Contiguous 2,2,4-triamino-5(2H)-oxazolone obstructs DNA synthesis by DNA polymerases α, β, η, ι, κ, REV1 and Klenow Fragment exo(−), but not by DNA polymerase ζ

Guanine is the most easily oxidized of the four DNA bases, and contiguous guanines (GG) in a sequence are more readily oxidized than a single guanine in a sequence. Continued oxidation of GGs results in a contiguous oxidized guanine lesion. Two contiguous 2,5-diamino-4H-imidazol-4-ones, an oxidized form of guanine that hydrolyses to 2,2,4-triamino-5(2H)-oxazolone (Oz), are detected following the oxidation of GG. In this study, we analysed translesion synthesis (TLS) across two contiguous Oz molecules (OzOz) using Klenow Fragment exo(−) (KF exo(−)) and DNA polymerases (Pols) α, β, ζ, η, ι, κ and REV1. We found that KF exo(−) and Pols α, β, ι and REV1 inserted one nucleotide opposite the 3′ Oz of OzOz and stalled at the subsequent extension, and that Pol κ incorporated no nucleotide. Pol η only inefficiently elongated the primer up to full-length across OzOz; the synthesis of most DNA strands stalled at the 3′ or 5′ Oz of OzOz. Surprisingly, however, Pol ζ efficiently extended the primer up to full-length across OzOz, unlike the other DNA polymerases, but catalysed error-prone nucleotide incorporation. We therefore believe that Pol ζ is required for efficient TLS of OzOz. These results show that OzOz obstructs DNA synthesis by DNA polymerases except Pol ζ.