EcoRI cleavage and methylation of DNAs containing modified pyrimidines in the recogintion sequence.

The effects of substituents at position 5 in the pyrimidine ring of a variety of phage DNAs upon EcoRI endonuclease and methylase activities have been examined. The replacement of cytidine in DNA with glucosylated hydroxymethylcytidine confers resistance to cleavage by the EcoRI endonuclease. Substitution of thymidine in DNA by hydroxy-methyluridine(a change in the methyl at position 5 of thymidine for a hydroxymethyl) lowers the maximal velocity of endonucleolytic cleavage 20-fold, but has no detectable effect upon the Km. Substitution of thymidine in DNA by uridine (a change in the methyl at position 5 of thymidine for a hydrogen atom) has no effect upon either the maximal velocity or the Km. The effect of these modifications upon EcoRI methylase activity was markedly different. DNA containing glucosylated hydroxymethylcytidine is methylated as well as normal DNA. DNA containing uridine or hydroxy-methyluridine, in place of thymidine, is much more poorly methylated than normal DNA. These different sensitivities of the EcoRI endonuclease and methylase to modifications in the pyrimidine rings of DNA suggest there are significant differences in the manner by which these enzymes recognize and bind to the canonical EcoRI sequence.