A Membrane-Associated DHH-DHHA1 Nuclease Degrades Type III CRISPR Second Messenger

Type III CRISPR-Cas systems initiate an intracellular signaling pathway to confer immunity. The signaling pathway includes synthesis of cyclic oligo-adenylate (cOA) and activation of the RNase activity of type III accessory ribonuclease Csm6/Csx1 by cOA. After the immune response, cOA should be cleared on time to avoid constant cellular RNA degradation. In this study, we find a metal-dependent cOA degradation activity in Sulfolobus islandicus. The activity is associated with the cell membrane and able to accelerate cOA clearance at a high cOA level. Further, we show that a metal-dependent and membrane-associated DHH-DHHA1 family nuclease (MAD) rapidly cleaves cOA and deactivates Csx1 ribonuclease. The cOA degradation efficiency of MAD is much higher than the cellular ring nuclease. However, the subcellular organization may prevent it from degrading nascent cOA. Together, the data suggest that MAD acts as the second cOA degrader after the ring nuclease to remove diffused redundant cOA.