Cyclin D1 promotes BRCA2-Rad51 interaction by restricting cyclin A/B-dependent BRCA2 phosphorylation.

BRCA2 has an important role in the maintenance of genome stability by interacting with RAD51 recombinase through its C-terminal domain. This interaction is abrogated by cyclin A-CDK2-mediated phosphorylation of BRCA2 at serine 3291 (Ser3291). Recently, we showed that cyclin D1 facilitates RAD51 recruitment to BRCA2-containing DNA repair foci, and that downregulation of cyclin D1 leads to inefficient homologous-mediated DNA repair. Here, we demonstrate that cyclin D1, via amino acids 20-90, interacts with the C-terminal domain of BRCA2, and that this interaction is increased in response to DNA damage. Interestingly, CDK4-cyclin D1 does not phosphorylate Ser3291. Instead, cyclin D1 bars cyclin A from the C-terminus of BRCA2, prevents cyclin A-CDK2-dependent Ser3291 phosphorylation and facilitates RAD51 binding to the C-terminal domain of BRCA2. These findings indicate that the interplay between cyclin D1 and other cyclins such as cyclin A regulates DNA integrity through RAD51 interaction with the BRCA2 C-terminal domain.