DNA ligases play an essential role in DNA replication and repair. Herein, we report the cloning and biochemical characterization of DNA ligase I from the protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica (EhDNAligI). EhDNAligI is an ATP-dependent DNA ligase of 685 amino acids with 35% identity to human DNA ligase I. This report shows that heterologous expressed EhDNAligI is able to perform the three conserved steps of a DNA ligation reaction: adenylation, binding to a 5'-phosphorylated nicked DNA substrate and sealing of the nick. EhDNAligI is strongly inhibited by NaCl and displays optimal activity at pH 7.5. EhDNAligI uses Mn2+ or Mg2+ as metal cofactors and ATP as nucleotide cofactor. EhDNAligI has a nicked DNA binding constant of 6.6microM and follows Michaelis-Menten steady-state kinetics with a K(m) ATP of 64nM and a k(cat) of 2.4min(-1). Accordingly to its properties as a family I DNA ligase, EhDNAligI is able to ligate a RNA strand upstream of a nucleic acid nick, but not in the downstream or the template position. We propose that EhDNAligI is involved in sealing DNA nicks during lagging strand synthesis and may have a role in base excision repair in E. histolytica.
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