DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit, also known as DNA-PKcs, is an enzyme that plays a crucial role in repairing DNA double-strand breaks and has a number of other DNA housekeeping functions. [5] In humans it is encoded by the gene designated as PRKDC or XRCC7. [6] DNA-PKcs belongs to the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-related kinase protein family. The DNA-Pkcs protein is a serine/threonine protein kinase consisting of a single polypeptide chain of 4,128 amino acids. [7] [8]
DNA-PKcs is the catalytic subunit of a nuclear DNA-dependent serine/threonine protein kinase called DNA-PK. The second component is the autoimmune antigen Ku. On its own, DNA-PKcs is inactive and relies on Ku to direct it to DNA ends and trigger its kinase activity. [9] DNA-PKcs is required for the non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) pathway of DNA repair, which rejoins double-strand breaks. It is also required for V(D)J recombination, a process that utilizes NHEJ to promote immune system diversity.
Many proteins have been identified as substrates for the kinase activity of DNA-PK. Autophosphorylation of DNA-PKcs appears to play a key role in NHEJ and is thought to induce a conformational change that allows end processing enzymes to access the ends of the double-strand break. [10] DNA-PK also cooperates with ATR and ATM to phosphorylate proteins involved in the DNA damage checkpoint.
DNA-PKcs knockout mice have severe combined immunodeficiency due to their V(D)J recombination defect. Natural analogs of this knockout happen in mice, horses and dogs, also causing SCID. [11] Human SCID usually have other causes, but two cases related to mutations in this gene are also known. [12]
DNA-PKcs activates p53 to regulate apoptosis. [13] In response to ionizing radiation, DNA-PKcs can serve as an upstream effector for p53 protein activation, thus linking DNA damage to apoptosis. [13] Both Repair of DNA damages and apoptosis are catalytic activities required for maintaining integrity of the human genome. Cells that have insufficient DNA repair capability tend to accumulate DNA damages, and when such cells are additionally defective in apoptosis they tend to survive even though excessive DNA damages are present. [14] The replication of DNA in such deficient cells can generate mutations and such mutations may cause cancer. Thus DNA-PKcs appears to have two functions related to the prevention of cancer, where the first function is to participate in the repair of DNA double-strand breaks by the NHEJ repair pathway and the second function is to induce apoptosis if the level of such DNA breaks exceed the cell’s repair capability [14]
DNA damage appears to be the primary underlying cause of cancer, [15] and deficiencies in DNA repair genes likely underlie many forms of cancer. [16] [17] If DNA repair is deficient, DNA damage tends to accumulate. Such excess DNA damage may increase mutations due to error-prone translesion synthesis. Excess DNA damage may also increase epigenetic alterations due to errors during DNA repair. [18] [19] Such mutations and epigenetic alterations may give rise to cancer.
PRKDC (DNA-PKcs) mutations were found in 3 out of 10 of endometriosis-associated ovarian cancers, as well as in the field defects from which they arose. [20] They were also found in 10% of breast and pancreatic cancers. [21]
Reductions in expression of DNA repair genes (usually caused by epigenetic alterations) are very common in cancers, and are ordinarily even more frequent than mutational defects in DNA repair genes in cancers.[ citation needed ] DNA-PKcs expression was reduced by 23% to 57% in six cancers as indicated in the table.
Cancer | Frequency of reduction in cancer | Ref. |
---|---|---|
Breast cancer | 57% | [22] |
Prostate cancer | 51% | [23] |
Cervical carcinoma | 32% | [24] |
Nasopharyngeal carcinoma | 30% | [25] |
Epithelial ovarian cancer | 29% | [26] |
Gastric cancer | 23% | [27] |
It is not clear what causes reduced expression of DNA-PKcs in cancers. MicroRNA-101 targets DNA-PKcs via binding to the 3'- UTR of DNA-PKcs mRNA and efficiently reduces protein levels of DNA-PKcs. [28] But miR-101 is more often decreased in cancers, rather than increased. [29] [30]
HMGA2 protein could also have an effect on DNA-PKcs. HMGA2 delays the release of DNA-PKcs from sites of double-strand breaks, interfering with DNA repair by non-homologous end joining and causing chromosomal aberrations. [31] The let-7a microRNA normally represses the HMGA2 gene. [32] [33] In normal adult tissues, almost no HMGA2 protein is present. In many cancers, let-7 microRNA is repressed. As an example, in breast cancers the promoter region controlling let-7a-3/let-7b microRNA is frequently repressed by hypermethylation. [34] Epigenetic reduction or absence of let-7a microRNA allows high expression of the HMGA2 protein and this would lead to defective expression of DNA-PKcs.
DNA-PKcs can be up-regulated by stressful conditions such as in Helicobacter pylori-associated gastritis. [35] After ionizing radiation DNA-PKcs was increased in the surviving cells of oral squamous cell carcinoma tissues. [36]
The ATM protein is important in homologous recombinational repair (HRR) of DNA double strand breaks. When cancer cells are deficient in ATM the cells are "addicted" to DNA-PKcs, important in the alternative DNA repair pathway for double-strand breaks, non-homologous end joining (NHEJ). [37] That is, in ATM-mutant cells, an inhibitor of DNA-PKcs causes high levels of apoptotic cell death. In ATM mutant cells, additional loss of DNA-PKcs leaves the cells without either major pathway (HRR and NHEJ) for repair of DNA double-strand breaks.
Elevated DNA-PKcs expression is found in a large fraction (40% to 90%) of some cancers (the remaining fraction of cancers often has reduced or absent expression of DNA-PKcs). The elevation of DNA-PKcs is thought to reflect the induction of a compensatory DNA repair capability, due to the genome instability in these cancers. [38] (As indicated in the article Genome instability, such genome instability may be due to deficiencies in other DNA repair genes present in the cancers.) Elevated DNA-PKcs is thought to be "beneficial to the tumor cells", [38] though it would be at the expense of the patient. As indicated in a table listing 12 types of cancer reported in 20 publications, [38] the fraction of cancers with over-expression of DNA-PKcs is often associated with an advanced stage of the cancer and shorter survival time for the patient. However, the table also indicates that for some cancers, the fraction of cancers with reduced or absent DNA-PKcs is also associated with advanced stage and poor patient survival.
Non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) is the principal DNA repair process used by mammalian somatic cells to cope with double-strand breaks that continually occur in the genome. DNA-PKcs is one of the key components of the NHEJ machinery. DNA-PKcs deficient mice have a shorter lifespan and show an earlier onset of numerous aging related pathologies than corresponding wild-type littermates. [39] [40] These findings suggest that failure to efficiently repair DNA double-strand breaks results in premature aging, consistent with the DNA damage theory of aging. (See also Bernstein et al. [41] )
DNA-PKcs has been shown to interact with:
AZD7648, [57] M3814 (peposertib), [58] M9831 (VX-984) [59] and BAY-8400 [60] have been described as potent and selective DNA-PKcs inhibitors.
Breast cancer type 1 susceptibility protein is a protein that in humans is encoded by the BRCA1 gene. Orthologs are common in other vertebrate species, whereas invertebrate genomes may encode a more distantly related gene. BRCA1 is a human tumor suppressor gene and is responsible for repairing DNA.
DNA repair is a collection of processes by which a cell identifies and corrects damage to the DNA molecules that encode its genome. In human cells, both normal metabolic activities and environmental factors such as radiation can cause DNA damage, resulting in tens of thousands of individual molecular lesions per cell per day. Many of these lesions cause structural damage to the DNA molecule and can alter or eliminate the cell's ability to transcribe the gene that the affected DNA encodes. Other lesions induce potentially harmful mutations in the cell's genome, which affect the survival of its daughter cells after it undergoes mitosis. As a consequence, the DNA repair process is constantly active as it responds to damage in the DNA structure. When normal repair processes fail, and when cellular apoptosis does not occur, irreparable DNA damage may occur. This can eventually lead to malignant tumors, or cancer as per the two-hit hypothesis.
Non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) is a pathway that repairs double-strand breaks in DNA. It is called "non-homologous" because the break ends are directly ligated without the need for a homologous template, in contrast to homology directed repair (HDR), which requires a homologous sequence to guide repair. NHEJ is active in both non-dividing and proliferating cells, while HDR is not readily accessible in non-dividing cells. The term "non-homologous end joining" was coined in 1996 by Moore and Haber.
ATM serine/threonine kinase or Ataxia-telangiectasia mutated, symbol ATM, is a serine/threonine protein kinase that is recruited and activated by DNA double-strand breaks, oxidative stress, topoisomerase cleavage complexes, splicing intermediates, R-loops and in some cases by single-strand DNA breaks. It phosphorylates several key proteins that initiate activation of the DNA damage checkpoint, leading to cell cycle arrest, DNA repair or apoptosis. Several of these targets, including p53, CHK2, BRCA1, NBS1 and H2AX are tumor suppressors.
Werner syndrome ATP-dependent helicase, also known as DNA helicase, RecQ-like type 3, is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the WRN gene. WRN is a member of the RecQ Helicase family. Helicase enzymes generally unwind and separate double-stranded DNA. These activities are necessary before DNA can be copied in preparation for cell division. Helicase enzymes are also critical for making a blueprint of a gene for protein production, a process called transcription. Further evidence suggests that Werner protein plays a critical role in repairing DNA. Overall, this protein helps maintain the structure and integrity of a person's DNA.
Ku is a dimeric protein complex that binds to DNA double-strand break ends and is required for the non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) pathway of DNA repair. Ku is evolutionarily conserved from bacteria to humans. The ancestral bacterial Ku is a homodimer. Eukaryotic Ku is a heterodimer of two polypeptides, Ku70 (XRCC6) and Ku80 (XRCC5), so named because the molecular weight of the human Ku proteins is around 70 kDa and 80 kDa. The two Ku subunits form a basket-shaped structure that threads onto the DNA end. Once bound, Ku can slide down the DNA strand, allowing more Ku molecules to thread onto the end. In higher eukaryotes, Ku forms a complex with the DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (DNA-PKcs) to form the full DNA-dependent protein kinase, DNA-PK. Ku is thought to function as a molecular scaffold to which other proteins involved in NHEJ can bind, orienting the double-strand break for ligation.
Serine/threonine-protein kinase ATR, also known as ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related protein (ATR) or FRAP-related protein 1 (FRP1), is an enzyme that, in humans, is encoded by the ATR gene. It is a large kinase of about 301.66 kDa. ATR belongs to the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-related kinase protein family. ATR is activated in response to single strand breaks, and works with ATM to ensure genome integrity.
DNA repair protein XRCC4 (hXRCC4) also known as X-ray repair cross-complementing protein 4 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the XRCC4 gene. XRCC4 is also expressed in many other animals, fungi and plants. hXRCC4 is one of several core proteins involved in the non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) pathway to repair DNA double strand breaks (DSBs).
High-mobility group AT-hook 2, also known as HMGA2, is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the HMGA2 gene.
Checkpoint kinase 1, commonly referred to as Chk1, is a serine/threonine-specific protein kinase that, in humans, is encoded by the CHEK1 gene. Chk1 coordinates the DNA damage response (DDR) and cell cycle checkpoint response. Activation of Chk1 results in the initiation of cell cycle checkpoints, cell cycle arrest, DNA repair and cell death to prevent damaged cells from progressing through the cell cycle.
Ku70 is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the XRCC6 gene.
Ku80 is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the XRCC5 gene. Together, Ku70 and Ku80 make up the Ku heterodimer, which binds to DNA double-strand break ends and is required for the non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) pathway of DNA repair. It is also required for V(D)J recombination, which utilizes the NHEJ pathway to promote antigen diversity in the mammalian immune system.
DNA excision repair protein ERCC-1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ERCC1 gene. Together with ERCC4, ERCC1 forms the ERCC1-XPF enzyme complex that participates in DNA repair and DNA recombination.
DNA polymerase delta catalytic subunit(DPOD1) is an enzyme that is encoded in the human by the POLD1 gene, in the DNA polymerase delta complex. DPOD1 is responsible for synthesizing the lagging strand of DNA, and has also been implicated in some activities at the leading strand. The DPOD1 subunit encodes both DNA polymerizing and exonuclease domains, which provide the protein an important second function in proofreading to ensure replication accuracy during DNA synthesis, and in a number of types of replication-linked DNA repair following DNA damage.
The MRN complex is a protein complex consisting of Mre11, Rad50 and Nbs1. In eukaryotes, the MRN/X complex plays an important role in the initial processing of double-strand DNA breaks prior to repair by homologous recombination or non-homologous end joining. The MRN complex binds avidly to double-strand breaks both in vitro and in vivo and may serve to tether broken ends prior to repair by non-homologous end joining or to initiate DNA end resection prior to repair by homologous recombination. The MRN complex also participates in activating the checkpoint kinase ATM in response to DNA damage. Production of short single-strand oligonucleotides by Mre11 endonuclease activity has been implicated in ATM activation by the MRN complex.
Genome instability refers to a high frequency of mutations within the genome of a cellular lineage. These mutations can include changes in nucleic acid sequences, chromosomal rearrangements or aneuploidy. Genome instability does occur in bacteria. In multicellular organisms genome instability is central to carcinogenesis, and in humans it is also a factor in some neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or the neuromuscular disease myotonic dystrophy.
DNA ligase 3 also DNA ligase III, is an enzyme that, in humans, is encoded by the LIG3 gene. LIG3 encodes ATP-dependent DNA ligases that seal interruptions in the phosphodiester backbone of duplex DNA.
Cancer epigenetics is the study of epigenetic modifications to the DNA of cancer cells that do not involve a change in the nucleotide sequence, but instead involve a change in the way the genetic code is expressed. Epigenetic mechanisms are necessary to maintain normal sequences of tissue specific gene expression and are crucial for normal development. They may be just as important, if not even more important, than genetic mutations in a cell's transformation to cancer. The disturbance of epigenetic processes in cancers, can lead to a loss of expression of genes that occurs about 10 times more frequently by transcription silencing than by mutations. As Vogelstein et al. points out, in a colorectal cancer there are usually about 3 to 6 driver mutations and 33 to 66 hitchhiker or passenger mutations. However, in colon tumors compared to adjacent normal-appearing colonic mucosa, there are about 600 to 800 heavily methylated CpG islands in the promoters of genes in the tumors while these CpG islands are not methylated in the adjacent mucosa. Manipulation of epigenetic alterations holds great promise for cancer prevention, detection, and therapy. In different types of cancer, a variety of epigenetic mechanisms can be perturbed, such as the silencing of tumor suppressor genes and activation of oncogenes by altered CpG island methylation patterns, histone modifications, and dysregulation of DNA binding proteins. There are several medications which have epigenetic impact, that are now used in a number of these diseases.
DNA polymerase alpha catalytic subunit is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the POLA1 gene.
A double-strand break repair model refers to the various models of pathways that cells undertake to repair double strand-breaks (DSB). DSB repair is an important cellular process, as the accumulation of unrepaired DSB could lead to chromosomal rearrangements, tumorigenesis or even cell death. In human cells, there are two main DSB repair mechanisms: Homologous recombination (HR) and non-homologous end joining (NHEJ). HR relies on undamaged template DNA as reference to repair the DSB, resulting in the restoration of the original sequence. NHEJ modifies and ligates the damaged ends regardless of homology. In terms of DSB repair pathway choice, most mammalian cells appear to favor NHEJ rather than HR. This is because the employment of HR may lead to gene deletion or amplification in cells which contains repetitive sequences. In terms of repair models in the cell cycle, HR is only possible during the S and G2 phases, while NHEJ can occur throughout whole process. These repair pathways are all regulated by the overarching DNA damage response mechanism. Besides HR and NHEJ, there are also other repair models which exists in cells. Some are categorized under HR, such as synthesis-dependent strain annealing, break-induced replication, and single-strand annealing; while others are an entirely alternate repair model, namely, the pathway microhomology-mediated end joining (MMEJ).