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En libre-accès sur Archimer : http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2009/publication-7317.pdf; International audience; Replicative DNA polymerases possess a canonical C-terminal proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)-binding motif termed the PCNA-interacting protein (PIP) box. We investigated the role of the PIP box on the functional interactions of the two DNA polymerases, PabPol B (family B) and PabPol D (family D), from the hyperthermophilic euryarchaeon Pyrococcus abyssi, with its cognate PCNA. The PIP box was essential for interactions of PabPol B with PCNA, as shown by surface plasmon resonance and primer extension studies. In contrast, binding of PabPol D to PCNA was affected only partially by removing the PIP motif. We identified a second palindromic PIP box motif at the N-terminus of the large subunit of PabPol D that was required for the interactions of PabPol D with PCNA. Thus, two PIP motifs were needed for PabPol D for binding to PabPCNA. Moreover, the C-terminus of PabPCNA was essential for stimulation of PabPol D activity but not for stimulation of PabPol B activity. Neither DNA polymerase interacted with the PabPCNA interdomain connecting loop. Our data suggest that distinct processes are involved in PabPol D and PabPol B binding to PCNA, raising the possibility that Archaea require two mechanisms for recruiting replicative DNA polymerases at the replication fork.

International audience; The DNA polymerase alpha enzymes from human, and budding (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and fission yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe) are homologous proteins involved in initiation and replication of chromosomal DNA. Sequence comparison of human DNA polymerase alpha with that of S. cerevisiae and S. pombe shows overall levels of amino acid sequence identity of 32% and 34%, respectively. We report here that, despite the sequence conservation among these three enzymes, functionally active human DNA polymerase alpha fails to rescue several different conditional lethal alleles of the budding yeast POL1 gene at nonpermissive temperature. Furthermore, human DNA polymerase alpha cannot complement a null allele of budding yeast POL1 either in germinating spores or in vegetatively growing cells. In fission yeast, functionally active human DNA polymerase alpha is also unable to complement the disrupted pol alpha::ura4+ allele in germinating spores. Thus, in vivo, DNA polymerase alpha has stringent species specificity for initiation and replication of chromosomal DNA.

International audience; DNA polymerases alpha and delta are essential enzymes believed to play critical roles in initiation and replication of chromosome DNA. In this study, we show that the genes for Schizosaccharomyces pombe (S.pombe) DNA polymerase alpha and delta (pol alpha+ and pol delta+) are essential for cell viability. Disruption of either the pol alpha+ or pol delta+ gene results in distinct terminal phenotypes. The S.pombe pol delta+ gene is able to complement the thermosensitive cdc2-2 allele of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S.cerevisiae) at the restrictive temperature. By random mutagenesis in vitro, we generated three pol delta conditional lethal alleles. We replaced the wild type chromosomal copy of pol delta+ gene with the mutagenized sequence and characterized the thermosensitive alleles in vivo. All three thermosensitive mutants exhibit a typical cell division cycle (cdc) terminal phenotype similar to that of the disrupted pol delta+ gene. Flow cytometric analysis showed that at the nonpermissive temperature all three mutants were arrested in S phase of the cell cycle. The three S.pombe conditional pol delta alleles were recovered and sequenced. The mutations causing the thermosensitive phenotype are missense mutations. The altered amino acid residues are uniquely conserved among the known polymerase delta sequences.

International audience; The yeast DNA polymerase-primase complex is composed of four polypeptides designated p180, p74, p58 and p48. All the genes coding for these polypeptides have now been cloned. By protein sequence comparison we found that yeast DNA polymerase I (alpha) shares three major regions of homology with several DNA polymerases. A fourth region, called region P, is conserved in yeast and human DNA polymerase alpha. The site of a temperature-sensitive mutation in the POL1 gene which causes decreased stability of the polymerase-primase complex has been sequenced and falls in this region. We hypothesize that region P is important for protein-protein interactions. Highly selective biochemical methods might be similarly important to distinguish functional domains in the polymerase-primase complex. An autocatalytic affinity labeling procedure has been applied to map the active center of yeast DNA primase. From this approach we conclude that both primase subunits (p48 and p58) participate in the formation of the catalytic site of the enzyme.