Mre11-Rad50 promotes rapid repair of DNA damage in the polyploid archaeon Haloferax volcanii by restraining homologous recombination.

ABSTRACT: Polyploidy is frequent in nature and is a hallmark of cancer cells, but little is known about the strategy of DNA repair in polyploid organisms. We have studied DNA repair in the polyploid archaeon Haloferax volcanii, which contains up to 20 genome copies. We have focused on the role of Mre11 and Rad50 proteins, which are found in all domains of life and which form a complex that binds to and coordinates the repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). Surprisingly, mre11 rad50 mutants are more resistant to DNA damage than the wild-type. However, wild-type cells recover faster from DNA damage, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis shows that DNA double-strand breaks are repaired more slowly in mre11 rad50 mutants. Using a plasmid repair assay, we show that wild-type and mre11 rad50 cells use

SUBMITTER: Delmas S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2700283 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature