Project description:SUMOylation is known to play important roles in the DNA damage response, however, a role for SUMOylation in interstrand crosslink repair remains enigmatic. We report on the regulation of the SLX4 nuclease scaffold protein by SUMOylation. SLX4 contains three SUMO-Interaction Motifs (SIMs). Mutating all three SIMs abrogated the binding of SLX4 to SUMO-2 and covalent SLX4 SUMOylation. We attempt to identify which protein interaction are SIM dependent.
Project description:Protein SUMOylation provides a principal driving force for cellular stress responses including DNA-protein crosslink (DPC) repair and arsenic-induced PML body degradation. In this study, using genome-scale screens, we identify the human E3 ligase TOPORS as a key effector of SUMO-dependent DPC resolution. We demonstrate that TOPORS promotes DPC repair by functioning as a SUMO-targeted ubiquitin ligase (STUbL), combining ubiquitin ligase activity through its RING domain with poly-SUMO binding via SUMO-interacting motifs, analogous to the STUbL RNF4. Mechanistically, TOPORS is a SUMO1-selective STUbL that complements RNF4 in generating complex ubiquitin landscapes on SUMOylated targets including DPCs and PML, stimulating efficient p97/VCP unfoldase recruitment and proteasomal degradation. Combined loss of TOPORS and RNF4 is synthetic lethal even in unstressed cells, involving defective clearance of SUMOylated proteins from chromatin accompanied by cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Our findings establish TOPORS as a STUbL whose parallel action with RNF4 defines a general mechanistic principle in crucial cellular processes governed by direct SUMO-ubiquitin crosstalk.
Project description:In this study, the proteins SumoE1 and Fat10 or Fat10-AV mutant were crosslinked using the crosslinking reagent H12/D12 BS3 in order to determine specific interaction sites of Fat10 and SumoE1. Furthermore, quantitative chemical crosslinking coupled to mass spectrometry (q-XL-MS) was used to compare crosslink abundances of SumoE1 in presence of Sumo as well as Sumo and Fat10 versus crosslink abundances of SumoE1 in absence of Sumo and Fat10 in order to determine the influence of Sumo and Fat10 on the structural dynamics of SumoE1.
Project description:The Fanconi Anemia (FA) repair pathway governs the repair of highly genotoxic DNA interstrand crosslinks (ICLs) with the assistance of translesion synthesis (TLS), that is facilitated by site-specific monoubiquitination of PCNA (PCNA-Ub) at lysine 164 (K164). Mutation at this residue (K164R) renders mammals hypersensitive to ICLs. Besides the FA pathway, alternative pathways have been associated with ICL repair However, the decision-making between the different pathways remains elusive. To study the dependence and relevance of PCNA-Ub in FA repair and pathway preference, we generated a germline Fancg-/- mouse and intercrossed PcnaK164R/+;Fancg-/+ mice. A compound mutation (KR;FGko) was embryonic lethal with the noted exception of very infrequent escapers. RNAseq of primary double mutant mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) revealed elevated levels of replication stress-induced checkpoints, which were rescued by Trp53 knockdown. Upon crosslink induction, KR and FGko MEFs displayed a similar phenotype regarding sensitivity, cell cycle arrest, fork progression and accumulation of single stranded DNA.Remarkably, PCNA-Ub excludes the mismatch recognition complex MSH2/MSH6 from being recruited. Our results implicate a dual function of PCNA-Ub in ICL repair: 1. Facilitate TLS opposite the unhooked ICL and 2. simultaneously exclude MSH2/MSH6 recruitment to channel the ICL towards canonical FA repair.
Project description:Polycomb group (PcG) proteins dynamically define cellular identities through epigenetic repression of key developmental genes. PcG target gene repression can be stabilized through the interaction in the nucleus at PcG foci. Here, we report the results of a high-resolution microscopy genome-wide RNAi screen that identifies 129 genes that regulate the nuclear organization of Pc foci. Candidate genes include PcG components and chromatin factors, as well as many novel protein-modifying enzymes, including components of the SUMOylation pathway. In the absence of SUMO Pc foci coagulate into larger aggregates. Conversely, loss of function of the SUMO peptidase velo disperses Pc foci. Moreover, SUMO and velo colocalize with PcG proteins at PREs and Pc SUMOylation affects its chromatin targeting, suggesting that the dynamic regulation of Pc SUMOylation regulates PcG-mediated silencing by modulating the kinetics of Pc binding to chromatin as well as its ability to form Polycomb foci. ChIP-Seq mapping of Polycomb (PC), SUMO and Velo on Drosophila Melanogaster
Project description:Vertebrate DNA crosslink repair excises toxic replication-blocking DNA crosslinks. Numerous factors involved in crosslink repair have been identified, and mutations in their corresponding genes cause Fanconi anemia (FA). A key step in crosslink repair is monoubiquitination of the FANCD2-FANCI heterodimer, which then recruits nucleases to remove the DNA lesion. In this study, monoubiquitinated FANCD2-FANCI complex was characterized using crosslinking mass spectrometry in order to provide in sights into the 3D structure of the complex.
Project description:Mounting evidence indicates that small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) conjugation regulates a wide range of neuronal functions and participates in learning and memory processes. Since many SUMO targets are transcription factors as well as other nuclear proteins modulating gene expression and SUMO2 is the predominant SUMO isoform, we aimed to identify how SUMO2 regualtes gene expression in the brain in order to better understand the role of SUMOylation in the brain fucntcion. In this study, we peformed RNA-Seq anaysis on hippocampus from SUMO2 conditional knockout mice.