DNA interstrand cross-links (ICLs) block replication fork progression by inhibiting DNA strand separation. Repair of ICLs requires sequential incisions, translesion DNA synthesis, and homologous recombination, but the full set of factors involved in these transactions remains unknown. We devised a technique called chromatin mass spectrometry (CHROMASS) to study protein recruitment dynamics during perturbed DNA replication in Xenopus egg extracts. Using CHROMASS, we systematically monitored protein assembly and disassembly on ICL-containing chromatin. Among numerous prospective DNA repair factors, we identified SLF1 and SLF2, which form a complex with RAD18 and together define a pathway that suppresses genome instability by recruiting the SMC5/6 cohesion complex to DNA lesions. Our study provides a global analysis of an entire DNA repair pathway and reveals the mechanism of SMC5/6 relocalization to damaged DNA in vertebrate cells.
During my PhD project, I studied the role of several chromatin remodelers in the DNA double strand break (DSB) response. We discovered that both CHD4 and SMARCA5 are required for ubiquitin signaling through the E3 ubiquitin ligases RNF8 and RNF168, which is a central signaling event in the response to DSBs. Furthermore, we found that SMARCA5 actually interacts with RNF168. Both CHD4 and SMARCA5 act at the break site itself and modulate DSB repair. Additionally we found that the DSB repair protein Rad51 is essential for mouse development since Rad51C knock out mice were embryonic lethal.
In 4 volunteers samples of skin scrapings taken at various depths on the fore-arms were collected for determination of the urocanic acid, amino-nitrogen, and sodium content. The percentage of urocanic acid in the samples from deeper levels was higher than in the superficial material. The ratio between the amounts of urocanic acid and amino-nitrogen was the same in all layers. It is therefore concluded that the urocanic acid in the human stratum corneum is of epidermal origin and is not derived from sweat.
Cells respond to ionizing radiation (IR)–induced DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) by orchestrating events that coordinate cell cycle progression and DNA repair. How cells signal and repair DSBs is not yet fully understood. A genome-wide RNA interference screen in Caenorhabditis elegans identified egr-1 as a factor that protects worm cells against IR. The human homologue of egr-1, MTA2 (metastasis-associated protein 2), is a subunit of the nucleosome-remodeling and histone deacetylation (NuRD) chromatin-remodeling complex. We show that knockdown of MTA2 and CHD4 (chromodomain helicase DNA-binding protein 4), the catalytic subunit (adenosine triphosphatase [ATPase]) of NuRD, leads to accumulation of spontaneous DNA damage and increased IR sensitivity. MTA2 and CHD4 accumulate in DSB-containing chromatin tracks generated by laser microirradiation. Directly at DSBs, CHD4 stimulates RNF8/RNF168-dependent formation of ubiquitin conjugates to facilitate the accrual of RNF168 and BRCA1. Finally, we show that CHD4 promotes DSB repair and checkpoint activation in response to IR. Thus, the NuRD chromatin–remodeling complex is a novel regulator of DNA damage responses that orchestrates proper signaling and repair of DSBs.
