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Mol Cell Biol, May 1998, p. 2758-2767, Vol. 18, No. 5
Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's
Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115
Received 3 December 1997/Returned for modification 4 January
1998/Accepted 7 February 1998
In a two-hybrid screen for proteins that interact with human PCNA,
we identified and cloned a human protein (hCdc18) homologous to yeast
CDC6/Cdc18 and human Orc1. Unlike yeast, in which the rapid and total
destruction of CDC6/Cdc18 protein in S phase is a central feature of
DNA replication, the total level of the human protein is unchanged
throughout the cell cycle. Epitope-tagged protein is nuclear in
G1 and cytoplasmic in S-phase cells, suggesting that DNA
replication may be regulated by either the translocation of this
protein between the nucleus and the cytoplasm or the selective degradation of the protein in the nucleus. Mutation of the only nuclear
localization signal of this protein does not alter its nuclear
localization, implying that the protein is translocated to the nucleus
through its association with other nuclear proteins. Rapid elimination
of the nuclear pool of this protein after the onset of DNA replication
and its association with human Orc1 protein and cyclin-cdks supports
its identification as human CDC6/Cdc18 protein.
The recent identification of
multiple eukaryotic proteins that bind directly or indirectly to
origins of DNA replication has set the stage for a thorough exploration
of how DNA replication is initiated and regulated in eukaryotes.
Central to the process is the origin recognition complex (ORC), a tight
complex of six polypeptides identified initially in Saccharomyces
cerevisiae because it binds in a sequence-specific manner to
origins of DNA replication and is involved in the initiation of
chromosomal DNA replication (1, 3, 27). Homologs of three of
the subunits of the ORC (Orc1, Orc2, and Orc4) have been identified in
humans (16, 32) and in other eukaryotes (14, 17, 22,
28).
An additional molecule, CDC6 in S. cerevisiae and Cdc18 in
Schizosaccharomyces pombe, is essential for the onset of DNA
replication and known to associate physically with the ORC and cdc2
kinase (2, 12, 15, 18, 22, 24, 37). The yeast CDC6/Cdc18 proteins decrease in concentration as cells proceed through S phase,
with overexpression of Cdc18 in S. pombe resulting in the rereplication of DNA in G2 (29). The
Xenopus CDC6/Cdc18 and ORC are required for DNA replication
and for the loading of the minichromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins
onto the chromatin (6, 11, 13, 19, 34, 35). Collectively, a
model has emerged that emphasizes the central role of CDC6/Cdc18 in
cooperating with ORC and MCM proteins to form a prereplication complex
at origins of DNA replication in G1. Once replication
begins, the concordant removal of CDC6/Cdc18 prevents the loading of
MCM proteins onto the origin-bound ORC in G2, thereby
preventing rereplication of DNA. After mitosis, synthesis of new
CDC6/Cdc18 protein allows the loading of MCM proteins on the chromatin,
perhaps by forming a bridge between the chromatin-bound ORC and the MCM
proteins (4). The prereplication initiation complex thus
formed in G1 is ready to initiate DNA replication upon the
activation of S-phase-promoting factors like cyclin-cdk's and CDC7
kinase.
We identified and cloned a human protein that is structurally
homologous to yeast CDC6/Cdc18 and Orc1 proteins by virtue of its
interaction with human PCNA in a two-hybrid assay. A similar human
protein was independently identified by Williams and coworkers because
of its sequence homology with Orc1 and CDC6/Cdc18 and was named human
CDC6 protein (36). Biochemical experiments with this protein
reported here confirm that it is the putative human CDC6/Cdc18 but also
indicate that, although the overall model of replication regulation is
conserved between humans and yeasts, some aspects are different in
detail.
Yeast two-hybrid screen.
For the yeast two-hybrid screen,
the open reading frame encoding human PCNA was cloned by PCR and
inserted into the pAS2 vector to create a fusion protein with the GAL4
DNA-binding domain (7). The interacting plasmid from a
B-cell cDNA library (human PCNA interacting protein 4; HPB4) had a
1.2-kb cDNA insertion encoding a protein fragment whose sequence was
closely related to Cdc18 from S. pombe and to human Orc1
(hOrc1).
Cloning of hCdc18 gene.
Using HPB4 as a probe, we isolated a
1.6-kb cDNA from a human fetal brain cDNA library. This 1.6-kb cDNA
overlapped with the HPB4 gene and extended the 5' terminus by 600 bp.
The extreme 5' terminus of the human Cdc18 (hCdc18) gene was found by
employing 5' rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) with human HeLa
Marathon-Ready cDNA (Clontech), which extended the 5' end of the Cdc18
clone by 300 bases. There is an in-frame stop codon 150 bp 5' of the first methionine. The 3' end of the hCdc18 gene cDNA came from the
expressed sequence tag (EST) clone T85849 (GenBank), which had a
150-base overlap with the 3' end of the HPB4 gene sequence, and extends
the nucleotide sequence by 1,000 bases and the protein sequence by five
amino acids. The hCdc18 gene cDNA was constructed by combining the RACE
PCR product, HPB4 gene insert, and T85849 EST clone and contains an
open reading frame flanked at both ends by stop codons. The predicted
protein consists of 560 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of
62.7 kDa.
RNA analysis.
Total RNA was extracted from HeLa cells as
described previously (10), and 10 µg was subjected to
Northern blot analysis at 42°C. The probes used were a 1.2-kb cDNA
fragment from the HPB4 gene (nucleotides 520 to 1750 of the hCdc18
gene), a 2.4-kb cDNA fragment from pKG28 (the entire open reading frame
encoding hOrc1 [16]), a 1.3-kb
HindIII-PstI cDNA fragment (encoding
glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase), and cDNA fragments
containing the entire open reading frames encoding cyclins E, A, B, and
hOrc2 (16).
Plasmid construction and protein purification.
Full-length
hCdc18 (amino acids 1 to 560) and its fragments (amino acids 1 to 179, 179 to 407, and 407 to 560) were generated by PCR with appropriate
pairs of oligonucleotide primers and Pfu polymerase
(Stratagene) and cloned into BamHI and SalI sites
of pGEX vector (Pharmacia) to generate glutathione
S-transferase (GST) fusion proteins (9).
0270-7306/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Human CDC6/Cdc18 Associates with Orc1 and
Cyclin-cdk and Is Selectively Eliminated from the Nucleus at the
Onset of S Phase


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ABSTRACT
Top
Abstract
Introduction
Materials & Methods
Results
Discussion
References
![]()
INTRODUCTION
Top
Abstract
Introduction
Materials & Methods
Results
Discussion
References
![]()
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Top
Abstract
Introduction
Materials & Methods
Results
Discussion
References
Cell synchronization. Exponentially growing HeLa or U2OS cells were arrested for 24 h with 10 mM hydroxyurea at early S phase, with 40 ng of nocodazole/ml at M phase, or with 5 µg of aphidicholin/ml at the G1-S transition point. The cell populations were checked by propidium iodide staining of the DNA and by flow cytometry. For serum starvation and release experiments with NIH 3T3, CV1, and WI38 cells, 60%-confluent cultures were placed in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM) containing 0.5% serum for 48 h and split 1:2 into DMEM with 10% calf serum.
Pull-down assay. Affinity chromatography on glutathione beads coated with various GST fusion proteins (pull-down assay) was done as described previously (8, 9). Incubation of MCM proteins with GST- or GST-Cdc18-coated beads was carried out at 37°C for 10 min followed by 4°C for 1 h. The unbound proteins were washed off with A7.4 buffer containing 100 mM NaCl.
Antibodies and immunoprecipitations. Antibody against hCdc18 was raised against a GST protein fused to a fragment of hCdc18 protein from amino acids 145 to 326. The antibody was affinity purified on the antigen to confirm the immunoblot experiments. Antibody against hOrc1 was raised against a recombinant His6-tagged fragment of Orc1 from amino acids 647 to 861 created by cloning the 1.1-kb EcoRI-HindIII fragment of EST clone 121313 (GenBank) into pRSETB (Invitrogen). Antibody against hOrc2 was raised against a recombinant His6-tagged fragment of Orc2 from amino acids 27 to 577 created by cloning the XbaI-SacI Orc2 fragment into the PvuII site of pRSETC. Immunoblotting of cell lysates (20 µg of protein) was carried out with the antibodies at the following dilutions: anti-hCdc18, 1:5,000; anti-hOrc1, 1:15,000; anti-hOrc2, 1:2,000; and 9E10 anti-Myc monoclonal antibody ascites, 1:2,000.
Immunofluorescence. U2OS cells were transfected with pAHP-Cdc18 or with pA3M-Cdc18. The cells were fixed in 3% formaldehyde containing 2% sucrose at room temperature for 10 min, washed twice with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), and permeabilized in Triton solution (3% bovine serum albumin, 0.5% Triton X-100 in PBS) for 5 min. After being washed with PBS, the cells were incubated for 20 min at 37°C with anti-hemagglutinin (HA) antibody (12CA5) in hybridoma culture supernatant diluted 1:100, anti-Myc monoclonal antibody in mouse ascites diluted 1:100, anti-p21 rabbit polyclonal antibody (Santa Cruz) diluted 1:100, or human autoimmune antibody to PCNA. Cells were then washed three times with PBS and incubated with the secondary antibody (fluorescein isothiocyanate [FITC]-conjugated goat anti-mouse immunoglobulin G [IgG], rhodamine-conjugated goat anti-rabbit IgG, or anti-human IgG [Jackson Laboratory]). After being washed three times with PBS, the cells were stained briefly with DAPI (4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole) and photographed under a fluorescent microscope.
Preparation of HeLa whole-cell extract and column chromatography. HeLa whole-cell extract was prepared according to the procedure of Manley et al. (25). All steps were performed at 4°C. Briefly, a HeLa cell pellet was suspended and incubated on ice for 20 min in 4 volumes of buffer WCE I (10 mM Tris-acetate [pH 7.9], 1 mM EDTA, 5 mM dithiothreitol [DTT], and 1 mM phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride [PMSF]). The cells were lysed in a Dounce homogenizer with eight strokes and then mixed with another 4 volumes of buffer WCE II (50 mM Tris acetate [pH 7.9], 10 mM Mg acetate, 25% sucrose, 50% glycerol, 2 mM DTT, and 1 mM PMSF). Ammonium sulfate was added to a final concentration of 0.4 M, and after stirring for 30 min, the extract was centrifuged at 40,000 rpm in a Ti45 rotor (Beckman) for 3 h. The supernatant was subjected to 65% ammonium sulfate precipitation, after which the pellet was suspended in 20 mM Tris acetate (pH 7.9) containing 1 mM EDTA, 0.15 M potassium acetate, 20% glycerol, 2 mM DTT, and 1 mM PMSF (buffer H), and the suspension was dialyzed against the same buffer. Starting from 3 × 1010 cells, 3.0 g of protein was recovered. The protein extract was applied to a Bio-Rex 70 (Bio-Rad) column (bed volume, 65 ml) equilibrated in buffer H, and the bound proteins were eluted with 0.3, 0.6, and 1.5 M potassium acetate in buffer H. The 0.3 M fraction containing Orc1 and Cdc18 (total protein, 280 mg) was dialyzed and further fractionated over a DEAE-cellulose column (bed volume, 25 ml) equilibrated in buffer H containing 0.2 M potassium acetate. The proteins were eluted with 0.35 and 1.0 M potassium acetate in buffer H. A portion of 0.2 M flowthrough (total protein recovery, 88 mg) containing 3.5 mg of protein was subjected to Mono-S HR 5/5 fast protein liquid chromatography (Pharmacia) column in 0.2 M KCl containing buffer and eluted with a gradient of 0.2 to 0.6 M KCl containing buffer. The flowthrough containing Orc1 and Cdc18 was further characterized by Superose 12 gel filtration chromatography.
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RESULTS |
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Cloning and sequence analysis of hCdc18. While screening for proteins which interact with the human DNA replication factor PCNA in a two-hybrid assay, we discovered an interacting molecule whose sequence was related to S. pombe Cdc18 (33% identical, 53% similar), S. cerevisiae CDC6 (32% identical, 54% similar), and hOrc1 (28% identical and 52% similar) (Fig. 1). The theoretical mass of the protein is similar to that of yeast CDC6/Cdc18 (60 kDa) and different from that of the Orc1 proteins (100 to 120 kDa). The homology with the Orc1-Cdc18 family is most marked in the middle one-third of the protein, which contains a nucleotide binding motif with the putative P and A loops (20) together with four other conserved boxes unique to this family of proteins (2, 16). The N-terminal one-third has four potential sites of phosphorylation by cyclin-cdk's (serines at positions 45, 54, 74, and 106) and a putative bipartite nuclear localization sequence (NLS) at positions 80 to 95 (33) (Fig. 1B).
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Although hCdc18 transcripts are increased at the G1-S transition, total Cdc18 protein levels are uniform throughout the cell cycle. One of the characteristic properties of yeast CDC6/Cdc18 is that the highest levels of the mRNA and protein are obtained in the G1 phase of the cell cycle, with almost all RNA and protein disappearing in the S and G2 phases. Northern blot analysis of total RNA from HeLa cells at various stages in the cell cycle indicates that with hCdc18, the mRNA level peaks at the onset of S phase (simultaneous with the expression of cyclin E) and diminishes at the onset of mitosis (when cyclin B is expressed) (Fig. 2A). This pattern is repeated for hOrc1 but not hOrc2. Consistent with this observation, cells arrested with hydroxyurea (in S phase) have significantly more Cdc18, Orc1, and cyclin E mRNA than cells arrested with nocodazole (in M phase) (Fig. 2B). Such variation of mammalian Orc1 and Cdc18 mRNA during the cell cycle agrees with observations in the yeasts. The cell cycle stage-specific regulation of mammalian Orc1 and mammalian CDC6/Cdc18 mRNA was reported by others to be due to the activity of E2F transcription factor and was postulated to be important for linking the initiation of S phase with activation of E2F (30, 36).
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Subcellular localization of hCdc18 protein changes during cell cycle. The previous report on human CDC6/Cdc18 (36) noted that the protein associated with the nuclear fraction was transiently increased in G1 and early S and decreased thereafter. The authors concluded that the human CDC6/Cdc18 protein is regulated by cell cycle stage-specific degradation similar to that noted in the yeasts. Since we did not observe a change in the abundance of total cellular protein throughout the cell cycle, one explanation could be that the subcellular localization of CDC6/Cdc18 protein changed during the cell cycle, with increased nuclear protein seen in G1 and early S. To test this possibility, the subcellular localization of Cdc18 protein was determined by immunofluorescence.
Because the anti-Cdc18 antibody did not immunostain cells, we expressed Cdc18 with an N-terminal HA epitope tag by transient transfection of human U2OS osteosarcoma cells and immunostained the cells with anti-HA antibody (12CA5). The results were confirmed with Cdc18 fused to a C-terminal myc epitope. Of 100 asynchronous cells expressing epitope-tagged Cdc18, 20 to 40% expressed the protein in the cytoplasm and 60 to 80% expressed it in the nucleus in different experiments (Fig. 3A and B). Thirty percent of the cells were in G1, as judged by positive staining for nuclear p21 (CIP1) (23). In all of these G1 cells, HA-hCdc18 protein was detected in the nucleus (Fig. 3A). All cells where HA-hCdc18 protein was found in the cytoplasm were negative for p21 (Fig. 3A), implying that HA-hCdc18 protein was seen in the cytoplasm in some phase other than G1.
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The putative NLS of CDC6/Cdc18 protein is not necessary for nuclear localization. KK(X)10KGRR matches a consensus bipartite (NLS) near the N terminus of CDC6/Cdc18 protein and is conserved in Xenopus CDC6 protein (Fig. 1) (13, 33). Because epitope-tagged hCdc18 protein was easily detected in the nucleus, we tested whether its localization was dependent on this putative NLS by mutating the sequence to KK(X)10KGGG and expressing the protein with an N-terminal HA epitope tag (Fig. 3D). The mutant protein was still detected in the nucleus, implying that the bipartite NLS of CDC6/Cdc18 is not required for nuclear localization of Cdc18 protein. This result also suggests that the nuclear localization of Cdc18 protein could be mediated by its association with other cellular proteins that have their own NLSs.
hCdc18 protein associates with free Orc1 protein. Further similarity with yeast CDC6/Cdc18 was noted upon examination of the association of human Cdc18 with other components in the replication initiation complex. Yeast CDC6/Cdc18 interacts with the yeast ORC. GST-hCdc18 protein associated well with hOrc1 protein produced by in vitro transcription-translation (Fig. 4A). Studies with the deletion mutants of hCdc18 revealed that either the N- or C-terminal one-third of the protein could independently associate with Orc1 protein. The middle one-third of the protein, containing the domain with maximum homology to Orc1, was incapable of mediating any of these associations. Although homo-oligomerization of CDC6/Cdc18 protein has not been reported in any species, we observed very robust association between GST-Cdc18 protein and S35-labeled Cdc18 protein produced by in vitro transcription-translation. Consistent with the sequence similarities between Cdc18 protein and Orc1 protein, the same regions of Cdc18 protein were sufficient to interact with Cdc18 protein as with Orc1 protein. Despite the discovery of human CDC6/Cdc18 by a two-hybrid screen with PCNA, neither radiolabeled PCNA produced by in vitro transcription-translation nor recombinant purified PCNA produced in bacteria associated with GST-Cdc18, suggesting that the association in the two-hybrid assay may be mediated by unidentified yeast proteins.
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Association of hCdc18 protein with cyclin-cdk2 and its inhibition by a factor present in mitotic cell extracts. Since Cdc18 protein and cdc2 associate with the ORC in S. pombe cells (22) and a direct interaction has also been reported between S. cerevisiae CDC6 and CDC28 (15, 31), we tested whether human Cdc18 protein associated with any of the cyclin-cdk's. Cyclins D1, D2, D3, E, A, and B produced by in vitro transcription-translation in a rabbit reticulocyte lysate associated well with GST-Cdc18 protein produced in bacteria (Fig. 5A; compare interaction of cyclins with the positive control, p21). All interactions were stable in the presence of 50 µg of ethidium bromide/ml, showing that the associations are not mediated through nucleic acids (21). cdk2 produced by in vitro transcription-translation did not form a complex with rabbit cyclins (9) and did not associate with bacterially produced GST-Cdc18 protein (Fig. 5A). cdk2 from S-phase extracts of HeLa cells associated with GST-Cdc18 protein (Fig. 5B, lane 2), presumably because of the associated cellular cyclins. The cyclin-cdk's phosphorylated the N-terminal one-third of Cdc18 protein in vitro (data not shown).
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In vivo association of hCdc18 with Orc1 and cyclin-cdk2. To demonstrate the association of Cdc18 protein with cyclin-cdk2 and with Orc1 protein in vivo, a plasmid expressing GST-Cdc18 protein was transiently transfected into human kidney 293T cells (Fig. 6). Negative controls included cells transfected with plasmids expressing GST or GST fused to a short protein expressed from the antisense strand of the Cdc18 gene (GST-Cdc18rev). Selective precipitation of GST-Cdc18 protein from the cell extracts showed coprecipitation of cyclin A, cdk2, and Orc1 protein, confirming that the cyclin-cdk2-Cdc18 protein and Orc1-Cdc18 protein associations are observed in cells. The addition of ethidium bromide (which intercalates into DNA) (21) did not affect the interactions (Fig. 6, lane 3), implying that the interactions are not mediated through DNA. Orc2 protein was not present in these precipitates (data not shown), confirming that Orc1-Cdc18 protein heterodimers are more stable in extracts of asynchronous cells than an ORC containing both Orc1 and Orc2 proteins.
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DISCUSSION |
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We have identified a human CDC6/Cdc18 protein and shown that it associates directly with Orc1 protein and cyclin-cdk's. The protein is homologous to S. pombe Cdc18, S. cerevisiae CDC6, and human Orc1 proteins. The similarity in size of the protein to yeast CDC6/Cdc18 protein and the direct physical association with Orc1 protein and with cyclin-cdk's in vitro and in vivo support the hypothesis that this protein is the human equivalent of CDC6/Cdc18 protein. In the S. cerevisiae genome there are only two genes that belong to the Orc1-Cdc18 gene family. However, human cells may contain a larger family of Orc1-Cdc18 genes, and a better candidate for hCdc18 may emerge in the future. This caveat aside, we call the protein described in this paper hCdc18 protein.
Although in the yeasts the CDC6/Cdc18 protein is destroyed as cells enter S phase, the situation appears slightly different in humans. Williams and coworkers noted an absence of nuclear hCdc18 protein in serum-starved human WI38 fibroblasts and an increase followed by a decrease of nuclear hCdc18 protein as the cells passed through S phase. This result was postulated to be consistent with the rapid degradation of hCdc18 protein in G2-M (36). However, they also noted the absence of any changes in nuclear Cdc18 protein levels as transformed HeLa cells passed through the cell cycle. In our experiments, which included several controls and were done in both transformed and untransformed cells (including WI38 fibroblasts), the level of total hCdc18 protein does not change significantly during the cell cycle. The protein is also abundantly present in G0 (serum-starved) fibroblasts. Therefore, we postulate that the regulation of hCdc18 protein during the cell cycle is not achieved via changes in total protein level. The constant amount of Cdc18 protein despite the periodic expression of the RNA could be due either to the protein being long-lived or to an increase in the degradation of the protein to compensate for increased synthesis in S phase. An hCdc18 protein isoform of slightly reduced mobility was present in the cell extracts, and although considerably less abundant than the major protein band, increased in G1 relative to G0. Therefore, another possibility is that Williams and coworkers detected only this rare slower-moving isoform with their antibody (which was raised against an N-terminal portion of the protein) while we detected this and the more abundant hCdc18 protein with our antibody.
Changes in the subcellular localization of hCdc18 protein throughout the cell cycle provide a better explanation of the apparent discrepancy between the two reports. Recombinant epitope-tagged hCdc18 protein was seen in G1 nuclei along with a dramatic change in its localization to the cytoplasm in S phase. This could be either because hCdc18 protein is exported out of the nucleus into the cytoplasm in S phase or because the protein is selectively degraded in the nucleus while newly synthesized protein is denied entry into the nucleus and so accumulates in the cytoplasm. There is a parallel between our observations and that with Xenopus Cdc18 protein, which was displaced from the chromatin to perinuclear membrane vesicles during DNA replication (13). Human cells may regulate the functional pool of hCdc18 protein by selectively limiting its concentration in the nucleus once replication is initiated. The next round of replication then becomes dependent on the reentry of hCdc18 protein into the nucleus sometime before the next S phase.
We have also shown that the putative nuclear localization sequence in the N-terminal one-third of hCdc18 protein is not necessary for its nuclear localization. There are no other candidates for an NLS in the sequence of Cdc18 protein, making it likely that the protein is imported into the nucleus by its association with an unknown cellular factor which has its own NLS. Endogenous Cdc18 or Orc1 protein could be a candidate for the unknown cellular factor that chaperones the ectopic Cdc18 protein into the nucleus. Regulation of this association through the stages of the cell cycle may regulate the subcellular localization of Cdc18 protein.
Consistent with the role of Cdc18 protein as an adapter that recruits other DNA replication proteins to the chromatin-bound ORC (4, 13), we observed that the protein associates in vivo and in vitro with one of the components of the ORC, hOrc1 protein. In budding yeast, six polypeptides form a stable ORC which is resistant to high salt levels (2). Similar complexes were identified in other eukaryotes (14, 17, 22, 28). Transfection of epitope-tagged derivatives of hOrc1 and hOrc2 suggested that at least some hOrc1 and hOrc2 proteins are associated with each other (16). However, a human equivalent of the ORC has not yet been identified and our study suggests that endogenous hOrc1 protein is more stably associated with hCdc18 protein than with hOrc2 protein in human cell extracts. We cannot rule out the possibility that the lysis conditions disrupted a preexisting hOrc1-hOrc2 protein complex, that a small fraction of hOrc1 and hOrc2 proteins are associated with each other, or that the hOrc1-hOrc2 protein association is strictly cell cycle regulated. However, under similar lysis conditions a detectable fraction of hOrc2 protein forms a stable complex with the third identified subunit of the human ORC, hOrc4 protein (32). Overall, the association of hCdc18 protein with hOrc1 protein appears more stable than that of hOrc2 protein with hOrc1 protein. It is possible that the interaction of the Cdc18-Orc1 protein heterodimer with hOrc2 protein (and the rest of the ORC) can be a regulated step during the human cell cycle.
The association of hCdc18 protein with cyclin-cdk2 is also consistent with the role of the former as an adaptor protein. Cyclin-cdk2, an activator of S phase, has been localized to replication foci (5), but how it is recruited there is unclear. The association of the kinase with hCdc18 protein provides an attractive mechanism by which cyclin-cdk's can be recruited to prereplication complexes in G1. The mitotic inhibitor of this association could be important for preventing the inappropriate recruitment of the kinase in M phase. Elsasser and coworkers reported a similar mitotic inhibitor of the association of CDC6 with Clb-CDC28 kinases in S. cerevisiae and provided evidence that this inhibitor is Sic1, a protein that associates with the Clb-CDC28 kinase (15). At this moment we do not know the identity of the mitotic inhibitor of hCdc18-cyclin-cdk association.
In summary, the interprotein associations reported here strongly suggest that the protein we have identified is hCdc18 protein. The constant level of the protein throughout the cell cycle is difficult to reconcile with the existing model of how global degradation of human CDC6/Cdc18 protein regulates its activity. Instead, the results point to two other mechanisms by which hCdc18 protein activity could be regulated to limit the formation of prereplication initiation complexes to once per cell cycle in G1. First, Cdc18 protein is exported from the nucleus (or selectively degraded in the nucleus while new protein accumulates in the cytoplasm) after origins have fired in S phase, necessitating a reentry step later in the cell cycle before the nucleus can replicate again. Second, if the interaction between Cdc18 protein and the S phase-promoting factor cyclin-cdk is essential for the initiation of DNA replication, the mitotic inhibitor of this interaction could prevent a premature interaction until the appropriate time in G1. Future work will be directed towards testing these hypotheses.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS |
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We thank B. Stillman for the hOrc1 and hOrc2 clones and B. J. Mayer for the EBG plasmid.
This work was supported by grant CA60499 from the National Cancer Institute and fellowship (J.C.) and career development (A.D.) awards from the U.S. Armed Forces Medical Research Command. P.S. was supported by a grant from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
P.S. and J.C. contributed equally to the work.
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FOOTNOTES |
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* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis St., Boston, MA 02115. Phone: (617) 278-0468. Fax: (617) 732-7449. E-mail: adutta{at}bustoff.bwh.harvard.edu.
Present address: Cancer Biology Division, Dana-Farber Cancer
Institute, Boston, MA 02115.
Present address: Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc., Cambridge,
MA 02139.
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