Previous analyses of both Thermus aquaticus MutS homodimer and Saccharomyces cerevisiae Msh2-Msh6 heterodimer have revealed that the subunits in these protein complexes bind and hydrolyze ATP asymmetrically, emulating their asymmetric DNA binding properties. In the MutS homodimer, one subunit (S1) binds ATP with high affinity and hydrolyzes it rapidly, while the other subunit (S2) binds ATP wit...

OBJECTIVE To determine and compare the prevalence of MSH6 (a mismatch repair gene) mutations in a cohort of families with Hereditary Non-Polyposis Colorectal Cancer (HNPCC), and in an unselected cohort of endometrial cancer patients (EC). DESIGN Two patient cohorts participated in the study. A cohort of HNPCC families who were known to the Regional Medical Genetics department, and an unselect...

Transient kinetic analysis is indispensable for understanding the workings of biological macromolecules, since this approach yields mechanistic information including active site concentrations and intrinsic rate constants that govern macromolecular function. In case of enzymes, for example, transient or pre-steady state measurements identify and characterize individual events in the reaction pa...

Germline mutations in mismatch repair (MMR) genes, predominantly in MLH1 and MSH2, are responsible for hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), a cancer-susceptibility syndrome with high penetrance. In addition, MSH6 mutations have been reported to account for about 10% of all germline mismatch repair (MMR) gene mutations in HNPCC patients, and have been associated with a later age of...

Somatic hypermutation and class switch recombination (CSR) contribute to the somatic diversification of antibodies. It has been shown that MutS homologue (Msh)6 (in conjunction with Msh2) but not Msh3 is involved in generating A/T base substitutions in somatic hypermutation. However, their roles in CSR have not yet been reported. Here we show that Msh6(-)(/)(-) mice have a decrease in CSR, wher...

Objective Although the utility of immunohistochemistry (IHC) for assessing mismatch repair (MMR) protein expression has been demonstrated in solid tumors including primary prostate cancer (PCa), its utility has not been assessed in castration-resistant PCa (CRPC). Methods Tissue microarrays were constructed from 127 radical prostatectomies and 155 CRPC metastases from 50 patients. MMR (MLH1, ...

BACKGROUND Lynch syndrome (LS) is associated with a high risk for colorectal cancer (CRC) and extracolonic malignancies, such as endometrial carcinoma (EC). The risk is dependent of the affected mismatch repair gene. The aim of the present study was to calculate the cumulative risk of LS related cancers in proven MLH1, MSH2 and MSH6 mutation carriers. METHODS The studypopulation consisted out...

Mismatch repair of AID-generated dU:G mispairs is critical for class switch recombination (CSR) and somatic hypermutation (SHM) in B cells. The generation of a previously unavailable Msh2(-/-)Msh6(-/-) mouse has for the first time allowed us to examine the impact of the complete loss of MutSalpha on lymphomagenesis, CSR and SHM. The onset of T cell lymphomas and the survival of Msh2(-/-)Msh6(-/...

The MSH6 gene in collaboration with MSH2, MLH1, MSH3, PMS1 and PMS2 genes is involved in one of the systems repairing the errors that arise during DNA replication, called the “methyl directed mismatch repair” system [1-3]. hMLH1 and hMSH2 mutations give rise most frequently to the classical Lynch syndrome (HNPCC) [4-6]. hMSH6 mutations often occur in clinically less typical HNPCC families, that...

Lynch syndrome is an autosomal dominant cancer predisposition syndrome which is caused by a germline mutation in one of four genes, MLH1, MSH2, MSH6 or PMS2. Individuals with a germline mutation in one of these genes are at increased lifetime risk of colon, endometrial, ovarian, small intestine, renal pelvis and ureter. Less commonly patients may develop biliary tract cancers, gastric and pancr...