Biology subjects

Brandao, H. B.

Publications and source records attributed to Brandao, H. B..

10 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Replisomes restrict SMC-mediated DNA-loop extrusion in vivo

Structural maintenance of chromosomes (SMC) complexes organize genomes by extruding DNA loops, while replisomes duplicate entire chromosomes. These essential molecular machines must collide frequently in every cell cycle, yet how such collisions are resolved in vivo remains poorly understood. Taking advantage of the ability to load SMC complexes at defined sites in the Bacillus subtilis genome, we engineered head-on and head-to-tail collisions between SMC complexes and the replisome. Replisome progression was monitored by marker frequency analysis, and SMC translocation was monitored by time-resolved ChIP-seq and Hi-C. We found that SMC complexes do not impede replisome progression. By contrast, replisomes restrict SMC translocation regardless of collision orientations. Combining experimental data with simulations, we determined that SMC complexes are blocked by the replisome and then released from the chromosome. Occasionally, SMC complexes can bypass the replisome and continue translocating. Our findings establish that the replisome is a barrier to SMC-mediated DNA-loop extrusion in vivo, with implications for processes such as chromosome segregation, DNA repair, and gene regulation that require dynamic chromosome organization in all organisms.

molecular biology↗

bioRxiv2023

Organization and replicon interactions within the highly segmented genome of Borrelia burgdorferi

Borrelia burgdorferi, a causative agent of Lyme disease, contains the most segmented bacterial genome known to date, with one linear chromosome and over twenty plasmids. How this unusually complex genome is organized, and whether and how the different replicons interact are unclear. We recently demonstrated that B. burgdorferi is polyploid and that the copies of the chromosome and plasmids are regularly spaced in each cell, which is critical for faithful segregation of the genome to daughter cells. Regular spacing of the chromosome is controlled by two separate partitioning systems that involve the protein pairs ParA/ParZ and ParB/SMC. Here, using chromosome conformation capture (Hi-C), we characterized the organization of the B. burgdorferi genome and the interactions between the replicons. We uncovered that although the linear chromosome lacks contacts between the two replication arms, the two telomeres are in frequent contact. Moreover, several plasmids specifically interact with the chromosome oriC region, and a subset of plasmids interact with each other more than with others. We found that SMC and the SMC-like MksB protein mediate long-range interactions on the chromosome, but they minimally affect plasmid-chromosome or plasmid-plasmid interactions. Finally, we found that disruption of the two partition systems leads to chromosome restructuring, correlating with the mis-positioning of chromosome oriC. Altogether, this study revealed the conformation of a complex genome and analyzed the contribution of the partition systems and SMC family proteins to this organization. This work expands the understanding of the organization and maintenance of multipartite bacterial genomes.

molecular biology↗

bioRxiv2022

Transcription shapes 3D chromatin organization by interacting with loop-extruding cohesin complexes

Cohesin folds mammalian interphase chromosomes by extruding the chromatin fiber into numerous loops. "Loop extrusion" can be impeded by chromatin-bound factors, such as CTCF, which generates characteristic and functional chromatin organization patterns. It has been proposed that transcription relocalizes or interferes with cohesin, and that active promoters are cohesin loading sites. However, the effects of transcription on cohesin have not been reconciled with observations of active extrusion by cohesin. To determine how transcription modulates extrusion, we studied mouse cells in which we could alter cohesin abundance, dynamics, and localization by genetic knockouts of the cohesin regulators CTCF and Wapl. Through Hi-C experiments, we discovered intricate, cohesin-dependent contact patterns near active genes. Chromatin organization around active genes exhibited hallmarks of interactions between transcribing RNA polymerases (RNAPs) and extruding cohesins. These observations could be reproduced by polymer simulations in which RNAPs were "moving barriers" to extrusion that obstructed, slowed, and pushed cohesins. The simulations predicted that preferential loading of cohesin at promoters is inconsistent with our experimental data. Additional ChIP-seq experiments showed that the putative cohesin loader Nipbl is not predominantly enriched at promoters. Therefore, we propose that cohesin is not preferentially loaded at promoters and that the barrier function of RNAP accounts for cohesin accumulation at active promoters. Altogether, we find that RNAP is a new type of extrusion barrier that is not stationary, but rather, translocates and relocalizes cohesin. Loop extrusion and transcription might interact to dynamically generate and maintain gene interactions with regulatory elements and shape functional genomic organization. Significance StatementLoop extrusion by cohesin is critical to folding the mammalian genome into loops. Extrusion can be halted by CTCF proteins bound at specific genomic loci, which generates chromosomal domains and can regulate gene expression. However, the process of transcription itself can modulate cohesin, thus refolding chromosomes near active genes. Through experiments and simulations, we show that transcribing RNA polymerases (RNAPs) act as "moving barriers" to loop-extruding cohesins. Unlike stationary CTCF barriers, RNAPs actively relocalize cohesins, which generates characteristic patterns of spatial organization around active genes. Our model predicts that the barrier function of RNAP can explain why cohesin accumulates at active promoters and provides a mechanism for clustering active promoters. Through transcription-extrusion interactions, cells might dynamically regulate functional genomic contacts.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2021

Dynamics of CTCF and cohesin mediated chromatin looping revealed by live-cell imaging

Animal genomes are folded into loops and topologically associating domains (TADs) by CTCF and cohesin, but whether these loops are stable or dynamic is unknown. Here, we directly visualize chromatin looping at the Fbn2 TAD in mouse embryonic stem cells using super-resolution live-cell imaging and quantify looping dynamics by Bayesian inference. Our results are consistent with cohesin-mediated loop extrusion in cells, and with CTCF both stopping and stabilizing cohesin. Surprisingly, the Fbn2 loop is both rare and dynamic, with a looped fraction of ~3-6.5% and a median loop lifetime of ~10-30 minutes. Instead of a stable loop, our results establish a highly dynamic view of TADs and loops where the Fbn2 TAD exists predominantly in a partially extruded conformation. This dynamic and quantitative view of TADs may facilitate a mechanistic understanding of their functions.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2021

DNA double-strand break end synapsis by DNA loop extrusion

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) occur every cell cycle and must be efficiently repaired. Non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) is the dominant pathway for DSB repair in G1-phase. The first step of NHEJ is to bring the two DSB ends back into proximity (synapsis). However, although synapsis is generally assumed to occur through passive diffusion, we show here that passive diffusion is unlikely to be consistent with the speed and efficiency of NHEJ observed in cells. Instead, we hypothesize that DNA loop extrusion facilitates synapsis. By combining experimentally constrained simulations and theory, we show that the simplest loop extrusion model only modestly facilitates synapsis. Instead, a loop extrusion model with targeted loading of loop extruding factors (LEFs), a small portion of long-lived LEFs as well as LEF stabilization by boundary elements and DSB ends achieves fast synapsis with near 100% efficiency. We propose that loop extrusion plays an underappreciated role in DSB repair.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2020

MCM complexes are barriers that restrict cohesin-mediated loop extrusion

Eukaryotic genomes are compacted into loops and topologically associating domains (TADs), which contribute to transcription, recombination and genomic stability. Cohesin extrudes DNA into loops that are thought to lengthen until CTCF boundaries are encountered. Little is known about whether loop extrusion is impeded by DNA-bound macromolecular machines. We demonstrate that the replicative helicase MCM is a barrier that restricts loop extrusion in G1 phase. Single-nucleus Hi-C of one-cell embryos revealed that MCM loading reduces CTCF-anchored loops and decreases TAD boundary insulation, suggesting loop extrusion is impeded before reaching CTCF. Single-molecule imaging shows that MCMs are physical barriers that frequently constrain cohesin translocation in vitro. Simulations are consistent with MCMs as abundant, random barriers. We conclude that distinct loop extrusion barriers contribute to shaping 3D genomes. One Sentence SummaryMCM complexes are obstacles that impede the formation of CTCF-anchored loops.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2019

Chromosome organization by one-sided and two-sided loop extrusion

SMC complexes, such as condensin or cohesin, organize chromatin throughout the cell cycle by a process known as loop extrusion. SMC complexes reel in DNA, extruding and progressively growing DNA loops. Modeling assuming two-sided loop extrusion reproduces key features of chromatin organization across different organisms. In vitro single-molecule experiments confirmed that yeast condensins extrude loops, however, they remain anchored to their loading sites and extrude loops in a "one-sided" manner. We therefore simulate one-sided loop extrusion to investigate whether "one-sided" complexes can compact mitotic chromosomes, organize interphase domains, and juxtapose bacterial chromosomal arms, as can be done by "two-sided" loop extruders. While one-sided loop extrusion cannot reproduce these phenomena, variants can recapitulate in vivo observations. We predict that SMC complexes in vivo constitute effectively two-sided motors or exhibit biased loading and propose relevant experiments. Our work suggests that loop extrusion is a viable general mechanism of chromatin organization. Impact statementWe reconcile seemingly contradictory findings of single-molecule and in vivo experiments on a major mechanism of chromosome organization by computationally investigating mechanisms of loop extrusion that are consistent with both.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2019

RNA polymerases as moving barriers to condensin loop extrusion

To separate replicated sister chromatids during mitosis, eukaryotes and prokaryotes have structural maintenance of chromosome (SMC) condensin complexes that were recently shown to organize chromosomes by a process known as DNA loop extrusion. In rapidly dividing bacterial cells, the process of separating sister chromatids occurs concomitantly with ongoing transcription. How transcription interferes with the condensin loop extrusion process is largely unexplored, but recent experiments show that sites of high transcription may directionally affect condensin loop extrusion. We quantitatively investigate different mechanisms of interaction between condensin and elongating RNA polymerases (RNAP) and find that RNAPs are likely steric barriers that can push and interact with condensins. Supported by new Hi-C and ChIP-seq data for cells after transcription inhibition and RNAP degradation, we argue that translocating condensins must bypass transcribing RNAPs within ~2 seconds of an encounter at rRNA genes and within ~10 seconds at protein coding genes. Thus, while individual RNAPs have little effect on the progress of loop extrusion, long, highly transcribed operons can significantly impede the extrusion process. Our data and quantitative models further suggest that bacterial condensin loop extrusion occurs by two independent, uncoupled motor activities; the motors translocate on DNA in opposing directions and function together to enlarge chromosomal loops, each independently bypassing steric barriers in their path. Our study provides a quantitative link between transcription and 3D genome organization and proposes a mechanism of interactions between SMC complexes and elongating transcription machinery relevant from bacteria to higher eukaryotes.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2017

A Mechanism of Cohesin-Dependent Loop Extrusion Organizes Zygotic Genome Architecture

Fertilization triggers assembly of higher-order chromatin structure from a naive genome to generate a totipotent embryo. Chromatin loops and domains are detected in mouse zygotes by single-nucleus Hi-C (snHi-C) but not bulk Hi-C. We resolve this discrepancy by investigating whether a mechanism of cohesin-dependent loop extrusion generates zygotic chromatin conformations. Using snHi-C of mouse knockout embryos, we demonstrate that the zygotic genome folds into loops and domains that depend on Scc1-cohesin and are regulated in size by Wapl. Remarkably, we discovered distinct effects on maternal and paternal chromatin loop sizes, likely reflecting loop extrusion dynamics and epigenetic reprogramming. Polymer simulations based on snHi-C are consistent with a model where cohesin locally compacts chromatin and thus restricts inter-chromosomal interactions by active loop extrusion, whose processivity is controlled by Wapl. Our simulations and experimental data provide evidence that cohesin-dependent loop extrusion organizes mammalian genomes over multiple scales from the one-cell embryo onwards.\n\nHighlightsO_LIZygotic genomes are organized into cohesin-dependent chromatin loops and TADs\nC_LIO_LILoop extrusion leads to different loop strengths in maternal and paternal genomes\nC_LIO_LICohesin restricts inter-chromosomal interactions by altering chromosome surface area\nC_LIO_LILoop extrusion organizes chromatin at multiple genomic scales\nC_LI

genomics↗

bioRxiv2017

Heterogeneity and Intrinsic Variation in Spatial Genome Organization

The genome is hierarchically organized in 3D space and its architecture is altered in differentiation, development and disease. Some of the general principles that determine global 3D genome organization have been established. However, the extent and nature of cell-to-cell and cell-intrinsic variability in genome architecture are poorly characterized. Here, we systematically probe the heterogeneity in genome organization in human fibroblasts by combining high-resolution Hi-C datasets and high-throughput genome imaging. Optical mapping of several hundred genome interaction pairs at the single cell level demonstrates low steady-state frequencies of colocalization in the population and independent behavior of individual alleles in single nuclei. Association frequencies are determined by genomic distance, higher-order chromatin architecture and chromatin environment. These observations reveal extensive variability and heterogeneity in genome organization at the level of single cells and alleles and they demonstrate the coexistence of a broad spectrum of chromatin and genome conformations in a cell population.

molecular biology↗