DNA-dependent protein kinase mediates V(D)J recombination via RAG2 phosphorylation

J Biochem Mol Biol. 2007 May 31;40(3):432-8. doi: 10.5483/bmbrep.2007.40.3.432.

Abstract

V(D)J recombination, a site-specific gene rearrangement process occurring during the lymphocyte development, begins with DNA double strand breaks by two recombination activating gene products (RAG1/2) and finishes with the repair process by several proteins including DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK). In this report, we found that RAG2 was specifically phosphorylated by DNA-PK at the 365(th) serine residue, and this phosphorylated RAG2 affected the V(D)J recombination activity in cells in the GFP expression-based assay. While the V(D)J recombination activity between wild-type RAG2 and mutant S365A RAG2 in the assay using a signal joint substrate was undistinguishable in DNA-PK deficient cells (M059J), the activity with wild-type RAG2 was largely increased in DNA-PK proficient cells (M059K) in comparison with mutant RAG2, suggesting that RAG2 phosphorylation by DNA-PK plays a crucial role in the signal joint formation during V(D)J recombination.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Binding Sites / genetics
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • DNA-Activated Protein Kinase / genetics
  • DNA-Activated Protein Kinase / metabolism*
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / genetics
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / metabolism*
  • Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel
  • Flow Cytometry
  • Gene Rearrangement
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins / genetics
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Mutation
  • Nuclear Proteins / genetics
  • Nuclear Proteins / metabolism*
  • Phosphorylation
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins / genetics
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins / metabolism
  • Recombination, Genetic*
  • Sequence Alignment
  • Transfection
  • VDJ Recombinases / metabolism

Substances

  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • RAG2 protein, human
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins
  • DNA-Activated Protein Kinase
  • VDJ Recombinases