude lower than that of the highly selective and efficient wild-type UDG. Expression of CDG or TDG in Escherichia coli causes 4- to 100-fold increases in the yield of rifampicin-resistant mutants. Thus, single amino acid substitutions in UDG result in less selective DNA glycosylases that release normal pyrimidines and confer a mutator phenotype upon the cell. Three of the four new pyrimidine-DNA glycosylases resulted from single nucleotide substitutions, events that may also happen in vivo.