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Yannick Doyon

Publications and source records attributed to Yannick Doyon.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

ING tumor suppressor proteins are critical regulators of chromatin acetylation required for genome expression and perpetuation.

Members of the ING family of tumor suppressors regulate cell cycle progression, apoptosis, and DNA repair as important cofactors of p53. ING1 and ING3 are stable components of the mSin3A HDAC and Tip60/NuA4 HAT complexes, respectively. We now report the purification of the three remaining human ING proteins. While ING2 is in an HDAC complex similar to ING1, ING4 associates with the HBO1 HAT required for normal progression through S phase and the majority of histone H4 acetylation in vivo. ING5 fractionates with two distinct complexes containing HBO1 or nucleosomal H3-specific MOZ/MORF HATs. These ING5 HAT complexes interact with the MCM helicase and are essential for DNA replication to occur during S phase. Our data also indicate that ING subunits are crucial for acetylation of chromatin substrates. Since INGs, HBO1, and MOZ/MORF contribute to oncogenic transformation, the multisubunit assemblies characterized here underscore the critical role of epigenetic regulation in cancer development.

Acetylation↗

The highly conserved and multifunctional NuA4 HAT complex.

Histone acetyltransferase complexes have been shown to be key regulators of gene expression. Among these, the NuA4 complex, first characterized in yeast, stands out as it controls multiple key nuclear functions in eukaryotic cells. Many subunits of this protein assembly have been directly linked to global and targeted acetylation of histone H4 tails in vivo, regulation of transcription, cell-cycle progression as well as to the process of DNA repair. Recent studies presented here have established its remarkable structural conservation from yeast to human cells and contributed to the understanding of its diverse functions.

Acetyltransferases↗

Structural and functional conservation of the NuA4 histone acetyltransferase complex from yeast to humans.

The NuA4 histone acetyltransferase (HAT) multisubunit complex is responsible for acetylation of histone H4 and H2A N-terminal tails in yeast. Its catalytic component, Esa1, is essential for cell cycle progression, gene-specific regulation and has been implicated in DNA repair. Almost all NuA4 subunits have clear homologues in higher eukaryotes, suggesting that the complex is conserved throughout evolution to metazoans. We demonstrate here that NuA4 complexes are indeed present in human cells. Tip60 and its splice variant Tip60b/PLIP were purified as stable HAT complexes associated with identical polypeptides, with 11 of the 12 proteins being homologs of yeast NuA4 subunits. This indicates a highly conserved subunit composition and the identified human proteins underline the role of NuA4 in the control of mammalian cell proliferation. ING3, a member of the ING family of growth regulators, links NuA4 to p53 function which we confirmed in vivo. Proteins specific to the human NuA4 complexes include ruvB-like helicases and a bromodomain-containing subunit linked to ligand-dependent transcription activation by the thyroid hormone receptor. We also demonstrate that subunits MRG15 and DMAP1 are present in distinct protein complexes harboring histone deacetylase and SWI2-related ATPase activities, respectively. Finally, analogous to yeast, a recombinant trimeric complex formed by Tip60, EPC1, and ING3 is sufficient to reconstitute robust nucleosomal HAT activity in vitro. In conclusion, the NuA4 HAT complex is highly conserved in eukaryotes, in which it plays primary roles in transcription, cellular response to DNA damage, and cell cycle control.

Acetylation↗

Effect of C-domain N-glycosylation and deletion on rat pancreatic alpha-amylase secretion and activity.

Even though all animal alpha-amylases include glycosylation sequons (Asn-Xaa-Thr/Ser) in their sequences, amylases purified from natural sources are not quantitatively glycosylated. When wild-type rat pancreatic alpha-amylase, which contains two glycosylation sequons, was expressed in animal cell lines the protein displayed a very low rate of glycosylation (approx. 2%), even after Brefeldin A treatment to increase the contact with the glycosylation machinery. Site-directed mutagenesis of the first glycosylation sequon (Asn(410)-->Gln) resulted in 90% of the protein being glycosylated at the second glycosylation sequon (Asn(459)). Mutation of the second sequon completely inhibited glycosylation. In order to ascertain if the interference in the glycosylation of Asn(459) that was eliminated by the Asn(410)-->Gln mutation could be due to the position of the asparagine residue in the Cys(448)-Cys(460) disulphide bridge, these cysteine residues were mutated to serine residues. The resulting mutant was found to be 100% glycosylated. All mutants with mutations in the C-domain had specific activities identical to that of the wild-type enzyme, indicating that enzymic activity is independent of the structure and modification of the C-terminal domain. To further test the independence of the C-domain with respect to the two N-terminal domains of the protein, which harbour the catalytic site, the last seven of the ten beta\beta-strands that make up the beta-sandwich configuration of the domain were deleted. The truncated protein was not secreted from cells and all enzyme activity was destroyed. These observations show that Asn(459) is the only site that can be glycosylated in wild-type amylase, and confirm the relative independence of the C-terminal domain of alpha-amylase with respect to enzyme activity. In addition, they also establish that the C-terminal domain is absolutely essential for the correct post-translational folding of the enzyme that is responsible for its activity and allows for its secretion.

Animals↗