Abstract
DNA replication initiation, which starts at specific chromosomal site (known as replication origins), is the key regulatory stage of chromosome replication. Archaea, the third domain of life, use a single or multiple origin(s) to initiate replication of their circular chromosomes. The basic structure of replication origins is conserved among archaea, typically including an AT-rich unwinding region flanked by several conserved repeats (origin recognition box, ORB) that are located adjacent to a replication initiator gene. Both the ORB sequence and the adjacent initiator gene are considerably diverse among different replication origins, while in silico and genetic analyses have indicated the specificity between the initiator genes and their cognate origins. These replicator–initiator pairings are reminiscent of the oriC-dnaA system in bacteria, and a model for the negative regulation of origin activity by a downstream cluster of ORB elements has been recently proposed in haloarchaea. Moreover, comparative genomic analyses have revealed that the mosaics of replicator-initiator pairings in archaeal chromosomes originated from the integration of extrachromosomal elements. This review summarizes the research progress in understanding of archaeal replication origins with particular focus on the utilization, control and evolution of multiple replication origins in haloarchaea.
INTRODUCTION
DNA replication is a fundamental cellular process that is functionally conserved across all three domains of life (bacteria, archaea, and eukaryote). The precise regulation of DNA replication ensures the accurate duplication of genomic information, and replication initiation is the first and most important stage of this regulation. The first model of DNA replication initiation was proposed for Escherichia coli in 1963, postulating that a trans-acting factor binds to a cis-acting site which triggers replication initiation (). In the subsequent 50 years, this “replicon model” has been demonstrated to be essentially true in all organisms, and the cis-acting site is now known as the replication origin. Bacterial chromosomes are typically replicated from a single origin, whereas the replication of eukaryotic chromosomes initiates from a number of discrete origins (). DNA replication origins have been well-defined in bacteria and unicellular eukaryotes, and relative topics are covered in a number of excellent reviews (; ; ; ; ). In contrast, focus on DNA replication origins in archaea, the third domain of life, commenced only approximately a decade ago. DNA replication origins have been mapped primarily for a few representatives of archaeal species distributed in the three main phyla, Euryarchaeota, Crenarchaeota, and Thaumarchaeota (; ; ; ; ; ; ; , ; , ). In addition, more detailed characterization has been revealed in several model systems, such as Pyrococcus species (; , ), Sulfolobus species (; ; ; ), Haloferax volcanii (; ) and Haloarcula hispanica (, ). It is now known that archaea use a single or multiple origin(s) to replicate their circular chromosomes (; ; ). The multiple origins together with their adjacent initiator genes in certain archaeal chromosomes may have arisen from the capture of extrachromosomal elements and appear to be mosaics of distinct replicator–initiator pairings (; ).
This replicator–initiator system consists of an origin region and an initiator gene (the cdc6 gene in most cases and whiP in the oriC3 of Sulfolobus species). The origin region usually has a high content of adenine and thymine residues (AT-rich) flanked by several conserved repeated motifs known as origin recognition boxes (ORBs). The initiator protein Cdc6 (also denoted Orc or Orc1/Cdc6 in other papers) shows homology to both Orc1 and Cdc6 of eukaryotes and therefore is considered to be involved in both specific recognition of the origin region and loading of the minichromosome maintenance helicase (MCM; ). Despite the conservation of the replicator-initiator structure, archaeal replication origins exhibit considerable diversity in terms of both the ORB elements within different origins and their adjacent initiator genes. The specificity of the initiator genes and their cognate origins was recently established by means of in silico and genetic analyses in Sulfolobus species () and Haloarcula hispanica (, ). The cis organization of the replication origin and the initiator gene (replicator–initiator) is reminiscent of the oriC-dnaA system in bacteria. Recently, we revealed that bacterial-like control mechanisms may be used by different replication origins in haloarchaea, and a model has been proposed for the negative regulation of oriC2 by a downstream cluster of ORB elements in Haloarcula hispanica ().
The goal of this review is to present an overview of progress made over the past decade in our understanding of DNA replication origins of archaeal genomes, including the identification (mapping), characterization and evolution of multiple replication origins on the chromosomes. We focus on the utilization and control of multiple replication origins in haloarchaea, as well as comparisons of replication origins from different archaeal species to draw the generality and evolution of multiple replication origins in archaea.
IDENTIFICATION (MAPPING) OF REPLICATION ORIGINS
Similar to bacteria, archaea have simple circular chromosomes (and also several extrachromosomal elements in some archaea); however, many archaea characterized to date harbor multiple replication origins. The approaches developed in bacteria or eukaryotes have been employed to investigate replication origins in archaea, such as GC-skew analysis (), the Z-curve method (), autonomously replicating sequence (ARS) assay (; ; ), replication initiation point mapping (RIP mapping; ), two-dimensional gel analysis (; ), and marker frequency analysis (MFA; ; ; ; ; ). DNA replication origins have been mapped in about a dozen archaeal species.
SINGLE REPLICATION ORIGIN IN Pyrococcus SPECIES
The first description of DNA replication origins of archaeal genomes was reported by . These researchers identified a single replication origin (oriC) in Pyrococcus abyssi by means of cumulative skew of GGGT, and the study found that the oriC is flanked with the only cdc6 gene and several eukaryotic-like replication genes (). The origin organization was observed to be highly conserved in two other Pyrococcus species, Pyrococcus horikoshii and Pyrococcus furiosus (). The oriC was then experimentally confirmed via two-dimensional (2D) gel analysis () and RIP mapping (), and the studies demonstrated that the oriC has several repeated sequences (now named ORBs) and is directly upstream of the cdc6 gene, reminiscent of the oriC-dnaA origin system in bacteria. Furthermore, the specific interaction of the Cdc6 protein with the oriC was detected via chromatin immunoprecipitation assays (). All of these data indicated that the circular chromosome of the Pyrococcus species is bidirectionally replicated from a bacterial mode of replication origin by eukaryotic-type machinery (Figure 1A).
FIGURE 1
THREE REPLICATION ORIGINS IN Sulfolobus SPECIES
The first example of archaeal chromosomes with multiple replication origins was the identification of three replication origins in the single chromosome of Sulfolobus species using 2D gel analysis (
MULTIPLE REPLICATION ORIGINS IN HALOARCHAEA
Haloarchaeal genomes are generally composed of multiple genetic elements (chromosome, minichromosome, and megaplasmids) with multiple Cdc6 homologs (
The first prediction of multiple DNA replication origins in haloarchaeal genomes came from Z curve method analysis of the genome of Halobacterium sp. NRC-1, which revealed two cdc6-adjacent replication origins in its chromosome (
Eleven cdc6 genes are encoded in Haloarcula hispanica, and eight of them have surrounding ORB-like elements. ARS activity assays demonstrated that only five predicted origins, oriC1-cdc6A and oriC2-cdc6E in the main chromosome, oriC6-cdc6I, and oriC7-cdc6J in the minichromosome and oriP-cdc6K in the megaplasmid (pHH400), were able to confer replication ability to a non-replicating plasmid (Figure 1C;
Five replication origins were initially identified in Haloferax volcanii using a combination of bioinformatics and genetic approaches: two within the chromosome and one each within the three megaplasmids pHV1, pHV3, and pHV4 (
MAPPING OF REPLICATION ORIGINS IN OTHER ARCHAEA
DNA replication origins have been well-defined in several bacterial model systems, and have been predicted and/or identified in more than 1300 bacterial genomes (
DISTINCT REPLICATOR-INITIATOR SYSTEMS IN ARCHAEA
The initiator protein DnaA is highly conserved in bacteria, and bacterial replication origins generally possess conserved sequence elements, DnaA boxes. In contrast, the three replication origins in Sulfolobus species differ from each other. Each of the three origins is specifically recognized by its proximally encoded initiator protein, two distinct Cdc6 proteins and WhiP (
Haloarchaeal genomes generally contain multiple cdc6 genes and replication origins. Recently, we conducted a comparison of the origin-associated Cdc6 homologs and the corresponding predicted ORB elements. Our results suggested that the replication origins from haloarchaeon are notably diverse in terms of ORB elements and their adjacent cdc6 genes, which could be sorted into distinct families. Based on this phylogenetic analysis, linkage-specificity of Cdc6 homologs and the corresponding ORB elements was proposed, suggestive of their specific interaction (
To understand the molecular mechanisms involved in the specific recognition of origins by initiators, the structures of two origin-bound Cdc6 proteins from Aeropyrum pernix (
CONTROL OF REPLICATION INITIATION AT MULTIPLE ORIGINS IN ARCHAEA
Multiple mechanisms that regulate replication initiation have been well-characterized in both bacteria and unicellular eukaryotes, and are summarized in a number of excellent reviews (
Using the Haloarcula hispanica model system, we suggested that some bacterial-like mechanisms may be employed at different replication origins in haloarchaea (
Despite the bacterial-like structure of archaeal replication origins, archaea use eukaryotic-type replication machinery (
EVOLUTION OF MULTIPLE REPLICATION ORIGINS IN ARCHAEA
Although considerable diversity of replication origins has been observed in haloarchaea, comparison analysis revealed a conserved replication origin, oriC1, which is positioned in the main chromosome of all analyzed haloarchaeal genomes (
FIGURE 2

The conserved oriC1 origin of replication in sequenced haloarchaeal genomes. The oriC1 context region was mapped as shown in the sequenced haloarchaea. The colored boxed arrows represent different genes as follows: GTP-binding protein (gbp, teal), initiator protein (cdc6, red), signal sequence peptidase (sec, yellow) and DNA-directed DNA polymerase (polA, blue). The inverted ORB elements are indicated by small triangles.
Multiple replication origins along with their adjacent cdc6 genes appear to be mosaics of distinct replicator–initiator systems. A comparison between Aeropyrum and Sulfolobus origins suggested that the capture of extrachromosomal elements accounts for replicon evolution (
PERSPECTIVES
To date, the number of archaea with mapped replication origins is still limited, which to some extent has affected us to get a panoramic view of the generality and evolution of replication origins in archaea. In addition to the mapping of replication origins, the development of prediction algorithms for replication origins in archaeal genomes and the construction of databases with these predicted origins (
In addition, the control and coordination of replication initiation at multiple origins in archaea is far less understood. The multireplicon structure of haloarchaeal genomes allows for precise control and coordination of replication initiation at multiple origins. As the chromosome and extrachromosomal elements within a haloarchaeon are generally different sizes and have different copy numbers (
Statements
Acknowledgments
This work was partially supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30925001, 31100893, 31271334).
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
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Summary
Keywords
DNA replication origin, origin recognition box, archaea, control, evolution, haloarchaea
Citation
Wu Z, Liu J, Yang H and Xiang H (2014) DNA replication origins in archaea. Front. Microbiol. 5:179. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2014.00179
Received
27 February 2014
Accepted
01 April 2014
Published
29 April 2014
Volume
5 - 2014
Edited by
Feng Gao, Tianjin University, China
Reviewed by
Jonathan H. Badger, J. Craig Venter Institute, USA; Qunxin She, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Copyright
© 2014 Wu, Liu, Yang and Xiang.
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Hua Xiang and Jingfang Liu, State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 1 Beichen West Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China e-mail: xiangh@im.ac.cn; liujf@im.ac.cn
This article was submitted to Evolutionary and Genomic Microbiology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Microbiology.
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