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ATM controls meiotic double-strand-break formation

Abstract

In many organisms, developmentally programmed double-strand breaks (DSBs) formed by the SPO11 transesterase initiate meiotic recombination, which promotes pairing and segregation of homologous chromosomes1. Because every chromosome must receive a minimum number of DSBs, attention has focused on factors that support DSB formation2. However, improperly repaired DSBs can cause meiotic arrest or mutation3,4; thus, having too many DSBs is probably as deleterious as having too few. Only a small fraction of SPO11 protein ever makes a DSB in yeast or mouse5 and SPO11 and its accessory factors remain abundant long after most DSB formation ceases1, implying the existence of mechanisms that restrain SPO11 activity to limit DSB numbers. Here we report that the number of meiotic DSBs in mouse is controlled by ATM, a kinase activated by DNA damage to trigger checkpoint signalling and promote DSB repair. Levels of SPO11–oligonucleotide complexes, by-products of meiotic DSB formation, are elevated at least tenfold in spermatocytes lacking ATM. Moreover, Atm mutation renders SPO11–oligonucleotide levels sensitive to genetic manipulations that modulate SPO11 protein levels. We propose that ATM restrains SPO11 via a negative feedback loop in which kinase activation by DSBs suppresses further DSB formation. Our findings explain previously puzzling phenotypes of Atm-null mice and provide a molecular basis for the gonadal dysgenesis observed in ataxia telangiectasia, the human syndrome caused by ATM deficiency.

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Figure 1: SPO11 activity and expression in the absence of ATM.
Figure 2: SPO11–oligonucleotide complexes from juvenile mice.
Figure 3: Spo11 gene dosage modulates SPO11–oligonucleotide complex levels in Atm- deficient spermatocytes.
Figure 4: Roles of ATM in DSB formation and processing.

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Acknowledgements

We thank M. Neale for discussions, R. Cha and K. McKim for sharing data before publication, and M. Hwang for assistance in monoclonal antibody development. This work was supported by NIH grants HD040916 and HD053855 (to M.J. and S.K.) and GM058673 (to S.K.). J.P. was supported in part by a Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Fellowship and F.C. by a Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA (F32 HD51392). S.K. is an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

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J.L., J.P. and F.C. performed experiments. M.P.T. generated the anti-SPO11 monoclonal hybridoma line. J.L., M.J., and S.K. wrote the paper.

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Correspondence to Maria Jasin or Scott Keeney.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Lange, J., Pan, J., Cole, F. et al. ATM controls meiotic double-strand-break formation. Nature 479, 237–240 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature10508

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