Rif1 S-acylation mediates DNA double-strand break repair at the inner nuclear membrane

Gabriele A Fontana (1, 2) , Daniel Hess (1) , Julia K Reinert (1, 3) , Stefano Mattarocci (4) , Benoît Falquet (1, 3) , Dominique Klein (1) , David Shore (4) , Nicolas H Thomä (1) , Ulrich Rass (1, 5)

1 FMI - Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research
2 ETH Zürich - Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule - Swiss Federal Institute of Technology [Zürich]
3 Unibas - Université de Bâle = University of Basel = Basel Universität
4 UNIGE - Université de Genève = University of Geneva
5 University of Sussex

Rif1 is involved in telomere homeostasis, DNA replication timing, and DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair pathway choice from yeast to human. The molecular mechanisms that enable Rif1 to fulfill its diverse roles remain to be determined. Here, we demonstrate that Rif1 is S-acylated within its conserved N-terminal domain at cysteine residues C466 and C473 by the DHHC family palmitoyl acyltransferase Pfa4. Rif1 S-acylation facilitates the accumulation of Rif1 at DSBs, the attenuation of DNA end-resection, and DSB repair by non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ). These findings identify S-acylation as a posttranslational modification regulating DNA repair. S-acylated Rif1 mounts a localized DNA-damage response proximal to the inner nuclear membrane, revealing a mechanism of compartmentalized DSB repair pathway choice by sequestration of a fatty acylated repair factor at the inner nuclear membrane.

Mots clés: Nuclear envelope; Non-homologous-end joining; Post-translational modifications

Domaines: Biochimie, Biologie Moléculaire

Gabriele A Fontana, Daniel Hess, Julia K Reinert, Stefano Mattarocci, Benoît Falquet, et al.. Rif1 S-acylation mediates DNA double-strand break repair at the inner nuclear membrane. Nature Communications, 2019, 10, pp.2535. ⟨10.1038/s41467-019-10349-z⟩. ⟨hal-02165367⟩