Mu insertions are repaired by the double-strand break repair pathway of Escherichia coli.

TitleMu insertions are repaired by the double-strand break repair pathway of Escherichia coli.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2012
AuthorsJang S, Sandler SJ, Harshey RM
JournalPLoS Genet
Volume8
Issue4
Paginatione1002642
Date Published2012 Apr
ISSN1553-7404
Abstract

Mu is both a transposable element and a temperate bacteriophage. During lytic growth, it amplifies its genome by replicative transposition. During infection, it integrates into the Escherichia coli chromosome through a mechanism not requiring extensive DNA replication. In the latter pathway, the transposition intermediate is repaired by transposase-mediated resecting of the 5' flaps attached to the ends of the incoming Mu genome, followed by filling the remaining 5 bp gaps at each end of the Mu insertion. It is widely assumed that the gaps are repaired by a gap-filling host polymerase. Using the E. coli Keio Collection to screen for mutants defective in recovery of stable Mu insertions, we show in this study that the gaps are repaired by the machinery responsible for the repair of double-strand breaks in E. coli-the replication restart proteins PriA-DnaT and homologous recombination proteins RecABC. We discuss alternate models for recombinational repair of the Mu gaps.

DOI10.1371/journal.pgen.1002642
Alternate JournalPLoS Genet.
PubMed ID22511883