The human DNA topoisomerase I mutant Gly717Asp: Higher religation rate is not always associated with camptothecin resistance

DNA topoisomerases are key enzyme responsible for modulating the topological state of the DNA by breaking and rejoining of DNA strand. Characterization of a Gly717Asp mutation in the human topoisomerase was performed using several catalytic assays. The mutant enzyme was shown to have comparable cleavage and fast religation rate as compared to the wild-type protein. Addition of the anticancer drug camptothecin significantly reduced the religation step. The simulative approaches and analysis of the cleavage/religation equilibrium indicate that the mutation is able to modify the architecture of the drug binding site, increasing the persistence of the drug for the enzyme DNA covalent complex. Taken together these results indicate that the structure modification of the drug binding site is the key reason for the increasing CPT persistence and furthermore provide the possibility for new anti-cancer drug discovery.