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Woldringh CL. Compaction and Segregation of DNA in Escherichia coli. Life (Basel) 2024; 14:660. [PMID: 38929644 PMCID: PMC11205073 DOI: 10.3390/life14060660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2024] [Revised: 04/26/2024] [Accepted: 05/01/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Theoretical and experimental approaches have been applied to study the polymer physics underlying the compaction of DNA in the bacterial nucleoid. Knowledge of the compaction mechanism is necessary to obtain a mechanistic understanding of the segregation process of replicating chromosome arms (replichores) during the cell cycle. The first part of this review discusses light microscope observations demonstrating that the nucleoid has a lower refractive index and thus, a lower density than the cytoplasm. A polymer physics explanation for this phenomenon was given by a theory discussed at length in this review. By assuming a phase separation between the nucleoid and the cytoplasm and by imposing equal osmotic pressure and chemical potential between the two phases, a minimal energy situation is obtained, in which soluble proteins are depleted from the nucleoid, thus explaining its lower density. This theory is compared to recent views on DNA compaction that are based on the exclusion of polyribosomes from the nucleoid or on the transcriptional activity of the cell. These new views prompt the question of whether they can still explain the lower refractive index or density of the nucleoid. In the second part of this review, we discuss the question of how DNA segregation occurs in Escherichia coli in the absence of the so-called active ParABS system, which is present in the majority of bacteria. How is the entanglement of nascent chromosome arms generated at the origin in the parental DNA network of the E. coli nucleoid prevented? Microscopic observations of the position of fluorescently-labeled genetic loci have indicated that the four nascent chromosome arms synthesized in the initial replication bubble segregate to opposite halves of the sister nucleoids. This implies that extensive intermingling of daughter strands does not occur. Based on the hypothesis that leading and lagging replichores synthesized in the replication bubble fold into microdomains that do not intermingle, a passive four-excluding-arms model for segregation is proposed. This model suggests that the key for segregation already exists in the structure of the replication bubble at the very start of DNA replication; it explains the different patterns of chromosome arms as well as the segregation distances between replicated loci, as experimentally observed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Conrad L Woldringh
- Faculty of Science, Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences (SILS), University of Amsterdam, 1098 XH Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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2
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Goodall DJ, Jameson KH, Hawkins M, Rudolph CJ. A Fork Trap in the Chromosomal Termination Area Is Highly Conserved across All Escherichia coli Phylogenetic Groups. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22157928. [PMID: 34360694 PMCID: PMC8347550 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22157928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2021] [Revised: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Termination of DNA replication, the final stage of genome duplication, is surprisingly complex, and failures to bring DNA synthesis to an accurate conclusion can impact genome stability and cell viability. In Escherichia coli, termination takes place in a specialised termination area opposite the origin. A 'replication fork trap' is formed by unidirectional fork barriers via the binding of Tus protein to genomic ter sites. Such a fork trap system is found in some bacterial species, but it appears not to be a general feature of bacterial chromosomes. The biochemical properties of fork trap systems have been extensively characterised, but little is known about their precise physiological roles. In this study, we compare locations and distributions of ter terminator sites in E. coli genomes across all phylogenetic groups, including Shigella. Our analysis shows that all ter sites are highly conserved in E. coli, with slightly more variability in the Shigella genomes. Our sequence analysis of ter sites and Tus proteins shows that the fork trap is likely to be active in all strains investigated. In addition, our analysis shows that the dif chromosome dimer resolution site is consistently located between the innermost ter sites, even if rearrangements have changed the location of the innermost termination area. Our data further support the idea that the replication fork trap has an important physiological role that provides an evolutionary advantage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel J. Goodall
- Division of Biosciences, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, Uxbridge UB8 3PH, UK;
| | - Katie H. Jameson
- Department of Biology, University of York, Wentworth Way, York YO10 5DD, UK; (K.H.J.); (M.H.)
| | - Michelle Hawkins
- Department of Biology, University of York, Wentworth Way, York YO10 5DD, UK; (K.H.J.); (M.H.)
| | - Christian J. Rudolph
- Division of Biosciences, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, Uxbridge UB8 3PH, UK;
- Correspondence:
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3
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Wolak C, Ma HJ, Soubry N, Sandler SJ, Reyes-Lamothe R, Keck JL. Interaction with single-stranded DNA-binding protein localizes ribonuclease HI to DNA replication forks and facilitates R-loop removal. Mol Microbiol 2020; 114:495-509. [PMID: 32426857 PMCID: PMC7934204 DOI: 10.1111/mmi.14529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2020] [Revised: 04/30/2020] [Accepted: 05/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
DNA replication complexes (replisomes) routinely encounter proteins and unusual nucleic acid structures that can impede their progress. Barriers can include transcription complexes and R-loops that form when RNA hybridizes with complementary DNA templates behind RNA polymerases. Cells encode several RNA polymerase and R-loop clearance mechanisms to limit replisome exposure to these potential obstructions. One such mechanism is hydrolysis of R-loops by ribonuclease HI (RNase HI). Here, we examine the cellular role of the interaction between Escherichia coli RNase HI and the single-stranded DNA-binding protein (SSB) in this process. Interaction with SSB localizes RNase HI foci to DNA replication sites. Mutation of rnhA to encode an RNase HI variant that cannot interact with SSB but that maintains enzymatic activity (rnhAK60E) eliminates RNase HI foci. The mutation also produces a media-dependent slow-growth phenotype and an activated DNA damage response in cells lacking Rep helicase, which is an enzyme that disrupts stalled transcription complexes. RNA polymerase variants that are thought to increase or decrease R-loop accumulation enhance or suppress, respectively, the growth phenotype of rnhAK60E rep::kan strains. These results identify a cellular role for the RNase HI/SSB interaction in helping to clear R-loops that block DNA replication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine Wolak
- Department of Biomolecular Chemistry, 420 Henry Mall, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI 53706
| | - Hui Jun Ma
- Department of Biology, McGill University, 3649 Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC, H3G 0B1, Canada
| | - Nicolas Soubry
- Department of Biology, McGill University, 3649 Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC, H3G 0B1, Canada
| | - Steven J. Sandler
- Department of Microbiology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Rodrigo Reyes-Lamothe
- Department of Biology, McGill University, 3649 Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC, H3G 0B1, Canada
| | - James L. Keck
- Department of Biomolecular Chemistry, 420 Henry Mall, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI 53706
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4
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Syeda AH, Dimude JU, Skovgaard O, Rudolph CJ. Too Much of a Good Thing: How Ectopic DNA Replication Affects Bacterial Replication Dynamics. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:534. [PMID: 32351461 PMCID: PMC7174701 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.00534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2020] [Accepted: 03/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Each cell division requires the complete and accurate duplication of the entire genome. In bacteria, the duplication process of the often-circular chromosomes is initiated at a single origin per chromosome, resulting in two replication forks that traverse the chromosome in opposite directions. DNA synthesis is completed once the two forks fuse in a region diametrically opposite the origin. In some bacteria, such as Escherichia coli, the region where forks fuse forms a specialized termination area. Polar replication fork pause sites flanking this area can pause the progression of replication forks, thereby allowing forks to enter but not to leave. Transcription of all required genes has to take place simultaneously with genome duplication. As both of these genome trafficking processes share the same template, conflicts are unavoidable. In this review, we focus on recent attempts to add additional origins into various ectopic chromosomal locations of the E. coli chromosome. As ectopic origins disturb the native replichore arrangements, the problems resulting from such perturbations can give important insights into how genome trafficking processes are coordinated and the problems that arise if this coordination is disturbed. The data from these studies highlight that head-on replication–transcription conflicts are indeed highly problematic and multiple repair pathways are required to restart replication forks arrested at obstacles. In addition, the existing data also demonstrate that the replication fork trap in E. coli imposes significant constraints to genome duplication if ectopic origins are active. We describe the current models of how replication fork fusion events can cause serious problems for genome duplication, as well as models of how such problems might be alleviated both by a number of repair pathways as well as the replication fork trap system. Considering the problems associated both with head-on replication-transcription conflicts as well as head-on replication fork fusion events might provide clues of how these genome trafficking issues have contributed to shape the distinct architecture of bacterial chromosomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aisha H Syeda
- Department of Biology, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Juachi U Dimude
- Division of Biosciences, College of Health and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, Uxbridge, United Kingdom
| | - Ole Skovgaard
- Department of Science and Environment, Roskilde University, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Christian J Rudolph
- Division of Biosciences, College of Health and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, Uxbridge, United Kingdom
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5
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Abstract
Bacterial chromosomes harbour a unique origin of bidirectional replication, oriC. They are almost always circular, with replication terminating in a region diametrically opposite to oriC, the terminus. The oriC-terminus organisation is reflected by the orientation of the genes and by the disposition of DNA-binding protein motifs implicated in the coordination of chromosome replication and segregation with cell division. Correspondingly, the E. coli and B. subtilis model bacteria possess a replication fork trap system, Tus/ter and RTP/ter, respectively, which enforces replication termination in the terminus region. Here, we show that tus and rtp are restricted to four clades of bacteria, suggesting that tus was recently domesticated from a plasmid gene. We further demonstrate that there is no replication fork system in Vibrio cholerae, a bacterium closely related to E. coli. Marker frequency analysis showed that replication forks originating from ectopic origins were not blocked in the terminus region of either of the two V. cholerae chromosomes, but progressed normally until they encountered an opposite fork. As expected, termination synchrony of the two chromosomes is disrupted by these ectopic origins. Finally, we show that premature completion of the primary chromosome replication did not modify the choreography of segregation of its terminus region.
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6
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Trojanowski D, Hołówka J, Zakrzewska-Czerwińska J. Where and When Bacterial Chromosome Replication Starts: A Single Cell Perspective. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:2819. [PMID: 30534115 PMCID: PMC6275241 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.02819] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2018] [Accepted: 11/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacterial chromosomes have a single, unique replication origin (named oriC), from which DNA synthesis starts. This study describes methods of visualizing oriC regions and the chromosome replication in single living bacterial cells in real-time. This review also discusses the impact of live cell imaging techniques on understanding of chromosome replication dynamics, particularly at the initiation step, in different species of bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Damian Trojanowski
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Wrocław, Poland
| | - Joanna Hołówka
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Wrocław, Poland
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A ring-polymer model shows how macromolecular crowding controls chromosome-arm organization in Escherichia coli. Sci Rep 2017; 7:11896. [PMID: 28928399 PMCID: PMC5605704 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-10421-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2017] [Accepted: 08/08/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Macromolecular crowding influences various cellular processes such as macromolecular association and transcription, and is a key determinant of chromosome organization in bacteria. The entropy of crowders favors compaction of long chain molecules such as chromosomes. To what extent is the circular bacterial chromosome, often viewed as consisting of “two arms”, organized entropically by crowding? Using computer simulations, we examine how a ring polymer is organized in a crowded and cylindrically-confined space, as a coarse-grained bacterial chromosome. Our results suggest that in a wide parameter range of biological relevance crowding is essential for separating the two arms in the way observed with Escherichia coli chromosomes at fast-growth rates, in addition to maintaining the chromosome in an organized collapsed state. Under different conditions, however, the ring polymer is centrally condensed or adsorbed onto the cylindrical wall with the two arms laterally collapsed onto each other. We discuss the relevance of our results to chromosome-membrane interactions.
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8
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Cass JA, Kuwada NJ, Traxler B, Wiggins PA. Escherichia coli Chromosomal Loci Segregate from Midcell with Universal Dynamics. Biophys J 2017; 110:2597-2609. [PMID: 27332118 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2016.04.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2015] [Revised: 03/31/2016] [Accepted: 04/28/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
The structure of the Escherichia coli chromosome is inherently dynamic over the duration of the cell cycle. Genetic loci undergo both stochastic motion around their initial positions and directed motion to opposite poles of the rod-shaped cell during segregation. We developed a quantitative method to characterize cell-cycle dynamics of the E. coli chromosome to probe the chromosomal steady-state mobility and segregation process. By tracking fluorescently labeled chromosomal loci in thousands of cells throughout the entire cell cycle, our method allows for the statistical analysis of locus position and motion, the step-size distribution for movement during segregation, and the locus drift velocity. The robust statistics of our detailed analysis of the wild-type E. coli nucleoid allow us to observe loci moving toward midcell before segregation occurs, consistent with a replication factory model. Then, as segregation initiates, we perform a detailed characterization of the average segregation velocity of loci. Contrary to origin-centric models of segregation, which predict distinct dynamics for oriC-proximal versus oriC-distal loci, we find that the dynamics of loci were universal and independent of genetic position.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie A Cass
- Departments of Physics, Bioengineering, and Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
| | - Nathan J Kuwada
- Departments of Physics, Bioengineering, and Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
| | - Beth Traxler
- Departments of Physics, Bioengineering, and Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
| | - Paul A Wiggins
- Departments of Physics, Bioengineering, and Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.
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9
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Moolman MC, Tiruvadi Krishnan S, Kerssemakers JWJ, de Leeuw R, Lorent V, Sherratt DJ, Dekker NH. The progression of replication forks at natural replication barriers in live bacteria. Nucleic Acids Res 2016; 44:6262-73. [PMID: 27166373 PMCID: PMC5291258 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkw397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2015] [Revised: 04/27/2016] [Accepted: 04/28/2016] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Protein-DNA complexes are one of the principal barriers the replisome encounters during replication. One such barrier is the Tus-ter complex, which is a direction dependent barrier for replication fork progression. The details concerning the dynamics of the replisome when encountering these Tus-ter barriers in the cell are poorly understood. By performing quantitative fluorescence microscopy with microfuidics, we investigate the effect on the replisome when encountering these barriers in live Escherichia coli cells. We make use of an E. coli variant that includes only an ectopic origin of replication that is positioned such that one of the two replisomes encounters a Tus-ter barrier before the other replisome. This enables us to single out the effect of encountering a Tus-ter roadblock on an individual replisome. We demonstrate that the replisome remains stably bound after encountering a Tus-ter complex from the non-permissive direction. Furthermore, the replisome is only transiently blocked, and continues replication beyond the barrier. Additionally, we demonstrate that these barriers affect sister chromosome segregation by visualizing specific chromosomal loci in the presence and absence of the Tus protein. These observations demonstrate the resilience of the replication fork to natural barriers and the sensitivity of chromosome alignment to fork progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Charl Moolman
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Sriram Tiruvadi Krishnan
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Jacob W J Kerssemakers
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Roy de Leeuw
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Vincent Lorent
- Université Paris 13, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Laboratoire de Physique des Lasers, CNRS, (UMR 7538), F-93430 Villetaneuse, France
| | - David J Sherratt
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QU, UK
| | - Nynke H Dekker
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands
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10
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Jeon C, Kim J, Jeong H, Jung Y, Ha BY. Chromosome-like organization of an asymmetrical ring polymer confined in a cylindrical space. SOFT MATTER 2015; 11:8179-8193. [PMID: 26337601 DOI: 10.1039/c5sm01286d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
To what extent does a confined polymer show chromosome-like organization? Using molecular dynamics simulations, we study a model Escherichia coli (E. coli) chromosome: an asymmetrical ring polymer, formed by small monomers on one side and big monomers on the other confined in a concentric-shell or simple cylinder with closed ends. The ring polymer is organized in the way observed for the E. coli chromosome: if the big monomers are assumed to be localized in the inner cylinder, the two "subchains" forming the ring are spontaneously partitioned in a parallel orientation with the "body" (big-monomer) chain linearly organized with a desired precision and the crossing (small-monomer) chain residing preferentially in the peripheral region. Furthermore, we show that the introduction of a "fluctuating boundary" between the two subchains leads to a double-peak distribution of ter-proximate loci, as seen in experiments, which would otherwise remain single-peaked. In a simple cylinder, however, a chromosome-like organization of the ring polymer typically requires an external mechanism such as cell-wall attachment. Finally, our results clarify to what degree the spatial organization of the chromosomes can be accomplished solely by ring asymmetry and anisotropic confinement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chanil Jeon
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2L 3G1.
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11
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Woldringh CL, Hansen FG, Vischer NOE, Atlung T. Segregation of chromosome arms in growing and non-growing Escherichia coli cells. Front Microbiol 2015; 6:448. [PMID: 26029188 PMCID: PMC4428220 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2015.00448] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2014] [Accepted: 04/24/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In slow-growing Escherichia coli cells the chromosome is organized with its left (L) and right (R) arms lying separated in opposite halves of the nucleoid and with the origin (O) in-between, giving the pattern L-O-R. During replication one of the arms has to pass the other to obtain the same organization in the daughter cells: L-O-R L-O-R. To determine the movement of arms during segregation six strains were constructed carrying three colored loci: the left and right arms were labeled with red and cyan fluorescent-proteins, respectively, on loci symmetrically positioned at different distances from the central origin, which was labeled with green-fluorescent protein. In non-replicating cells with the predominant spot pattern L-O-R, initiation of replication first resulted in a L-O-O-R pattern, soon changing to O-L-R-O. After replication of the arms the predominant spot patterns were, L-O-R L-O-R, O-R-L R-O-L or O-L-R L-O-R indicating that one or both arms passed an origin and the other arm. To study the driving force for these movements cell growth was inhibited with rifampicin allowing run-off DNA synthesis. Similar spot patterns were obtained in growing and non-growing cells, indicating that the movement of arms is not a growth-sustained process, but may result from DNA synthesis itself. The distances between loci on different arms (LR-distances) and between duplicated loci (LL- or RR-distances) as a function of their distance from the origin, indicate that in slow-growing cells DNA is organized according to the so-called sausage model and not according to the doughnut model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Conrad L Woldringh
- Bacterial Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences, University of Amsterdam Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Flemming G Hansen
- Department of Systems Biology, Technical University of Denmark Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Norbert O E Vischer
- Bacterial Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences, University of Amsterdam Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Tove Atlung
- Department of Science, Systems and Models, Roskilde University Roskilde, Denmark
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12
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Ha BY, Jung Y. Polymers under confinement: single polymers, how they interact, and as model chromosomes. SOFT MATTER 2015; 11:2333-2352. [PMID: 25710099 DOI: 10.1039/c4sm02734e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
How confinement or a physical constraint modifies polymer chains is not only a classical problem in polymer physics but also relevant in a variety of contexts such as single-molecule manipulations, nanofabrication in narrow pores, and modelling of chromosome organization. Here, we review recent progress in our understanding of polymers in a confined (and crowded) space. To this end, we highlight converging views of these systems from computational, experimental, and theoretical approaches, and then clarify what remains to be clarified. In particular, we focus on exploring how cylindrical confinement reshapes individual chains and induces segregation forces between them - by pointing to the relationships between intra-chain organization and chain segregation. In the presence of crowders, chain molecules can be entropically phase-separated into a condensed state. We include a kernel of discussions on the nature of chain compaction by crowders, especially in a confined space. Finally, we discuss the relevance of confined polymers for the nucleoid, an intracellular space in which the bacterial chromosome is tightly packed, in part by cytoplasmic crowders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bae-Yeun Ha
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2L 3G1.
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13
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Fumasoni M, Zwicky K, Vanoli F, Lopes M, Branzei D. Error-free DNA damage tolerance and sister chromatid proximity during DNA replication rely on the Polα/Primase/Ctf4 Complex. Mol Cell 2015; 57:812-823. [PMID: 25661486 PMCID: PMC4352764 DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2014.12.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2014] [Revised: 11/15/2014] [Accepted: 12/22/2014] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Chromosomal replication is entwined with DNA damage tolerance (DDT) and chromatin structure establishment via elusive mechanisms. Here we examined how specific replication conditions affecting replisome architecture and repriming impact on DDT. We show that Saccharomyces cerevisiae Polα/Primase/Ctf4 mutants, proficient in bulk DNA replication, are defective in recombination-mediated damage-bypass by template switching (TS) and have reduced sister chromatid cohesion. The decrease in error-free DDT is accompanied by increased usage of mutagenic DDT, fork reversal, and higher rates of genome rearrangements mediated by faulty strand annealing. Notably, the DDT defects of Polα/Primase/Ctf4 mutants are not the consequence of increased sister chromatid distance, but are instead caused by altered single-stranded DNA metabolism and abnormal replication fork topology. We propose that error-free TS is driven by timely replicative helicase-coupled re-priming. Defects in this event impact on replication fork architecture and sister chromatid proximity, and represent a frequent source of chromosome lesions upon replication dysfunctions. Polα/Primase and cohesin support damage tolerance and sister chromatid proximity Artificial cohesion bypasses cohesin, but not Polα/Primase role in recombination Defects in Polα/Primase cause faulty strand annealing and reversed fork formation Altered ssDNA metabolism underlies Polα/Primase mutants damage tolerance defects
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Fumasoni
- IFOM, the FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology, Via Adamello 16, 20139 Milan, Italy
| | - Katharina Zwicky
- Institute of Molecular Cancer Research, University of Zurich, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Fabio Vanoli
- IFOM, the FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology, Via Adamello 16, 20139 Milan, Italy
| | - Massimo Lopes
- Institute of Molecular Cancer Research, University of Zurich, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Dana Branzei
- IFOM, the FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology, Via Adamello 16, 20139 Milan, Italy.
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14
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Fossum-Raunehaug S, Helgesen E, Stokke C, Skarstad K. Escherichia coli SeqA structures relocalize abruptly upon termination of origin sequestration during multifork DNA replication. PLoS One 2014; 9:e110575. [PMID: 25333813 PMCID: PMC4204900 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0110575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2014] [Accepted: 09/22/2014] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The Escherichia coli SeqA protein forms complexes with new, hemimethylated DNA behind replication forks and is important for successful replication during rapid growth. Here, E. coli cells with two simultaneously replicating chromosomes (multifork DNA replication) and YFP tagged SeqA protein was studied. Fluorescence microscopy showed that in the beginning of the cell cycle cells contained a single focus at midcell. The focus was found to remain relatively immobile at midcell for a period of time equivalent to the duration of origin sequestration. Then, two abrupt relocalization events occurred within 2-6 minutes and resulted in SeqA foci localized at each of the cell's quarter positions. Imaging of cells containing an additional fluorescent tag in the origin region showed that SeqA colocalizes with the origin region during sequestration. This indicates that the newly replicated DNA of first one chromosome, and then the other, is moved from midcell to the quarter positions. At the same time, origins are released from sequestration. Our results illustrate that newly replicated sister DNA is segregated pairwise to the new locations. This mode of segregation is in principle different from that of slowly growing bacteria where the newly replicated sister DNA is partitioned to separate cell halves and the decatenation of sisters a prerequisite for, and possibly a mechanistic part of, segregation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Solveig Fossum-Raunehaug
- Department of Cell Biology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, the Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Emily Helgesen
- Department of Cell Biology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, the Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Caroline Stokke
- Department of Cell Biology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, the Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Kirsten Skarstad
- Department of Cell Biology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, the Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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Ozaki S, Matsuda Y, Keyamura K, Kawakami H, Noguchi Y, Kasho K, Nagata K, Masuda T, Sakiyama Y, Katayama T. A replicase clamp-binding dynamin-like protein promotes colocalization of nascent DNA strands and equipartitioning of chromosomes in E. coli. Cell Rep 2013; 4:985-95. [PMID: 23994470 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2013.07.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2013] [Revised: 07/02/2013] [Accepted: 07/25/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022] Open
Abstract
In Escherichia coli, bidirectional chromosomal replication is accompanied by the colocalization of sister replication forks. However, the biological significance of this mechanism and the key factors involved are still largely unknown. In this study, we found that a protein, termed CrfC, helps sustain the colocalization of nascent DNA regions of sister replisomes and promote chromosome equipartitioning. CrfC formed homomultimers that bound to multiple molecules of the clamp, a replisome subunit that encircles DNA, and colocalized with nascent DNA regions in a clamp-binding-dependent manner in living cells. CrfC is a dynamin homolog; however, it lacks the typical membrane-binding moiety and instead possesses a clamp-binding motif. Given that clamps remain bound to DNA after Okazaki fragment synthesis, we suggest that CrfC sustains the colocalization of sister replication forks in a unique manner by linking together the clamp-loaded nascent DNA strands, thereby laying the basis for subsequent chromosome equipartitioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shogo Ozaki
- Department of Molecular Biology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan
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16
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Abstract
Bacteria use the replication origin-to-terminus polarity of their circular chromosomes to control DNA transactions during the cell cycle. Segregation starts by active migration of the region of origin followed by progressive movement of the rest of the chromosomes. The last steps of segregation have been studied extensively in the case of dimeric sister chromosomes and when chromosome organization is impaired by mutations. In these special cases, the divisome-associated DNA translocase FtsK is required. FtsK pumps chromosomes toward the dif chromosome dimer resolution site using polarity of the FtsK-orienting polar sequence (KOPS) DNA motifs. Assays based on monitoring dif recombination have suggested that FtsK acts only in these special cases and does not act on monomeric chromosomes. Using a two-color system to visualize pairs of chromosome loci in living cells, we show that the spatial resolution of sister loci is accurately ordered from the point of origin to the dif site. Furthermore, ordered segregation in a region ∼200 kb long surrounding dif depended on the oriented translocation activity of FtsK but not on the formation of dimers or their resolution. FtsK-mediated segregation required the MatP protein, which delays segregation of the dif-surrounding region until cell division. We conclude that FtsK segregates the terminus region of sister chromosomes whether they are monomeric or dimeric and does so in an accurate and ordered manner. Our data are consistent with a model in which FtsK acts to release the MatP-mediated cohesion and/or interaction with the division apparatus of the terminus region in a KOPS-oriented manner.
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17
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Cagliero C, Grand RS, Jones MB, Jin DJ, O'Sullivan JM. Genome conformation capture reveals that the Escherichia coli chromosome is organized by replication and transcription. Nucleic Acids Res 2013; 41:6058-71. [PMID: 23632166 PMCID: PMC3695519 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkt325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
To fit within the confines of the cell, bacterial chromosomes are highly condensed into a structure called the nucleoid. Despite the high degree of compaction in the nucleoid, the genome remains accessible to essential biological processes, such as replication and transcription. Here, we present the first high-resolution chromosome conformation capture-based molecular analysis of the spatial organization of the Escherichia coli nucleoid during rapid growth in rich medium and following an induced amino acid starvation that promotes the stringent response. Our analyses identify the presence of origin and terminus domains in exponentially growing cells. Moreover, we observe an increased number of interactions within the origin domain and significant clustering of SeqA-binding sequences, suggesting a role for SeqA in clustering of newly replicated chromosomes. By contrast, ‘histone-like’ protein (i.e. Fis, IHF and H-NS) -binding sites did not cluster, and their role in global nucleoid organization does not manifest through the mediation of chromosomal contacts. Finally, genes that were downregulated after induction of the stringent response were spatially clustered, indicating that transcription in E. coli occurs at transcription foci.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cedric Cagliero
- Gene Regulation and Chromosome Biology Laboratory, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
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18
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Benza VG, Bassetti B, Dorfman KD, Scolari VF, Bromek K, Cicuta P, Lagomarsino MC. Physical descriptions of the bacterial nucleoid at large scales, and their biological implications. REPORTS ON PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. PHYSICAL SOCIETY (GREAT BRITAIN) 2012; 75:076602. [PMID: 22790781 DOI: 10.1088/0034-4885/75/7/076602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Recent experimental and theoretical approaches have attempted to quantify the physical organization (compaction and geometry) of the bacterial chromosome with its complement of proteins (the nucleoid). The genomic DNA exists in a complex and dynamic protein-rich state, which is highly organized at various length scales. This has implications for modulating (when not directly enabling) the core biological processes of replication, transcription and segregation. We overview the progress in this area, driven in the last few years by new scientific ideas and new interdisciplinary experimental techniques, ranging from high space- and time-resolution microscopy to high-throughput genomics employing sequencing to map different aspects of the nucleoid-related interactome. The aim of this review is to present the wide spectrum of experimental and theoretical findings coherently, from a physics viewpoint. In particular, we highlight the role that statistical and soft condensed matter physics play in describing this system of fundamental biological importance, specifically reviewing classic and more modern tools from the theory of polymers. We also discuss some attempts toward unifying interpretations of the current results, pointing to possible directions for future investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vincenzo G Benza
- Dipartimento di Fisica e Matematica, Università dell'Insubria, Como, Italy
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19
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Fritsche M, Li S, Heermann DW, Wiggins PA. A model for Escherichia coli chromosome packaging supports transcription factor-induced DNA domain formation. Nucleic Acids Res 2012; 40:972-80. [PMID: 21976727 PMCID: PMC3273793 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkr779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2011] [Revised: 09/05/2011] [Accepted: 09/05/2011] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
What physical mechanism leads to organization of a highly condensed and confined circular chromosome? Computational modeling shows that confinement-induced organization is able to overcome the chromosome's propensity to mix by the formation of topological domains. The experimentally observed high precision of separate subcellular positioning of loci (located on different chromosomal domains) in Escherichia coli naturally emerges as a result of entropic demixing of such chromosomal loops. We propose one possible mechanism for organizing these domains: regulatory control defined by the underlying E. coli gene regulatory network requires the colocalization of transcription factor genes and target genes. Investigating this assumption, we find the DNA chain to self-organize into several topologically distinguishable domains where the interplay between the entropic repulsion of chromosomal loops and their compression due to the confining geometry induces an effective nucleoid filament-type of structure. Thus, we propose that the physical structure of the chromosome is a direct result of regulatory interactions. To reproduce the observed precise ordering of the chromosome, we estimate that the domain sizes are distributed between 10 and 700 kb, in agreement with the size of topological domains identified in the context of DNA supercoiling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miriam Fritsche
- Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Heidelberg, Philosophenweg 19, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
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20
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Replication and segregation of an Escherichia coli chromosome with two replication origins. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2011; 108:E243-50. [PMID: 21670292 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1100874108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Characterized bacteria, unlike eukaryotes and some archaea, initiate replication bidirectionally from a single replication origin contained within a circular or linear chromosome. We constructed Escherichia coli cells with two WT origins separated by 1 Mb in their 4.64-Mb chromosome. Productive bidirectional replication initiated synchronously at both spatially separate origins. Newly replicated DNA from both origins was segregated sequentially as replication progressed, with two temporally and spatially separate replication termination events. Replication initiation occurred at a cell volume identical to that of cells with a single WT origin, showing that initiation control is independent of cellular and chromosomal oriC concentration. Cells containing just the ectopic origin initiated bidirectional replication at the expected cell mass and at the normal cellular location of that region. In all strains, spatial separation of sister loci adjacent to active origins occurred shortly after their replication, independently of whether replication initiated at the normal origin, the ectopic origin, or both origins.
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21
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Vendeville A, Larivière D, Fourmentin E. An inventory of the bacterial macromolecular components and their spatial organization. FEMS Microbiol Rev 2011; 35:395-414. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1574-6976.2010.00254.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
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22
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Meile JC, Mercier R, Stouf M, Pages C, Bouet JY, Cornet F. The terminal region of the E. coli chromosome localises at the periphery of the nucleoid. BMC Microbiol 2011; 11:28. [PMID: 21288323 PMCID: PMC3040692 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2180-11-28] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2010] [Accepted: 02/02/2011] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Bacterial chromosomes are organised into a compact and dynamic structures termed nucleoids. Cytological studies in model rod-shaped bacteria show that the different regions of the chromosome display distinct and specific sub-cellular positioning and choreographies during the course of the cell cycle. The localisation of chromosome loci along the length of the cell has been described. However, positioning of loci across the width of the cell has not been determined. Results Here, we show that it is possible to assess the mean positioning of chromosomal loci across the width of the cell using two-dimension images from wide-field fluorescence microscopy. Observed apparent distributions of fluorescent-tagged loci of the E. coli chromosome along the cell diameter were compared with simulated distributions calculated using a range of cell width positioning models. Using this method, we detected the migration of chromosome loci towards the cell periphery induced by production of the bacteriophage T4 Ndd protein. In the absence of Ndd production, loci outside the replication terminus were located either randomly along the nucleoid width or towards the cell centre whereas loci inside the replication terminus were located at the periphery of the nucleoid in contrast to other loci. Conclusions Our approach allows to reliably observing the positioning of chromosome loci along the width of E. coli cells. The terminal region of the chromosome is preferentially located at the periphery of the nucleoid consistent with its specific roles in chromosome organisation and dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Christophe Meile
- Université de Toulouse, Université Paul Sabatier, Laboratoire de Microbiologie et Génétique Moléculaires, F-31000 Toulouse, France
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Independent segregation of the two arms of the Escherichia coli ori region requires neither RNA synthesis nor MreB dynamics. J Bacteriol 2010; 192:6143-53. [PMID: 20889756 DOI: 10.1128/jb.00861-10] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The mechanism of Escherichia coli chromosome segregation remains elusive. We present results on the simultaneous tracking of segregation of multiple loci in the ori region of the chromosome in cells growing under conditions in which a single round of replication is initiated and completed in the same generation. Loci segregated as expected for progressive replication-segregation from oriC, with markers placed symmetrically on either side of oriC segregating to opposite cell halves at the same time, showing that sister locus cohesion in the origin region is local rather than extensive. We were unable to observe any influence on segregation of the proposed centromeric site, migS, or indeed any other potential cis-acting element on either replication arm (replichore) in the AB1157 genetic background. Site-specific inhibition of replication close to oriC on one replichore did not prevent segregation of loci on the other replichore. Inhibition of RNA synthesis and inhibition of the dynamic polymerization of the actin homolog MreB did not affect ori and bulk chromosome segregation.
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