Direct transfer of Ku between DNA molecules with nonhomologous ends

The Ku protein is an essential protein for DNA double-strand-break repair by the pathway of nonhomologous DNA end-joining (NHEJ). A previous study showed that Ku bound to one DNA molecule could transfer directly to another DNA molecule without being released into the solution first. Direct transfer requires the two DNA molecules having homologous cohesive ends with a minimum of four complementary bases. Results of this study reveal that direct transfer activity of Ku is regulated by NaCl and MgCl₂. Increasing either one of the two cations can decrease the required amount of the other. However, the DNA end-binding activity of Ku is not affected by changing the concentration of the cations, indicating that the two activities are regulated independently. Most importantly, the results also show that Ku can transfer directly from one DNA molecule to another one with nonhomologous ends under the condition of 200 mM NaCl and 5 mM MgCl₂. The ability of direct transfer between DNAs with nonhomologous ends suggests that Ku can align or juxtapose two DNA ends during NHEJ.