Replication of the plasmid pBR322 under the control of a cloned replication origin from the single-stranded DNA phage M13.

The replication origins of viral and complementary strands of bacteriophage M13 DNA are contained within a 507-nucleotide intergenic region of the viral genome. Chimeric plasmids have been constructed by inserting restriction endonuclease fragments of the M13 intergenic region into the plasmid pBR322. Replication of these hybrid plasmids, under conditions not permissive for the plasmid replicon, depends on specific segments of the M13 origin region and on the presence of M13 helper virus. Thus M13-infected polA- Escherichia coli can be transformed to ampicillin resistance by hybrid plasmids that have a functional M13 origin. Cells transformed to drug resistance by plasmids bearing M13 origin sequences contain the duplex chimeric DNA at high copy number but do not accumulate significant amounts of single-stranded plasmid DNA. Rare transducing phages carrying single-stranded chimeric DNA are produced and can be detected by their ability to transduce cells to ampicillin resistance. Plasmids containing a 270-nucleotide fragment from the gene II-proximal half of the intergenic region produce transformants at high frequency under nonpermissive conditions. A central Hae III fragment, Hae III-G, containing the nucleotide sequence coding for the RNA primer for the complementary strand and the nicking site for gene II protein, is sufficient for plasmid replication in M13-infected polA- cells but not for high frequency transformation. Additional sequence information on the gene II side of the Hae III-G fragment is necessary for efficient transformation by the plasmid DNA.     

RNA Synthesis Initiates In Vitro Conversion of M13 DNA to Its Replicative Form

Soluble enzyme fractions from uninfected Escherichia coli convert M13 and varphiX174 viral single strands to their double-stranded replicative forms. Rifampicin, an inhibitor of RNA polymerase, blocks conversion of M13 single strands to the replicative forms in vivo and in vitro. However, rifampicin does not block synthesis of the replicative forms of varphiX174 either in vivo or in soluble extracts. The replicative form of M13 synthesized in vitro consists of a full-length, linear, complementary strand annealed to a viral strand. The conversion of single strands of M13 to the replicative form proceeds in two separate stages. The first stage requires enzymes, ribonucleoside triphosphates, and single-stranded DNA; the reaction is inhibited by rifampicin. The macromolecular product separated at this stage supports DNA synthesis with deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates and a fresh addition of enzymes; ribonucleoside triphosphates are not required in this second stage nor does rifampicin inhibit the reaction. We presume that in the first stage there is synthesis of a short RNA chain, which then primes the synthesis of a replicative form by a DNA polymerase.     

Cloning and expression of the Escherichia coli replication origin in a single-stranded DNA phage.

The Escherichia coli DNA replication origin (oriC) and the adjacent asparagine synthetase gene (asnA) have been inserted into the duplex replicative form DNA of the single-stranded phage vector M13Goril. By in vitro recombination, the entire oriC asnA-containing plasmid pJS5 was inserted into M13Gori1 in both possible orientations. Both phage types transduce the asnA gene and confer upon the M13 vector the ability to replicate as a plasmid in the E. coli mutant rep3. In rep+ hosts, these phages undergo single-stranded DNA synthesis and viral morphogenesis.     

The in vivo mutagenic frequency and specificity of O6-methylguanine in phi X174 replicative form DNA.

A bacteriophage phi X174-based site-specific mutagenesis system for the study of the in vivo mutagenic frequency and specificity of carcinogen-induced modification in DNA is presented. A (-)-strand primer containing O6-methylguanine in a specific site was hybridized to a single-stranded region in gene G of phi X gapped duplex DNA. The hybrid was enzymatically converted to replicative form DNA and was used to transform Escherichia coli cells. All gene G mutants generated by the modification were rescued by genetic complementation. An amber mutation in lysis gene E of the (+) strand of the replicative form DNA prevented lytic growth of wild-type phage derived from this strand. In each mutant-containing infective center produced from the transformed cells, gene G mutant phage were present in a 3:1 ratio compared to wild type. Thus, in vivo, O6-methylguanine in replicating phi X DNA has a mutagenic frequency of 75%. When repair of O6 methylguanine occurred, it was prereplicative. The mutations were due exclusively to the misincorporation of thymine.     

Replication of Bacteriophage M13: Specificity of the Escherichia coli dnaB Function for Replication of Double-Stranded M13 DNA

Infection of the temperature-sensitive E. coli mutant HfrH 165/70 (dnaB) with the filamentous single-stranded DNA phage M13 is abortive at the restrictive temperature. Upon infection at 41 degrees , single-stranded phage DNA penetrates the cell and is converted in a rifampicin-sensitive step to the double-stranded replicative form (RF). The parental RF attaches to the cell membrane, but subsequent replication of the RF is blocked. It is concluded that in M13 infection semiconservative RF replication of a double strand to a double strand, in contrast to single-stranded DNA synthesis, depends specifically on the dnaB function.     

ϕX174 cistron A protein is a multifunctional enzyme in DNA replication

The cistron A protein induced by phage varphiX174 nicks (produces a single-strand break in) the viral strand of the superhelical varphiX duplex DNA, thereby forming a complex with the DNA. The protein, seen bound to the DNA in the electron microscope, was located in the restriction endonuclease fragment between nucleotides 4290 and 4330 on the varphiX map [Sanger, F., Air, G. M., Barrel, B. G., Brown, N. L., Coulson, A. R., Fiddes, J. C., Hutchison, C. A., III, Slocomb, P. M. Y. & Smith, M. (1977) Nature 265, 687-695]. Replication also was initiated at this point, thus identifying the site of cistron A protein nicking and binding as the origin of replication.The cisA-DNA complex (separated from free cistron A protein), upon the addition of Escherichia coli rep protein, ATP, and DNA binding protein, is unwound to generate a single-stranded linear [presumably the nicked (+) strand] and a circular [presumably the (-) strand] molecule. The cisA-DNA complex, upon the further addition of DNA polymerase III holoenzyme and deoxynucleoside triphosphates, supports replication to generate viral, single-stranded circles, as many as 15 circles per cisA-DNA complex.The replicating intermediates seen in the electron microscope are a novel form of "rolling circle" [Gilbert, W. & Dressler, D. H. (1969) Cold Spring Harbor Symp. Quant. Biol. 33, 473-485]. The 5' end (presumably with the cistron A protein bound to it) is locked in the replication fork and loops back to accompany the strand-separation and replication fork around the template [(-) strand] circle. Thus, the multiple functions of cistron A protein include: (i) nicking the viral strand at the origin of replication to initiate a round of replication, (ii) participating in a complex which supports fork movement in strand separation and replication, (iii) nicking again at the regenerated origin to produce a unit-length DNA, and (iv) ligating the newly generated 3'-OH end to the 5'-phosphate-complexed end to form a circular viral molecule.     

On the molecular mechanisms of transposition

We present a model for transposition that allows a choice between cointegrate formation (replicon fusion) and direct transposition. We propose that initiation of the process occurs by invasion of the target DNA by a single-stranded end of the transposable element. This leads to nicking of one of the DNA strands of the target molecule and ligation of this strand to that of the invading transposon. Transposition then occurs in a processive way by replication of the element from the invading end into the target site in a looped rolling-circle mode similar to replication of phage phi X174 replicative form to viral strand. The choice between cointegrate formation and direct transposition occurs at the nick-ligation step, which terminates the process. We suggest that the choice is determined by the topology of the transposition enzymes and could be related to whether the element generates five- or nine-base-pair repeats in the target DNA on insertion.     

Purification and characterization of an activity from Saccharomyces cerevisiae that catalyzes homologous pairing and strand exchange.

An activity that catalyzes the formation of joint molecules from linear M13mp19 replicative form DNA and circular M13mp19 viral DNA was purified 1000- to 2000-fold from mitotic Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells. The activity appeared to reside in a Mr 132,000 polypeptide. The reaction required that the substrates be homologous and also required Mg2+. There was no requirement for ATP. The reaction required stoichiometric amounts of protein and showed a cooperative dependence on protein concentration. Electron microscopic analysis of the joint molecules indicated they were formed by displacement of one strand of the linear duplex by the single-stranded circular molecule. This analysis also showed that heteroduplex formation started at the 3'-homologous end of the linear duplex strand followed by extension of the hybrid region toward the 5'-homologous end of the linear duplex strand (3'-to-5' direction).     

Initiation of DNA Synthesis: Synthesis of ϕX174 Replicative Form Requires RNA Synthesis Resistant to Rifampicin

Conversion of single-stranded DNA of phage ϕX174 to the double-stranded replicative form in Escherichia coli uses enzymes essential for initiation and replication of the host chromosome. These enzymes can now be purified by the assay that this phage system provides. The ϕX174 conversion is distinct from that of M13. The reaction requires different host enzymes and is resistant to rifampicin and streptolydigin, inhibitors of RNA polymerase. However, RNA synthesis is essential for ϕX174 DNA synthesis: the reaction is inhibited by low concentrations of actinomycin D, all four ribonucleoside triphosphates are required, and an average of one phosphodiester bond links DNA to RNA in the isolated double-stranded circles. Thus, we presume that, as in the case of M13, synthesis of a short RNA chain primes the synthesis of a replicative form by DNA polymerase. Initiation of DNA synthesis by RNA priming is a mechanism of wide significance.     

A mechanism of duplex DNA replication revealed by enzymatic studies of phage phi X174: catalytic strand separation in advance of replication.

The enzyme system for duplicating the duplex, circular DNA of phage phi X174 (replicative form) in stage II of the replicative life cycle was shown to proceed in two steps: synthesis of the viral (+) strand ]stage II(+)], followed by synthesis of the complementary (-) strand ]stage II(-)] [Eisenberg et al. (1976) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 73, 3151-3155]. Novel features of the mechanism of the stage II(+) reaction have now been observed. The product, synthesized in extensive net quantities, is a covalently closed, circular, single-stranded DNA. The supercoiled replicative form I template and three of the four required proteins--the phage-induced cistron A protein (cis A), the host rep protein (rep), and the DNA polymerase III holoenzyme (holoenzyme)--act catalytically; the Escherichia coli DNA unwinding (or binding) protein binds the product stoichiometrically. In a reaction uncoupled from replication, cis A, rep, DNA binding protein, ATP, and Mg2+ separate the supercoiled replicative form I into its component single strands coated with DNA binding protein. In the presence of Mg2+, cis A, nicks the replicative form I; rep, ATP, and Mg2+ achieve strand separation with a concurrent cleavage of ATP and binding of DNA binding protein to the single strands. rep exhibits a single-stranded DNA-dependent ATPase activity. These observations suggest that the rep enzymatically melts the duplex at the replicating fork, using energy provided by ATP; this mechanism may apply to the replication of the E. coli chromosome as well.     

Identification of a primosome assembly site in the region of the ori 2 replication origin of the Escherichia coli mini-F plasmid.

A primosome assembly site for F plasmid DNA replication has been identified. This site, which we term rriA (F), is localized to one strand of a 385-base-pair Sau3A restriction fragment very close to ori 2 and within the 2.25-kilobase DNA sequence required for replication and incompatibility of the entire F plasmid. rriA (F) was isolated by cloning into the deletion phage vector M13 delta Elac. This phage forms very faint plaques due to a deletion of the M13 complementary strand origin but forms large wild-type plaques when DNA single-strand initiation determinants are inserted. The single-stranded viral DNA of the Sau3A F-M13 delta Elac recombinant provides an effector site of dATP hydrolysis by the primosomal protein n'. It also provides an assembly site for the Escherichia coli primosome protein complex that directs the in vitro conversion of the single-stranded DNA to a double-stranded form by the same mechanism as that used by phi X174. Homologies of the nucleotide sequence between this F DNA sequence and the previously identified primosome assembly sites in phi X174 phage DNA and in ColE1 plasmid DNA (rriA and rriB) have been found. The sequences 5' G-T-G-A-G-C-G 3' and 5' G-N-G-G-A-A-G-C 3' or variations of these sequences occur from two to five times within each assembly locus. In addition, two distinct 15-base-pair sequences in rriA (F) are perfectly homologous to corresponding sequences in rriA (ColE1).     

Identification of ColE1 DNA sequences that direct single strand-to-double strand conversion by a phi X174 type mechanism.

A DNA single-strand initiation sequence, named rriA (called rri-1 previously), was detected in the origin region (Hae II fragment E) of the ColE1 plasmid [Nomura, N. & Ray, D. S. (1980) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 77, 6566-6570]. Another site, called rriB, has been found on the opposite strand of Hae II fragment C. Both rriA and rriB (i) direct conversion of chimeric M13 phage single-stranded DNA to parental replicative form DNA in vivo by a rifampicin-resistant mechanism that is dependent on the dnaG and dnaB gene products, (ii) provide effector sites of dATP hydrolysis by primosomal protein n', and (iii) require the same primosomal proteins as phi X174 DNA for directing the in vitro conversion that rriA is the DNA sequence that determines the mechanism of lagging strand synthesis of ColE1 DNA and that the mechanism of discontinuous synthesis involves the primosomal proteins utilized in the in vitro conversion of phi X174 single strands to the double-stranded replicative form.     

Expression of a DNA strand initiation sequence of ColE1 plasmid in a single-stranded DNA phage.

In order to investigate initiation of H-strand (lagging strand) replication of the plasmid ColE1, the origin region fragment (Hae II-E) of ColE1 was inserted into the intergenic region of filamentous DNA phage M13 and cloned. A site capable of promoting DNA strand initiation on a single-stranded DNA template has been detected on the L-strand (leading strand) of the cloned fragment. The site, named rri-1 rifampicin-resistant initiation), directs conversion of chimeric phage single-stranded DNA to parental replicative form in the presence of rifampicin, which blocks the function of the complementary strand origin of M13. The function of rri-1 is dependent on both the dnaG and dnaB gene products. It is postulated that rri-1 might be an initiation site for synthesis of the lagging DNA strand during unidirectional replication of ColE1 DNA.     

A Possible Role for RNA Polymerase in the Initiation of M13 DNA Synthesis

The conversion of single-stranded DNA of bacteriophage M13 to the double-stranded replicative form in Escherichia coli is blocked by rifampicin, an antibiotic that specifically inhibits the host-cell RNA polymerase. Chloramphenicol, an inhibitor of protein synthesis, does not block this conversion. The next stage in phage DNA replication, multiplication of the doublestranded forms, is also inhibited by rifampicin; chloramphenicol, although inhibitory, has a much smaller effect. An E. coli mutant whose RNA polymerase is resistant to rifampicin action does not show inhibition of M13 DNA replication by rifampicin. These findings indicate that a specific rifampicin-RNA polymerase interaction is responsible for blocking new DNA synthesis. It now seems plausible that RNA polymerase has some direct role in the initiation of DNA replication, perhaps by forming a primer RNA that serves for covalent attachment of the deoxyribonucleotide that starts the new DNA chain.     

Polar branch migration promoted by recA protein: effect of mismatched base pairs.

Escherichia coli recA protein makes joint molecules from single-stranded circular phage DNA (viral or plus strand) and homologous linear duplex DNA by a polar reaction that displaces the 5' end of the plus strand from the duplex molecule [Kahn, R., Cunningham, R. P., DasGupta, C. & Radding, C. M. (1981) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 78, 4786-4790]. Growth of the heteroduplex joint, which results from strand exchange or branch migration, stopped at the borders of regions of nonhomologous DNA that were variously located 145, 630, or 1202 nucleotides from the end. Accumulation of migrating branches at heterologous borders demonstrates that their migration is not the result of random diffusion but is actively driven by recA protein. Growth of the heteroduplex joint was blocked even when a heterologous insertion was located in the single-stranded DNA, a case in which the flexible single-stranded region might conceivably fold out of the way under some condition. The recA protein did not make joint molecules from phage phi X174 and G4DNAs, which are 70% homologous, but did join phage fd and M13DNAs, which are 97% homologous. In the latter case, heteroduplex joints extended through regions containing isolated mismatched base pairs but stopped in a region where the fd and M13 sequences differ by an average of 1 base pair in 10. These results suggest that in genetic recombination the discrimination of perfect or near-perfect homology from a high degree of relatedness may be attributable in part to the mechanism by which recA protein promotes strand transfer.     

Use of short DNA oligonucleotides for determination of DNA sequence modifications induced by benzo[a]pyrene diol epoxide.

Various organic agents that alkylate DNA are known to induce mutations in bacterial and animal cells. The precise nature and location of modified DNA sequences in such mutants are often difficult to ascertain. In this report, a 10-base-pair oligomer (BamHI linker) is treated with (+/-)-trans-benzo[a]pyrene-7,8-dihydrodiol-9,10-epoxide and inserted into replicative form DNA of phage M13 by ligation at a specific restriction site. Escherichia coli are transfected with the recombinant DNA containing the alkylated target, progeny viral plaques are selected, and their DNAs are subjected to DNA sequence analysis at the region of oligomer insertion. For the alkylated inserts used in this study, the DNA sequence analysis of progeny viral DNA showed that nucleotide deletions were present in every clone examined. These deletions occurred primarily, but not exclusively, at G-C cluster regions, varied from 1 to 24 base pairs in length, and included both target and nontarget nucleotides. A second type of repair, which restores most of the original nucleotide bases in the alkylated insert, is also implied by the DNA sequence data obtained.     

Enzymatic techniques for the isolation of random single-base substitutions in vitro at high frequency.

A general and efficient method has been developed to generate large numbers of single-base substitution mutations simply and rapidly. A unique f1 phage recombinant DNA cloning vector is described, which contains the phi X174 origin of viral strand DNA synthesis and allows one to direct mutagenesis to any specific segment of DNA. Gapped circular DNA is constructed by annealing viral single-stranded circular DNA [ss(c) DNA] with a mixture of linear duplex DNAs that have had their 3'-OH termini processively digested with Escherichia coli exonuclease III under conditions in which the resulting, newly generated 3'-OH termini present in the various hybrid molecules span the region of interest. Base changes are induced by misincorporation of an alpha-thiodeoxynucleoside triphosphate analog onto this primer-template, followed by DNA repair synthesis. The asymmetric segregation of mutants from wild-type sequences is accomplished by double-stranded replicative form DNA----ss(c) DNA synthesis in vitro, initiated from the phi X174 viral strand origin sequence present on the vector DNA. Mutated ss(c) DNA is screened by the dideoxy chain termination method. In one mutagenesis experiment, 21 independent single-base substitutions were isolated in a 72-nucleotide-long target region. DNA sequence analysis showed that all possible base transversions and transitions were represented.     

Nucleotide sequences of the separate origins of synthesis of bacteriophage G4 viral and complementary DNA strands.

Bacteriophage G4 has physically separated origins of synthesis of its viral and complementary DNA strands. Chain termination and "plus and minus" DNA sequencing methods have been used to obtain the nucleotide sequence of these two origins. The unique origin at which the complementary DNA strand is initiated has located in the untranslated region between genes F and G. This sequence, which has considerable secondary structure, contains a stretch which is complementary to the RNA primer that is observed during synthesis in vitro of the G4 complementary DNA strand [Bouché, J.P., Rowen, L. & Kornberg, A. (1978) J. Biol. Chem., in press]. This G4 origin shows extensive sequence homology with the bacteriophage lambda origin of DNA replication [Denniston-Thompson, K., Moore, D. D., Kruger, D. E., Furth, M. E. & Blattner, F. R. (1977) Science 198, 1051-1056]. The sequence around the site in gene A at which G4 viral DNA strand synthesis is initiated by the nicking action of the cistron A protein is very similar to that of bacteriophage phiX174. An (A + T)-rich stretch flanked by (G + C)-rich sequences may be involved in the interaction between the DNA and protein.     

Conservation of the primosome in successive stages of phi X174 DNA replication.

Synthesis of a complementary strand to match the single-stranded, circular, viral (+) DNA strand of phage phi X174 creates a parental duplex circle (replicative form, RF). This synthesis is initiated by the assembly and action of a priming system, called the primosome [Arai, K. & Kornberg, A (1981) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 78, 69-73; Arai, K., Low, R. L. & Kornberg, A. (1981) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 78, 707-711]. Of the seven proteins that participate in the assembly and function of the primosome, most all of the components remain even after the DNA duplex is completed and covalently sealed. Remarkably, the primosome in the isolated RF obviates the need for supercoiling of RF by DNA gyrase, an action previously considered essential for the site-specific cleavage by gene A protein that starts viral strand synthesis in the second stage of phi X174 DNA replication. Finally, priming of the synthesis of complementary strands on the nascent viral strands to produce many copies of progeny RF utilizes the same primosome, requiring the addition only of prepriming protein i. thus a single primosome, which becomes associated with the incoming viral DNA in the initial stage of replication, may function repeatedly in the initiation of complementary strands at the subsequent stage of RF multiplication. These patterns of phi X174 DNA replication suggest that a conserved primosome also functions in the progress of the replicating fork of the Escherichia coli chromosome, particularly in initiating the synthesis of nascent (Okazaki) fragments.     

The priA gene encoding the primosomal replicative n'' protein of Escherichia coli.

The Escherichia coli gene encoding protein n' has been isolated and named priA for primosomal protein A. Protein n' is absolutely required for the conversion of single-stranded phi X174 DNA to the duplex replicative form in an in vitro-reconstituted system. The gene maps to 88.7 minutes on the chromosome adjacent to the cytR locus. Soluble protein extracts from cells harboring the priA gene on a multicopy plasmid contained 45-fold more n' replication activity than wild-type extracts. Enhanced overproduction of greater than 1000-fold was achieved by replacing the natural Shine-Dalgarno sequence with that of the phage T7 phi 10 gene and placing this priA under the control of the T7 phage promoter and RNA polymerase. The priA sequence reveals a 732-amino acid open reading frame and a nucleotide-binding consensus site consistent with the size and ATPase activity of the purified protein. The gene for protein n has been named priB and the putative gene for protein n", priC.