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The mitochondrial DNA helicase TWINKLE can assemble on a closed circular template and support initiation of DNA synthesis.

ABSTRACT: Mitochondrial DNA replication is performed by a simple machinery, containing the TWINKLE DNA helicase, a single-stranded DNA-binding protein, and the mitochondrial DNA polymerase ?. In addition, mitochondrial RNA polymerase is required for primer formation at the origins of DNA replication. TWINKLE adopts a hexameric ring-shaped structure that must load on the closed circular mtDNA genome. In other systems, a specialized helicase loader often facilitates helicase loading. We here demonstrate that TWINKLE can function without a specialized loader. We also show that the mitochondrial replication machinery can assemble on a closed circular DNA template and efficiently elongate a DNA primer in a manner that closely resembles initiation of mtDNA synthesis in vivo.

SUBMITTER: Jemt E

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3241658 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The mitochondrial DNA helicase TWINKLE can assemble on a closed circular template and support initiation of DNA synthesis.

Jemt Elisabeth E Farge Géraldine G Bäckström Stefan S Holmlund Teresa T Gustafsson Claes M CM Falkenberg Maria M

Nucleic acids research 20110812 21

Mitochondrial DNA replication is performed by a simple machinery, containing the TWINKLE DNA helicase, a single-stranded DNA-binding protein, and the mitochondrial DNA polymerase γ. In addition, mitochondrial RNA polymerase is required for primer formation at the origins of DNA replication. TWINKLE adopts a hexameric ring-shaped structure that must load on the closed circular mtDNA genome. In other systems, a specialized helicase loader often facilitates helicase loading. We here demonstrate tha ...[more]

PMID: 21840902

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Human mitochondrial DNA helicase TWINKLE is both an unwinding and annealing helicase.

Project description:TWINKLE is a nucleus-encoded human mitochondrial (mt)DNA helicase. Point mutations in TWINKLE are associated with heritable neuromuscular diseases characterized by deletions in the mtDNA. To understand the biochemical basis of these diseases, it is important to define the roles of TWINKLE in mtDNA metabolism by studying its enzymatic activities. To this end, we purified native TWINKLE from Escherichia coli. The recombinant TWINKLE assembles into hexamers and higher oligomers, and addition of MgUTP stabilizes hexamers over higher oligomers. Probing into the DNA unwinding activity, we discovered that the efficiency of unwinding is greatly enhanced in the presence of a heterologous single strand-binding protein or a single-stranded (ss) DNA that is complementary to the unwound strand. We show that TWINKLE, although a helicase, has an antagonistic activity of annealing two complementary ssDNAs that interferes with unwinding in the absence of gp2.5 or ssDNA trap. Furthermore, only ssDNA and not double-stranded (ds)DNA competitively inhibits the annealing activity, although both DNAs bind with high affinities. This implies that dsDNA binds to a site that is distinct from the ssDNA-binding site that promotes annealing. Fluorescence anisotropy competition binding experiments suggest that TWINKLE has more than one ssDNA-binding sites, and we speculate that a surface-exposed ssDNA-specific site is involved in catalyzing DNA annealing. We propose that the strand annealing activity of TWINKLE may play a role in recombination-mediated replication initiation found in the mitochondria of mammalian brain and heart or in replication fork regression during repair of damaged DNA replication forks.

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Method for the structural analysis of Twinkle mitochondrial DNA helicase by cryo-EM.

Project description:The mitochondrial replisome replicates the 16.6 kb mitochondria DNA (mtDNA). The proper functioning of this multicomponent protein complex is vital for the integrity of the mitochondrial genome. One of the critical protein components of the mitochondrial replisome is the Twinkle helicase, a member of the Superfamily 4 (SF4) helicases. Decades of research has uncovered common themes among SF4 helicases including self-assembly, ATP-dependent translocation, and formation of protein-protein complexes. Some of the molecular details of these processes are still unknown for the mitochondria SF4 helicase, Twinkle. Here, we describe a protocol for expression, purification, and single-particle cryo-electron microscopy of the Twinkle helicase clinical variant, W315L, which resulted in the first high-resolution structure of Twinkle helicase. The methods described here serve as an adaptable protocol to support future high-resolution studies of Twinkle helicase or other SF4 helicases.

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Single-molecule level structural dynamics of DNA unwinding by human mitochondrial Twinkle helicase.

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The Dictyostelium discoideum homologue of Twinkle, Twm1, is a mitochondrial DNA helicase, an active primase and promotes mitochondrial DNA replication.

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The hexameric structure of the human mitochondrial replicative helicase Twinkle.

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Structural basis for adPEO-causing mutations in the mitochondrial TWINKLE helicase.

Project description:TWINKLE is the helicase involved in replication and maintenance of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in mammalian cells. Structurally, TWINKLE is closely related to the bacteriophage T7 gp4 protein and comprises a helicase and primase domain joined by a flexible linker region. Mutations in and around this linker region are responsible for autosomal dominant progressive external ophthalmoplegia (adPEO), a neuromuscular disorder associated with deletions in mtDNA. The underlying molecular basis of adPEO-causing mutations remains unclear, but defects in TWINKLE oligomerization are thought to play a major role. In this study, we have characterized these disease variants by single-particle electron microscopy and can link the diminished activities of the TWINKLE variants to altered oligomeric properties. Our results suggest that the mutations can be divided into those that (i) destroy the flexibility of the linker region, (ii) inhibit ring closure and (iii) change the number of subunits within a helicase ring. Furthermore, we demonstrate that wild-type TWINKLE undergoes large-scale conformational changes upon nucleoside triphosphate binding and that this ability is lost in the disease-causing variants. This represents a substantial advancement in the understanding of the molecular basis of adPEO and related pathologies and may aid in the development of future therapeutic strategies.

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Structural insight and characterization of human Twinkle helicase in mitochondrial disease.

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Mutant mitochondrial helicase Twinkle causes multiple mtDNA deletions and a late-onset mitochondrial disease in mice.

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Biochemical Characterization of the Human Mitochondrial Replicative Twinkle Helicase: SUBSTRATE SPECIFICITY, DNA BRANCH MIGRATION, AND ABILITY TO OVERCOME BLOCKADES TO DNA UNWINDING.

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