Spindler Jessica, Pandolfo Francesca, Koch Anna Eva, Piccirillo Priscilla, Bihler Johanna, Morgenstern Marcel, Buschbaum Sandra, Coon Joshua, Hänsel-Hertsch Robert, Mehta Kavi P M, Panier Stephanie
Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, Cologne, Germany.
Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
bioRxiv. 2025 May 29:2025.05.28.656696. doi: 10.1101/2025.05.28.656696.
Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres (ALT) is a telomerase-independent telomere maintenance mechanism that enables cancer cells to gain unlimited replicative capacity. ALT relies on recombination-mediated telomere elongation and is promoted by telomeric replication stress. However, ALT requires strict regulation, as excessive replication stress or recombination are cytotoxic. Central to ALT is the RecQ helicase BLM, which regulates telomeric replication stress and promotes telomere recombination and DNA synthesis. Despite its key role in the ALT pathway, BLM must be tightly regulated to prevent deleterious outcomes. Here, we identify SLX4IP as a key suppressor of BLM-driven replication stress at ALT telomeres. Loss of SLX4IP in ALT-positive cells leads to BLM-dependent telomeric replication stress and impaired replication fork progression. Mechanistically, SLX4IP limits the unwinding of unligated Okazaki fragments by BLM on the lagging strand during telomere replication. This reduces the formation of toxic 5' DNA flaps and prevents hyperactivation of ATR signalling and deleterious recombination levels. We also uncover a synthetic lethal interaction between SLX4IP and FANCM, an ATPase/translocase that is a known regulator of BLM at telomeric replication forks in ALT cells. We demonstrate that SLX4IP and FANCM act in parallel to restrain BLM activity, thereby maintaining the balance of replication stress and recombination that is necessary for productive ALT. These findings reveal a vulnerability in ALT-positive cancers lacking SLX4IP and establish SLX4IP as a potential biomarker for therapeutic strategies targeting FANCM.
端粒替代延长(ALT)是一种不依赖端粒酶的端粒维持机制,它使癌细胞能够获得无限的复制能力。ALT依赖于重组介导的端粒延长,并由端粒复制应激促进。然而,ALT需要严格调控,因为过度的复制应激或重组具有细胞毒性。ALT的核心是RecQ解旋酶BLM,它调节端粒复制应激并促进端粒重组和DNA合成。尽管BLM在ALT途径中起关键作用,但必须对其进行严格调控以防止有害后果。在这里,我们确定SLX4IP是ALT端粒处BLM驱动的复制应激的关键抑制因子。ALT阳性细胞中SLX4IP的缺失导致BLM依赖性端粒复制应激和复制叉进展受损。从机制上讲,SLX4IP在端粒复制过程中限制了BLM在后随链上对未连接的冈崎片段的解旋。这减少了有毒的5' DNA瓣的形成,并防止了ATR信号的过度激活和有害的重组水平。我们还发现了SLX4IP与FANCM之间的合成致死相互作用,FANCM是一种ATP酶/转位酶,是ALT细胞中端粒复制叉处BLM的已知调节因子。我们证明SLX4IP和FANCM并行作用以抑制BLM活性,从而维持有效的ALT所需的复制应激和重组的平衡。这些发现揭示了缺乏SLX4IP的ALT阳性癌症的脆弱性,并将SLX4IP确立为靶向FANCM的治疗策略的潜在生物标志物。
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