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Chromatin remodeling activities act on UV-damaged nucleosomes and modulate DNA damage accessibility to photolyase

Hélène Gaillard1, Daniel J Fitzgerald, Corey L Smith

  • 1Institut für Zellbiologie and Institut für Molekularbiologie, Departement Biologie, ETH-Hönggerberg, CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerland.

The Journal of Biological Chemistry
|March 15, 2003
PubMed

Insights

Chromatin remodeling complexes SWI/SNF and yISW2 can alter nucleosome structure and facilitate DNA repair of UV damage. This suggests a crucial role for remodeling in DNA repair processes within living cells.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Nucleosomes, the basic units of chromatin, can impede DNA repair mechanisms.
  • Understanding how chromatin structure influences DNA repair is crucial for cellular health.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of nucleosome structure and dynamics on UV lesion recognition and repair.
  • To determine if chromatin remodeling complexes can enhance DNA repair efficiency on nucleosomal DNA.

Main Methods:

  • Studied UV lesion repair by photolyase on a DNA fragment with a positioned nucleosome.
  • Utilized UV photo-footprinting to assess DNA conformation changes.
  • Examined the effects of SWI/SNF and yISW2 chromatin remodeling complexes on nucleosome position and repair.

Main Results:

  • Nucleosomal DNA repair was significantly slower than repair on free DNA.
  • SWI/SNF and yISW2, in the presence of ATP, modulated nucleosome conformation and position.
  • Chromatin remodeling promoted more homogeneous and efficient repair of UV lesions.

Conclusions:

  • Chromatin remodeling complexes can overcome the inhibitory effects of nucleosomes on DNA repair.
  • These findings highlight the importance of dynamic chromatin alterations for efficient DNA repair in vivo.
  • This study provides the first evidence of two distinct remodeling complexes influencing UV-damaged nucleosomes.

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