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Kuznetsova AA, Kuznetsov NA. Direct Enzyme Engineering of B Family DNA Polymerases for Biotechnological Approaches. Bioengineering (Basel) 2023; 10:1150. [PMID: 37892880 PMCID: PMC10604792 DOI: 10.3390/bioengineering10101150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2023] [Revised: 09/14/2023] [Accepted: 09/22/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
DNA-dependent DNA polymerases have been intensively studied for more than 60 years and underlie numerous biotechnological and diagnostic applications. In vitro, DNA polymerases are used for DNA manipulations, including cloning, PCR, site-directed mutagenesis, sequencing, and others. Understanding the mechanisms of action of DNA polymerases is important for the creation of new enzymes possessing improved or modified properties. This review is focused on archaeal family B DNA polymerases. These enzymes have high fidelity and thermal stability and are finding many applications in molecular biological methods. Nevertheless, the search for and construction of new DNA polymerases with altered properties is constantly underway, including enzymes for synthetic biology. This brief review describes advances in the development of family B DNA polymerases for PCR, synthesis of xeno-nucleic acids, and reverse transcription.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandra A. Kuznetsova
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences (SB RAS), 8 Prospekt Akad. Lavrentyeva, Novosibirsk 630090, Russia
| | - Nikita A. Kuznetsov
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences (SB RAS), 8 Prospekt Akad. Lavrentyeva, Novosibirsk 630090, Russia
- Department of Natural Sciences, Novosibirsk State University, 2 Pirogova Str., Novosibirsk 630090, Russia
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Torres de Farias S, Marinho Furtado AN, Pereira Dos Santos Junior A, José MV. Evolutionary origin of B family DNA-dependent DNA polymerases from retrotranscriptases. Biosystems 2023:104963. [PMID: 37385536 DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystems.2023.104963] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2023] [Revised: 06/20/2023] [Accepted: 06/21/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023]
Abstract
The evolution of DNA and DNA polymerases was a crucial step in the evolution of life on Earth. In the present work, we reconstruct the ancestral sequence and structure for the B family polymerases. Using comparative analyses, we infer the transient state between the ancestor retrotranscriptase and the contemporary B family DNA polymerases. Exonuclease motif was detected in the primary ancestral sequence, as well as an elongation-functioning motif. It is remarkable that the ancestral molecule is more comparable to the retrotranscriptases in terms of structural domains, even though we discovered similarities in the primary sequence with proteins from the B family of DNA polymerases. The present B family proteins differ structurally from retrotranscriptases the most, although the reconstruction of the ancestor protein was able to capture the transitional steps between these two families of polymerases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sávio Torres de Farias
- Departamento de Biologia Molecular, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, João Pessoa, 58051-900, Brazil; Network of Researchers on the Chemical Evolution of Life (NoRCEL), Leeds, LS7 3RB, UK.
| | | | | | - Marco V José
- Theoretical Biology Group, Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México, C.P. 04510, Mexico
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Wang Y, Shi Y, Hellinga HW, Beese LS. Thermally controlled intein splicing of engineered DNA polymerases provides a robust and generalizable solution for accurate and sensitive molecular diagnostics. Nucleic Acids Res 2023; 51:5883-5894. [PMID: 37166959 PMCID: PMC10287962 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2023] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023] Open
Abstract
DNA polymerases are essential for nucleic acid synthesis, cloning, sequencing and molecular diagnostics technologies. Conditional intein splicing is a powerful tool for controlling enzyme reactions. We have engineered a thermal switch into thermostable DNA polymerases from two structurally distinct polymerase families by inserting a thermally activated intein domain into a surface loop that is integral to the polymerase active site, thereby blocking DNA or RNA template access. The fusion proteins are inactive, but retain their structures, such that the intein excises during a heat pulse delivered at 70-80°C to generate spliced, active polymerases. This straightforward thermal activation step provides a highly effective, one-component 'hot-start' control of PCR reactions that enables accurate target amplification by minimizing unwanted by-products generated by off-target reactions. In one engineered enzyme, derived from Thermus aquaticus DNA polymerase, both DNA polymerase and reverse transcriptase activities are controlled by the intein, enabling single-reagent amplification of DNA and RNA under hot-start conditions. This engineered polymerase provides high-sensitivity detection for molecular diagnostics applications, amplifying 5-6 copies of the tested DNA and RNA targets with >95% certainty. The design principles used to engineer the inteins can be readily applied to construct other conditionally activated nucleic acid processing enzymes.
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Affiliation(s)
- You Wang
- Department of Biochemistry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Yuqian Shi
- Department of Biochemistry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Homme W Hellinga
- Department of Biochemistry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Lorena S Beese
- Department of Biochemistry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
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Li Y, Shen Y, Hu Z, Yan R. Structural basis for the assembly of the DNA polymerase holoenzyme from a monkeypox virus variant. Sci Adv 2023; 9:eadg2331. [PMID: 37075110 PMCID: PMC10115419 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adg2331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
The ongoing global pandemic caused by a variant of the monkeypox (or mpox) virus (MPXV) has prompted widespread concern. The MPXV DNA polymerase holoenzyme, consisting of F8, A22, and E4, is vital for replicating the viral genome and represents a crucial target for the development of antiviral drugs. However, the assembly and working mechanism for the DNA polymerase holoenzyme of MPXV remains elusive. Here, we present the cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure of the DNA polymerase holoenzyme at an overall resolution of 3.5 Å. Unexpectedly, the holoenzyme is assembled as a dimer of heterotrimers, of which the extra interface between the thumb domain of F8 and A22 shows a clash between A22 and substrate DNA, suggesting an autoinhibition state. Addition of exogenous double-stranded DNA shifts the hexamer into trimer exposing DNA binding sites, potentially representing a more active state. Our findings provide crucial steps toward developing targeted antiviral therapies for MPXV and related viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaning Li
- Center for Infectious Disease Research, Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province 310024, China
- Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Structural Biology, Tsinghua-Peking Joint Center for Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Yaping Shen
- Center for Infectious Disease Research, Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province 310024, China
| | - Ziwei Hu
- Department of Biochemistry, Key University Laboratory of Metabolism and Health of Guangdong, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province 518055, China
| | - Renhong Yan
- Department of Biochemistry, Key University Laboratory of Metabolism and Health of Guangdong, School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province 518055, China
- Corresponding author.
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de Farias ST, Furtado ANM, dos Santos Junior AP, José MV. Natural History of DNA-Dependent DNA Polymerases: Multiple Pathways to the Origins of DNA. Viruses 2023; 15:v15030749. [PMID: 36992459 PMCID: PMC10052633 DOI: 10.3390/v15030749] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Revised: 03/09/2023] [Accepted: 03/12/2023] [Indexed: 03/17/2023] Open
Abstract
One of the major evolutionary transitions that led to DNA replacing RNA as the primary informational molecule in biological systems is still the subject of an intense debate in the scientific community. DNA polymerases are currently split into various families. Families A, B, and C are the most significant. In bacteria and some types of viruses, enzymes from families A and C predominate, whereas family B enzymes are more common in Archaea, Eukarya, and some types of viruses. A phylogenetic analysis of these three families of DNA polymerase was carried out. We assumed that reverse transcriptase was the ancestor of DNA polymerases. Our findings suggest that families A and C emerged and organized themselves when the earliest bacterial lineages had diverged, and that these earliest lineages had RNA genomes that were in transition—that is, the information was temporally stored in DNA molecules that were continuously being produced by reverse transcription. The origin of DNA and the apparatus for its replication in the mitochondrial ancestors may have occurred independently of DNA and the replication machinery of other bacterial lineages, according to these two alternate modes of genetic material replication. The family C enzymes emerged in a particular bacterial lineage before being passed to viral lineages, which must have functioned by disseminating this machinery to the other lineages of bacteria. Bacterial DNA viruses must have evolved at least twice independently, in addition to the requirement that DNA have arisen twice in bacterial lineages. We offer two possible scenarios based on what we know about bacterial DNA polymerases. One hypothesis contends that family A was initially produced and spread to the other lineages through viral lineages before being supplanted by the emergence of family C and acquisition at that position of the principal replicative polymerase. The evidence points to the independence of these events and suggests that the viral lineage’s acquisition of cellular replicative machinery was crucial for the establishment of a DNA genome in the other bacterial lineages, since these viral lineages may have served as a conduit for the machinery’s delivery to other bacterial lineages that diverged with the RNA genome. Our data suggest that family B initially established itself in viral lineages and was transferred to ancestral Archaea lineages before the group diversified; thus, the DNA genome must have emerged first in this cellular lineage. Our data point to multiple evolutionary steps in the origins of DNA polymerase, having started off at least twice in the bacterial lineage and once in the archaeal lineage. Given that viral lineages are implicated in a significant portion of the distribution of DNA replication equipment in both bacterial (families A and C) and Archaeal lineages (family A), our data point to a complex scenario.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sávio Torres de Farias
- Departamento de Biologia Molecular, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, João Pessoa 58051-900, Brazil
- Network of Researchers on the Chemical Evolution of Life (NoRCEL), Leeds LS7 3RB, UK
- Correspondence:
| | | | | | - Marco V. José
- Network of Researchers on the Chemical Evolution of Life (NoRCEL), Leeds LS7 3RB, UK
- Theoretical Biology Group, Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México C.P. 04510, Mexico
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Huber LB, Betz K, Marx A. Reverse Transcriptases: From Discovery and Applications to Xenobiology. Chembiochem 2023; 24:e202200521. [PMID: 36354312 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202200521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2022] [Revised: 11/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Reverse transcriptases are DNA polymerases that can use RNA as a template for DNA synthesis. They thus catalyze the reverse of transcription. Although discovered in 1970, reverse transcriptases are still of great interest and are constantly being further developed for numerous modern research approaches. They are frequently used in biotechnological and molecular diagnostic applications. In this review, we describe the discovery of these fascinating enzymes and summarize research results and applications ranging from molecular cloning, direct virus detection, and modern sequencing methods to xenobiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luisa B Huber
- Department of Chemistry, Konstanz Research School Chemical Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78464, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Karin Betz
- Department of Chemistry, Konstanz Research School Chemical Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78464, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Andreas Marx
- Department of Chemistry, Konstanz Research School Chemical Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78464, Konstanz, Germany
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Zhai LT, Rety S, Chen WF, Song ZY, Auguin D, Sun B, Dou SX, Xi XG. Crystal structures of N-terminally truncated telomerase reverse transcriptase from fungi‡. Nucleic Acids Res 2021; 49:4768-4781. [PMID: 33856462 PMCID: PMC8096264 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkab261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Revised: 03/28/2021] [Accepted: 04/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Telomerase plays critical roles in cellular aging, in the emergence and/or development of cancer, and in the capacity for stem-cell renewal, consists of a catalytic telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) and a template-encoding RNA (TER). TERs from diverse organisms contain two conserved structural elements: the template-pseudoknot (T-PK) and a helical three-way junction (TWJ). Species-specific features of the structure and function of telomerase make obtaining a more in-depth understanding of the molecular mechanism of telomerase particularly important. Here, we report the first structural studies of N-terminally truncated TERTs from Candida albicans and Candida tropicalis in apo form and complexed with their respective TWJs in several conformations. We found that Candida TERT proteins perform only one round of telomere addition in the presence or absence of PK/TWJ and display standard reverse transcriptase activity. The C-terminal domain adopts at least two extreme conformations and undergoes conformational interconversion, which regulates the catalytic activity. Most importantly, we identified a conserved tertiary structural motif, called the U-motif, which interacts with the reverse transcriptase domain and is crucial for catalytic activity. Together these results shed new light on the structure and mechanics of fungal TERTs, which show common TERT characteristics, but also display species-specific features.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liu-Tao Zhai
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology in Arid Areas, College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Stephane Rety
- University Lyon, ENS de Lyon, University Claude Bernard, CNRS UMR 5239, INSERM U1210, LBMC, 46 Allée d’Italie Site Jacques Monod, F-69007 Lyon, France
| | - Wei-Fei Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology in Arid Areas, College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Ze-Yu Song
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology in Arid Areas, College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Daniel Auguin
- Laboratoire de Biologie des Ligneux et des Grandes Cultures (LBLGC), Université d’Orléans, INRA, USC1328, 45067 Orléans; Structural Motility, Institut Curie, CNRS, UMR 144 Paris, France
| | - Bo Sun
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Shuo-Xing Dou
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and CAS Key Laboratory of Soft Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xu-Guang Xi
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology in Arid Areas, College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
- Laboratoire de Biologie et de Pharmacologie Appliquée (LBPA), UMR 8113 CNRS, Institut D’Alembert, École Normale Supérieure Paris-Saclay, Université Paris-Saclay, 4, Avenue des Sciences, 91190 Gif sur Yvette, France
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