An in-silico study of Polymerase Epsilon catalytic subunit proteins in Arabidopsis thaliana

Abstract

Arabidopsis thaliana genome encodes two POLE2 homologs known as polymerase epsilon catalytic subunit A (POLE2A) and polymerase epsilon catalytic subunit B (POLE2B). They play a very important role in DNA repair mechanisms. In this study, bioinformatics tools were used to understand DNA repair mechanisms in A. thaliana in which POLE2A and POLE2B proteins are involved. Through interactome analysis of POLE2A and POLE2B homolog proteins in A. thaliana, their additional roles in DNA repair were explored. The most important proteins that are participating in DNA repairs,  like MSH2, MSH5, PCNA1, PCNA2, PRL, and CDC45 were identified as interactors of both POLE2A and POLE2B. The three-dimensional structure of POLE2 proteins was identified to decipher the complexity of NER, GG-NER, MMR, TFIIH, and TC-NER repair mechanisms through the identification of docking sites. The interaction complex of POLE2A and POLE2B with six proteins was confirmed and found to have a significant role in DNA repair processes and UV-B tolerance. The interactome analysis of POLE2A and POLE2B performed here once again confirms the complexity of the DNA repair mechanism in plants.