Involvement of the yeast DNA polymerase delta in DNA repair in vivo

Genetics. 1997 Aug;146(4):1239-51. doi: 10.1093/genetics/146.4.1239.

Abstract

The POL3 encoded catalytic subunit of DNA polymerase delta possesses a highly conserved C-terminal cysteine-rich domain in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mutations in some of its cysteine codons display a lethal phenotype, which demonstrates an essential function of this domain. The thermosensitive mutant pol3-13, in which a serine replaces a cysteine of this domain, exhibits a range of defects in DNA repair, such as hypersensitivity to different DNA-damaging agents and deficiency for induced mutagenesis and for recombination. These phenotypes are observed at 24 degrees, a temperature at which DNA replication is almost normal; this differentiates the functions of POL3 in DNA repair and DNA replication. Since spontaneous mutagenesis and spontaneous recombination are efficient in pol3-13, we propose that POL3 plays an important role in DNA repair after irradiation, particularly in the error-prone and recombinational pathways. Extragenic suppressors of pol3-13 are allelic to sdp5-1, previously identified as an extragenic suppressor of pol3-11. SDP5, which is identical to HYS2, encodes a protein homologous to the p50 subunit of bovine and human DNA polymerase delta. SDP5 is most probably the p55 subunit of Pol delta of S. cerevisiae and seems to be associated with the catalytic subunit for both DNA replication and DNA repair.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Base Sequence
  • Cattle
  • Cloning, Molecular
  • DNA Damage
  • DNA Polymerase III / chemistry
  • DNA Polymerase III / genetics
  • DNA Polymerase III / metabolism*
  • DNA Repair / genetics
  • DNA Repair / physiology*
  • DNA Repair / radiation effects
  • DNA Replication / genetics
  • DNA Replication / physiology
  • DNA, Fungal / genetics
  • DNA, Fungal / metabolism
  • DNA, Fungal / radiation effects
  • Diploidy
  • Fungal Proteins / chemistry
  • Fungal Proteins / genetics
  • Fungal Proteins / metabolism
  • Gamma Rays
  • Genes, Fungal / radiation effects
  • Genes, Suppressor
  • Humans
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Mutagenesis, Site-Directed
  • Phenotype
  • Point Mutation
  • Protein Conformation
  • Recombination, Genetic
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae / genetics
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae / metabolism*
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae / radiation effects
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins*
  • Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
  • Species Specificity
  • Temperature

Substances

  • DNA, Fungal
  • Fungal Proteins
  • POL3 protein, S cerevisiae
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins
  • DNA Polymerase III

Associated data

  • SWISSPROT/P46957