Topoisomerase I Associates Specifically with Simian Virus 40 Large-T-Antigen Double Hexamer–Origin Complexes

Topoisomerase I (topo I) is required for releasing torsional stress during simian virus 40 (SV40) DNA replication. Recently, it has been demonstrated that topo I participates in initiation of replication as well as in elongation. Although T antigen and topo I can bind to one another in vitro, there is no direct evidence that topo I is a component of the replication initiation complex. We demonstrate in this report that topo I associates with T-antigen double hexamers bound to SV40 origin DNA (TDH ) but not to single hexamers. This association has the same nucleotide and DNA requirements as those for the formation of double hexamers on DNA. Interestingly, topo I prefers to bind to fully formed TDH complexes over other oligomerized forms of T antigen associated with the origin. High ratios of topo I to origin DNA destabilize TDH . The partial unwinding of a small-circular-DNA substrate is dependent on the presence of both T antigen and topo I but is inhibited at high topo I concentrations. Competition experiments with a topo I-binding fragment of T antigen indicate that an interaction between T antigen and topo I occurs during the unwinding reaction. We propose that topo I is recruited to the initiation complex after the assembly of TDH and before unwinding to facilitate DNA replication.