Structure of Rsrl methyltransferase, a member of the N6-adenine β class of DNA methyltransferases

Abstract

DNA methylation is important in cellular, developmental and disease processes, as well as in bacterial restriction-modification systems. Methylation of DNA at the amino groups of cytosine and adenine is a common mode of protection against restriction endonucleases afforded by the bacterial methyltransferases. The first structure of an N6-adenine methyltransferase belonging to the β class of bacterial methyltransferases is described here. The structure of M·Rsrl from Rhodobacter sphaeroides, which methylates the second adenine of the GAATTC sequence, was determined to 1.75 Å resolution using X-ray crystallography. Like other methyltransferases, the enzyme contains the methylase fold and has well-defined substrate binding pockets. The catalytic core most closely resembles the Pvull methyltransferase, a cytosine amino methyltransferase of the same β group. The larger nucleotide binding pocket observed in M·Rsrl is expected because it methylates adenine. However, the most striking difference between the Rsrl methyltransferase and the other bacterial enzymes is the structure of the putative DNA target recognition domain, which is formed in part by two helices on an extended arm of the protein on the face of the enzyme opposite the active site. This observation suggests that a dramatic conformational change or oligomerization may take place during DNA binding and methylation.