Publications | Discovery and Characterization of ZUFSP/ZUP1, a Distinct Deubiquitinase Class Important for Genome Stability

Deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) are important regulators of ubiquitin signaling. Here, we report the discovery of deubiquitinating activity in ZUFSP/C6orf113. High-resolution crystal structures of ZUFSP in complex with ubiquitin reveal several distinctive features of ubiquitin recognition and catalysis. Our analyses reveal that ZUFSP is a novel DUB with no homology to any known DUBs, leading us to classify ZUFSP as the seventh DUB family. Intriguingly, the minimal catalytic domain does not cleave polyubiquitin. We identify two ubiquitin binding domains in ZUFSP: a ZHA (ZUFSP helical arm) that binds to the distal ubiquitin and an atypical UBZ domain in ZUFSP that binds to polyubiquitin. Importantly, both domains are essential for ZUFSP to selectively cleave K63-linked polyubiquitin. We show that ZUFSPlocalizes to DNA lesions, where it plays an important role in genome stability pathways, functioning to prevent spontaneous DNA damage and also promote cellular survival in response to exogenous DNA damage.

Principal Investigator(s):

Author(s):
Dominika Kwasna, Syed Arif Abdul Rehman, Jayaprakash Natarajan, Stephen Matthews, Ross Madden, Virginia De Cesare, Simone Weidlich, Satpal Virdee, Ivan Ahel, Ian Gibbs-Seymour, Yogesh Kulathu

PubMed:
29576527
Citation:
Dominika Kwasna, Syed Arif Abdul Rehman, Jayaprakash Natarajan, Stephen Matthews, Ross Madden, Virginia De Cesare, Simone Weidlich, Satpal Virdee, Ivan Ahel, Ian Gibbs-Seymour, Yogesh Kulathu
Mol Cell.
2018
70(1)
150-164.e6
PMID: 29576527