Structural model of full-length human Ku70-Ku80 heterodimer and its recognition of DNA and DNA-PKcs

EMBO Rep. 2007 Jan;8(1):56-62. doi: 10.1038/sj.embor.7400847. Epub 2006 Dec 8.

Abstract

Recognition of DNA double-strand breaks during non-homologous end joining is carried out by the Ku70-Ku80 protein, a 150 kDa heterodimer that recruits the DNA repair kinase DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (DNA-PKcs) to the lesion. The atomic structure of a truncated Ku70-Ku80 was determined; however, the subunit-specific carboxy-terminal domain of Ku80--essential for binding to DNA-PKcs--was determined only in isolation, and the C-terminal domain of Ku70 was not resolved in its DNA-bound conformation. Both regions are conserved and mediate protein-protein interactions specific to mammals. Here, we reconstruct the three-dimensional structure of the human full-length Ku70-Ku80 dimer at 25 A resolution, alone and in complex with DNA, by using single-particle electron microscopy. We map the C-terminal regions of both subunits, and their conformational changes after DNA and DNA-PKcs binding to define a molecular model of the functions of these domains during DNA repair in the context of full-length Ku70-Ku80 protein.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Antigens, Nuclear / chemistry*
  • Antigens, Nuclear / ultrastructure*
  • DNA / chemistry*
  • DNA-Activated Protein Kinase / chemistry*
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / chemistry*
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / ultrastructure*
  • Dimerization
  • Humans
  • Ku Autoantigen
  • Microscopy, Electron
  • Protein Conformation
  • Protein Interaction Mapping

Substances

  • Antigens, Nuclear
  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • DNA
  • DNA-Activated Protein Kinase
  • Xrcc6 protein, human
  • Ku Autoantigen