2. Academic Validation
  3. Protein UFMylation regulates early events during ribosomal DNA-damage response

Protein UFMylation regulates early events during ribosomal DNA-damage response

  • Cell Rep. 2024 Sep 24;43(9):114738. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114738.
Pudchalaluck Panichnantakul 1,  Lisbeth C Aguilar 2,  Evan Daynard 2,  Mackenzie Guest 2,  Colten Peters 3,  Jackie Vogel 3,  Marlene Oeffinger 4
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal, Center for Genetic and Neurological Diseases, 110 avenue des Pins Ouest, Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada; Division of Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montréal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada.
  • 2 Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal, Center for Genetic and Neurological Diseases, 110 avenue des Pins Ouest, Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada.
  • 3 Department of Biology, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 1B1, Canada.
  • 4 Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal, Center for Genetic and Neurological Diseases, 110 avenue des Pins Ouest, Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada; Division of Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montréal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada; Département de biochimie et médicine moléculaire, Faculté de Médicine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada. Electronic address: marlene.oeffinger@ircm.qc.ca.
PMID: 39277864 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114738
Abstract

The highly repetitive and transcriptionally active ribosomal DNA (rDNA) genes are exceedingly susceptible to genotoxic stress. Induction of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) in rDNA repeats is associated with ataxia-telangiectasia-mutated (ATM)-dependent rDNA silencing and nucleolar reorganization where rDNA is segregated into nucleolar caps. However, the regulatory events underlying this response remain elusive. Here, we identify protein UFMylation as essential for rDNA-damage response in human cells. We further show the only ubiquitin-fold modifier 1 (UFM1)-E3 Ligase UFL1 and its binding partner DDRGK1 localize to nucleolar caps upon rDNA damage and that UFL1 loss impairs ATM activation and rDNA transcriptional silencing, leading to reduced rDNA segregation. Moreover, analysis of nuclear and nucleolar UFMylation targets in response to DSB induction further identifies key DNA-repair factors including ATM, in addition to chromatin and actin network regulators. Taken together, our data provide evidence of an essential role for UFMylation in orchestrating rDNA DSB repair.

Keywords

ATRX; CP: Molecular biology; H3.3 deposition; HIRA; HUSH complex; TCOF1; UFMylation; nucleolar segregation; rDNA damage.

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