E. B. Abramova

Changes in Proteasome Activity and Subunit Composition during Postnatal Development of Rat

The dynamics of the activities of 26S and 20S proteasomes in the rat liver and spleen have been studied during postnatal development from 1 to 90 days. The activities of proteasome forms both in spleen and in liver increased in adult animals as compared to one day rats. The activities of both proteasome forms in the liver did not differ significantly from those in the spleen at all stages of postnatal development. Using Western blot with monoclonal antibodies to Rpt6 subunit, we confirmed the presence of 26S proteasome in both organs at all stages of postnatal development. Studies with polyclonal antibodies to β1i (LMP2) subunit showed the appearance of the immune subunit in the spleen by day 9 and in the liver only by day 23 of postnatal development. This result suggests the earlier formation of the spleen as an organ with immune functions.

Protein synthesis in pupae of the silkworm Bombyx mori after infection with nuclear polyhedrosis virus: resistance to viral infection acquired during pupal period.

Protein synthesis has been studied in pupae of the silkworm Bombyx mori (Bm) infected with nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) at various stages of the pupal period. Nascent proteins were labelled by injection of [35S]methionine into pupae and then analysed by SDS-PAGE. Temporal regulation of synthesis of infected cell-specific proteins (ICSPs) in pupae was demonstrated by electrophoretic analysis of the proteins labelled at different times post-infection (p.i.). The rate of ICSP synthesis reached a maximum at 4 to 5 days p.i., exceeding the rate of synthesis of cellular proteins in uninfected pupae by about twofold. The viral proteins p10 and polyhedrin were the most abundant products synthesized late in the infection. Both proteins were found to be associated with the nuclear matrix after fractionation of nuclei from infected pupae. Two virus-induced phosphoproteins, pp35 and ppB, were found to be the major acceptors of labelled phosphate from [gamma-32P]ATP during in vitro phosphorylation of proteins in pupal homogenates, nuclei and nuclear extracts. These proteins had electrophoretic mobilities comparable to those of structural phosphoproteins of BmNPV virions with M(r)s of 35K and 11K to 16K, respectively. The latter polypeptide was identified as the major DNA-binding protein of the virus. The susceptibility of silkworms to BmNPV decreased markedly during the pupal period. Following injection of BmNPV all young pupae acquired polyhedrosis and finally died whereas most of the older pupae did not exhibit disease and completed metamorphosis normally. Moreover, the later in the pupal period the silkworms were infected, the lower the production of polyhedrin in diseased pupae.

Induction of a novel protein kinase in pupae of the silkworm Bombyx mori after infection with nuclear polyhedrosis virus

Protein kinases induced by Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus in pupae of the silkworm B. mori were examined by activity gel analysis using phosvitin as a protein substrate. The method involved PAGE of the soluble fraction from pupae under native conditions and in the presence of SDS, followed by in situ renaturation of proteins and recovery of protein kinase activity in the intact gel. A novel protein kinase able to phosphorylate phosvitin was detected in the infected pupae from 2 days post-infection. This enzyme was not present in uninfected silkworms at any stage of the pupal period. The novel kinase activity was found by SDS-PAGE to be associated with a single polypeptide with an apparent M(r) of 50K. However, on electrophoresis under native conditions its activity was associated with a set of polypeptides with similar but not identical electrophoretic mobilities. Microheterogeneity of the catalytically active polypeptides suggests that the virus-induced protein kinase undergoes post-translational modification during the course of infection.

Preferential interaction of loach DNA polymerase δ with DNA duplexes containing single-stranded gaps.

We studied the interaction of DNA polymerase δ (pol δ) purified from the eggs of the teleost fish Misgurnus fossilis (loach) with DNA duplexes containing single‐stranded gaps of 1–13 nucleotides (nt). In the absence of processivity factors (PCNA, RF‐C, and ATP), pol δ elongated primers on single‐stranded DNA templates in a distributive manner. However, the enzyme was capable of processive synthesis by filling gaps of 5–9 nt in DNA duplexes. These data suggest that, upon filling a small gap, pol δ interacts with the 5′‐terminus downstream of the gap as well as with the 3′‐terminus of the primer. Interaction of pol δ with the proximal 5′‐terminus restricting the gap was confirmed by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. Analysis of the enzyme binding to DNA duplexes containing gaps of various sizes showed a much higher affinity of pol δ for duplexes with gaps of about 10 nt than for DNA substrates with primers annealed to single‐stranded templates. The most efficient pol δ binding was observed in experiments with DNA substrates containing unpaired 3′‐tails in primers. The data obtained suggest that DNA molecules with small gaps and single‐stranded tails may serve as substrates for direct action of pol δ in the course of DNA repair.

Initiation of DNA replication in eukaryotes is an intriguing cascade of protein interactions

Initiation of eukaryotic DNA replication is a complex process including the recognition of initiation sites on DNA, multi-step DNA preparation for duplication, and assembly of multi-protein complexes capable of beginning DNA synthesis at initiation sites. The process starts at the late M phase and lasts till the appropriate time of the S phase for each initiation site. A chain of interesting interactions between Orc1p-6p, Cdc6p, Mcm2p-7p, Mcm10p, Cdt1, Cdc45p, Dbf4/Cdc7p, RPA, and DNA polymerase α takes place during this period. The sequence of these interactions is controlled by cyclin-dependent kinases, as well as by ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis in the proteasome. This review summarizes the data on proteins initiating DNA replication and factors controlling their activities.

Specific Features of Repair DNA-Polymerases in Embryogenesis of the Loach

The current concept of eukaryotic DNA polymerases is considered, which are involved in nuclear DNA repair. The data are given on a new group of DNA polymerases that maintain the integrity of DNA structures without preliminary excision of damaged regions. A special attention is paid to specific features of the functioning of repair DNA polymerases in embryogenesis of the loach. A possible existence is discussed of the previously unknown pathway of DNA repair with participation of DNA polymerase δ as independent from the nuclear antigen of proliferating cells.

Identification of DNA Polymerase γ in Eggs of a Teleost Fish (Loach)

DNA polymerase found in an extract from eggs of the teleost fish Misgurnus fossilis (loach) has been identified as an enzyme of the γ type. The enzyme was purified 4000- to 5000-fold from the extract by liquid chromatography. The DNA polymerase activity was sensitive to the inhibiting action of aphidicolin but resistant to N2-(p-n-butylphenyl)-2´- deoxyguanosine 5´-triphosphate (BuPdGTP). The enzyme activity correlates with the presence of a polypeptide with molecular mass of 120-130 kD that interacts specifically with polyclonal antibodies against calf thymus DNA polymerase γ as revealed by Western blotting and is presumably the catalytic subunit of the enzyme. The loach DNA polymerase possesses the 3´→5´-exonuclease activity specific to single-stranded DNA and catalyzes distributive elongation of primers in primer–template complexes.