Principles of protein group SUMO modification substantiated in DNA repair

Posttranslational modifications (PTMs) of proteins by covalent attachment of functional groups (like phosphorylation, acetylation, methylation, glycosylation, etc.) are of key importance for the cell as they regulate various aspects of protein behavior after its synthesis, e.g., dictate protein interaction properties, change catalytic activity of enzymes, induce conformational changes, guide subcellular localization and determine protein stability. A special class of protein PTMs is the conjugation of small proteins of the ubiquitin family to typically acceptor lysine residues of the substrates. The reversible nature of this PTM and the presence of dedicated domains that specifically recognize modified substrates make this type of protein modification instrumental for the regulation of numerous biological pathways. For ubiquitylation, strong substrate selectivity due to the presence of highly diversified conjugation machinery is characteristic and well studied, especially in case of ubiquitin’s proteolytic role. On the contrary, much less is known about the principles of substrate specificity and mechanisms of PTM action in the ubiquitin-like protein SUMO modification system. Despite the fact that SUMOylation specifically targets hundreds of substrates and major conjugation steps are identical with ubiquitin system, strikingly only a handful of enzymes operate in the SUMO pathway, suggesting that other principles of substrate selectivity must apply and perhaps distinct mechanisms of PTM action exist in the SUMO pathway. Moreover, the recognition of SUMO modification is surprisingly simple and relies mainly on a short hydrophobic sequence known as SUMO-interacting motif (SIM), in striking contrast to the ubiquitin system, where numerous ubiquitin-binding domains exist with different interaction specificities. All these, together with the observations that SUMO conjugation machinery seems rather promiscuous in vitro, that typically only a small fraction of a protein is being SUMOylated at a given time, and that specific SUMOylation-defective mutants often exhibit no obvious phenotypes, whereas SUMO pathway mutants do, emphasize the question of substrate specificity in the SUMO system and suggest other principles of SUMO action on its substrates. Here, we address the question of SUMOylation specificity and function using DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair pathway via homologous recombination (HR) as a case study because of its strong ties to the SUMO system. First, using SILAC-based proteomic approach we show that proteins acting in the same DNA repair pathway become collectively SUMOylated upon a specific stimulus (HR factors – upon DSB induction; nucleotide excision repair factors – upon exposure to UV light), suggesting that SUMO machinery often targets protein groups within the same pathway. Then, focusing on the DSB repair we find that DNA-bound SUMO ligase Siz2 catalyzes collective multisite SUMOylation of a whole set of HR factors. Repair proteins are loaded onto resected single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) in the vicinity of the ligase, thus making exposure of ssDNA a precise trigger for modification. Protein group SUMOylation fosters physical interactions between the HR proteins engaged in DNA repair, because not only that they become collectively modified at multiple SUMO-acceptor sites, but they also possess multiple SIMs, which promote SUMO-SIM mediated complex formation. Only wholesale elimination of SUMOylation of the core HR proteins significantly affects the HR pathway by slowing down DNA repair, suggesting that SUMO acts synergistically on several proteins. Thus, we show that SUMOylation collectively targets functionally engaged protein group rather than individual proteins, whereas localization of modification enzymes and specific triggers ensure substrate specificity

DNA bending facilitates the error-free DNA damage tolerance pathway and upholds genome integrity

Abstract DNA replication is sensitive to damage in the template. To bypass lesions and complete replication, cells activate recombination-mediated (error-free) and translesion synthesis-mediated (error-prone) DNA damage tolerance pathways. Crucial for error-free DNA damage tolerance is template switching, which depends on the formation and resolution of damage-bypass intermediates consisting of sister chromatid junctions. Here we show that a chromatin architectural pathway involving the high mobility group box protein Hmo1 channels replication-associated lesions into the error-free DNA damage tolerance pathway mediated by Rad5 and PCNA polyubiquitylation, while preventing mutagenic bypass and toxic recombination. In the process of template switching, Hmo1 also promotes sister chromatid junction formation predominantly during replication. Its C-terminal tail, implicated in chromatin bending, facilitates the formation of catenations/hemicatenations and mediates the roles of Hmo1 in DNA damage tolerance pathway choice and sister chromatid junction formation. Together, the results suggest that replication-associated topological changes involving the molecular DNA bender, Hmo1, set the stage for dedicated repair reactions that limit errors during replication and impact on genome stability

Cmr1/WDR76 defines a nuclear genotoxic stress body linking genome integrity and protein quality control

DNA replication stress is a source of genomic instability. Here we identify ​changed mutation rate 1 (​Cmr1) as a factor involved in the response to DNA replication stress in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and show that ​Cmr1—together with ​Mrc1/​Claspin, ​Pph3, the chaperonin containing ​TCP1 (CCT) and 25 other proteins—define a novel intranuclear quality control compartment (INQ) that sequesters misfolded, ubiquitylated and sumoylated proteins in response to genotoxic stress. The diversity of proteins that localize to INQ indicates that other biological processes such as cell cycle progression, chromatin and mitotic spindle organization may also be regulated through INQ. Similar to ​Cmr1, its human orthologue ​WDR76 responds to proteasome inhibition and DNA damage by relocalizing to nuclear foci and physically associating with CCT, suggesting an evolutionarily conserved biological function. We propose that ​Cmr1/​WDR76 plays a role in the recovery from genotoxic stress through regulation of the turnover of sumoylated and phosphorylated proteins

The S phase checkpoint promotes the Smc5/6 complex dependent SUMOylation of Pol2, the catalytic subunit of DNA polymerase ε

Replication fork stalling and accumulation of single-stranded DNA trigger the S phase checkpoint, a signalling cascade that, in budding yeast, leads to the activation of the Rad53 kinase. Rad53 is essential in maintaining cell viability, but its targets of regulation are still partially unknown. Here we show that Rad53 drives the hyper-SUMOylation of Pol2, the catalytic subunit of DNA polymerase ε, principally following replication forks stalling induced by nucleotide depletion. Pol2 is the main target of SUMOylation within the replisome and its modification requires the SUMO-ligase Mms21, a subunit of the Smc5/6 complex. Moreover, the Smc5/6 complex co-purifies with Pol ε, independently of other replisome components. Finally, we map Pol2 SUMOylation to a single site within the N-terminal catalytic domain and identify a SUMO-interacting motif at the C-terminus of Pol2. These data suggest that the S phase checkpoint regulate Pol ε during replication stress through Pol2 SUMOylation and SUMO-binding abilit

Targeting of SUMO substrates to a Cdc48-Ufd1-Npl4 segregase and STUbL pathway in fission yeast

In eukaryotes, the conjugation of proteins to the small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) regulates numerous cellular functions. A proportion of SUMO conjugates are targeted for degradation by SUMO-targeted ubiquitin ligases (STUbLs) and it has been proposed that the ubiquitin-selective chaperone Cdc48/p97-Ufd1-Npl4 facilitates this process. However, the extent to which the two pathways overlap, and how substrates are selected, remains unknown. Here we address these questions in fission yeast through proteome-wide analyses of SUMO modification sites. We identify over a thousand sumoylated lysines in a total of 468 proteins and quantify changes occurring in the SUMO modification status when the STUbL or Ufd1 pathways are compromised by mutations. The data suggest the coordinated processing of several classes of SUMO conjugates, many dynamically associated with centromeres or telomeres. They provide new insights into subnuclear organization and chromosome biology, and, altogether, constitute an extensive resource for the molecular characterization of SUMO function and dynamics

Control of Nuclear Activities by Substrate-Selective and Protein-Group SUMOylation

Reversible modification of proteins by SUMO (small ubiquitin-like modifier) affects a large number of cellular processes. In striking contrast to the related ubiquitin pathway, only a few enzymes participate in the SUMO system, although this pathway has numerous substrates as well. Emerging evidence suggests that SUMOylation frequently targets entire groups of physically interacting proteins rather than individual proteins. Protein-group SUMOylation appears to be triggered by recruitment of SUMO ligases to preassembled protein complexes. Because SUMOylation typically affects groups of proteins that bear SUMO-interaction motifs (SIMs), protein-group SUMOylation may foster physical interactions between proteins through multiple SUMO-SIM interactions. Individual SUMO modifications may act redundantly or additively, yet they may mediate dedicated functions as well. In this review, we focus on the unorthodox principles of this pathway and give examples for SUMO-controlled nuclear activities. We propose that collective SUMOylation is typical for nuclear assemblies and argue that SUMO serves as a distinguishing mark for functionally engaged protein fractions

Protein Group Modification and Synergy in the SUMO Pathway as Exemplified in DNA Repair

Protein modification by SUMO affects a wide range of protein substrates. Surprisingly, although SUMO pathway mutants display strong phenotypes, the function of individual SUMO modifications is often enigmatic, and SUMOylation-defective mutants commonly lack notable phenotypes. Here, we use DNA double-strand break repair as an example and show that DNA damage triggers a SUMOylation wave, leading to simultaneous multisite modifications of several repair proteins of the same pathway. Catalyzed by a DNA-bound SUMO ligase and triggered by single-stranded DNA, SUMOylation stabilizes physical interactions between the proteins. Notably, only wholesale elimination of SUMOylation of several repair proteins significantly affects the homologous recombination pathway by considerably slowing down DNA repair. Thus, SUMO acts synergistically on several proteins, and individual modifications only add up to efficient repair. We propose that SUMOylation may thus often target a protein group rather than individual proteins, whereas localized modification enzymes and highly specific triggers ensure specificity

Identification of Substrates of Protein-Group SUMOylation

Protein modification by conjugation to the ubiquitin-related protein SUMO (SUMOylation) regulates numerous cellular functions and is reversible. However, unlike typical posttranslational modifications, SUMOylation often targets and regulates proteins of functionally and physically linked protein groups, rather than individual proteins. Functional studies of protein-group SUMOylation are thus particularly challenging, as they require the identification of ideally all members of a modified protein group. Here, we describe mass spectrometric approaches to detect SUMOylated protein groups in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, yet the protocols can be readily adapted for studies of SUMOylation in mammalian cells