Smc5-Smc6 mediate DNA double-strand-break repair by promoting sister-chromatid recombination.

DNA double-strand breaks (DSB) can arise during DNA replication, or after exposure to DNA-damaging agents, and their correct repair is fundamental for cell survival and genomic stability. Here, we show that the Smc5-Smc6 complex is recruited to DSBs de novo to support their repair by homologous recombination between sister chromatids. In addition, we demonstrate that Smc5-Smc6 is necessary to suppress gross chromosomal rearrangements. Our findings show that the Smc5-Smc6 complex is essential for genome stability as it promotes repair of DSBs by error-free sister-chromatid recombination (SCR), thereby suppressing inappropriate non-sister recombination events.

Fast live simultaneous multiwavelength four-dimensional optical microscopy.

Live fluorescence microscopy has the unique capability to probe dynamic processes, linking molecular components and their localization with function. A key goal of microscopy is to increase spatial and temporal resolution while simultaneously permitting identification of multiple specific components. We demonstrate a new microscope platform, OMX, that enables subsecond, multicolor four-dimensional data acquisition and also provides access to subdiffraction structured illumination imaging. Using this platform to image chromosome movement during a complete yeast cell cycle at one 3D image stack per second reveals an unexpected degree of photosensitivity of fluorophore-containing cells. To avoid perturbation of cell division, excitation levels had to be attenuated between 100 and 10,000× below the level normally used for imaging. We show that an image denoising algorithm that exploits redundancy in the image sequence over space and time allows recovery of biological information from the low light level noisy images while maintaining full cell viability with no fading.

DNA end resection, homologous recombination and DNA damage checkpoint activation require CDK1.

A single double-strand break (DSB) induced by HO endonuclease triggers both repair by homologous recombination and activation of the Mec1-dependent DNA damage checkpoint in budding yeast. Here we report that DNA damage checkpoint activation by a DSB requires the cyclin-dependent kinase CDK1 (Cdc28) in budding yeast. CDK1 is also required for DSB-induced homologous recombination at any cell cycle stage. Inhibition of homologous recombination by using an analogue-sensitive CDK1 protein results in a compensatory increase in non-homologous end joining. CDK1 is required for efficient 5' to 3' resection of DSB ends and for the recruitment of both the single-stranded DNA-binding complex, RPA, and the Rad51 recombination protein. In contrast, Mre11 protein, part of the MRX complex, accumulates at unresected DSB ends. CDK1 is not required when the DNA damage checkpoint is initiated by lesions that are processed by nucleotide excision repair. Maintenance of the DSB-induced checkpoint requires continuing CDK1 activity that ensures continuing end resection. CDK1 is also important for a later step in homologous recombination, after strand invasion and before the initiation of new DNA synthesis.

Mating type-dependent constraints on the mobility of the left arm of yeast chromosome III.

Mating-type gene (MAT) switching in budding yeast exhibits donor preference. MATa preferentially recombines with HML near the left telomere of chromosome III, whereas MATalpha prefers HMR near the right telomere. Donor preference is controlled by the recombination enhancer (RE) located proximal to HML. To test if HML is constrained in pairing with MATalpha, we examined live-cell mobility of LacI-GFP-bound lactose operator (lacO) arrays inserted at different chromosomal sites. Without induction of recombination, lacO sequences adjacent to HML are strongly constrained in both MATalpha and RE-deleted MATa strains, compared with MATa. In contrast, chromosome movement at HMR or near a telomere of chromosome V is mating-type independent. HML is more constrained in MATa Deltare and less constrained in MATa RE+ compared with other sites. Although HML and MATa are not prealigned before inducing recombination, the three-dimensional configuration of MAT, HML, and HMR is mating-type dependent. These data suggest there is constitutive tethering of HML, which is relieved in MATa cells through the action of RE.

Complementation between N-terminal Saccharomyces cerevisiae mre11 alleles in DNA repair and telomere length maintenance.

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Mre11p, Rad50p, and Xrs2p function as a multiprotein complex that has a central role in several DNA repair mechanisms. Though Mre11p has both single-stranded and double-stranded 3'-5' exonuclease activity in vitro, null mutants of MRE11, RAD50, and XRS2 exhibit reduced 5'-3' resection of HO-induced double-strand breaks (DSBs) in vivo. In this study, we analyzed four mre11 mutants harboring changes in the N-terminus of Mre11p where the four phosphoesterase motifs specify the in vitro nuclease activities of Mre11p and its homologues. We find that the 5'-3' resection defects in vivo do not correlate with several mitotic phenotypes: non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ), telomere length maintenance, and adaptation to the DNA damage-inducible G2/M checkpoint. Overexpression of the 5'-3' exonuclease Exo1p in a mre11Delta strain partially increased 5'-3' resection and partially suppressed both methyl methanesulfonate (MMS) hypersensitivity and adaptation phenotypes, but did not affect telomere length or NHEJ. Surprisingly, the co-expression of two alleles, mre11-58S and mre11-N113S, each of which confers MMS hypersensitivity and short telomeres, can fully complement the MMS sensitivity and shortened telomere length of mre11Delta cells. We propose that at least two separate activities associated with the N-terminus of Mre11p are required for its mitotic function.

Effect of chromosome tethering on nuclear organization in yeast.

Interphase chromosomes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae are tethered to the nuclear envelope at their telomeres and to the spindle pole body (SPB) at their centromeres. Using a polymer model of yeast chromosomes that includes these interactions, we show theoretically that telomere attachment to the nuclear envelope is a major determinant of gene positioning within the nucleus only for genes within 10 kb of the telomeres. We test this prediction by measuring the distance between the SPB and the silent mating locus (HML) on chromosome III in wild-type and mutant yeast strains that contain altered chromosome-tethering interactions. In wild-type yeast cells we find that disruption of the telomere tether does not dramatically change the position of HML with respect to the SPB, in agreement with theoretical predictions. Alternatively, using a mutant strain with a synthetic tether that localizes an HML-proximal site to the nuclear envelope, we find a significant change in the SPB-HML distance, again as predicted by theory. Our study quantifies the importance of tethering at telomeres on the organization of interphase chromosomes in yeast, which has been shown to play a significant role in determining chromosome function such as gene expression and recombination.

In vivo assembly and disassembly of Rad51 and Rad52 complexes during double-strand break repair.

Assembly and disassembly of Rad51 and Rad52 complexes were monitored by immunofluorescence during homologous recombination initiated by an HO endonuclease-induced double-strand break (DSB) at the MAT locus. DSB-induced Rad51 and Rad52 foci colocalize with a TetR-GFP focus at tetO sequences adjacent to MAT. In strains in which HO cleaves three sites on chromosome III, we observe three distinct foci that colocalize with adjacent GFP chromosome marks. We compared the kinetics of focus formation with recombination intermediates and products when HO-cleaved MATalpha recombines with the donor, MATa. Rad51 assembly occurs 1 h after HO cleavage. Rad51 disassembly occurs at the same time that new DNA synthesis is initiated after single-stranded (ss) MAT DNA invades MATa. We present evidence for three distinct roles for Rad52 in recombination: a presynaptic role necessary for Rad51 assembly, a synaptic role with Rad51 filaments, and a postsynaptic role after Rad51 dissociates. Additional biochemical studies suggest the presence of an ssDNA complex containing both Rad51 and Rad52.