Non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ), the major repair pathway for DNA double-strand breaks (DSB) in mammalian cells, employs a repertoire of core proteins, the recruitment of which to DSB-ends is Ku-dependent. Lack of either of the core components invariably leads to a repair deficiency. There has been evidence that an alternative end-joining operates in the absence of the core components. We used chromosomal reporter substrates to specifically monitor NHEJ of single I-SceI-induced-DSB for detailed comparison of classical and alternative end-joining. We show that rapid repair of both compatible and non-compatible ends require Ku-protein. In the absence of Ku, cells use a slow but efficient repair mode which experiences increasing sequence-loss with time after DSB induction. Chemical inhibition and PARP1-depletion demonstrated that the alternative end-joining in vivo is completely dependent upon functional PARP1. Furthermore, we show that the requirement for PARP1 depends on the absence of Ku but not on DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PKcs). Extensive sequencing of repair junctions revealed that the alternative rejoining does not require long microhomologies. Together, we show that mammalian cells need Ku for rapid and conservative NHEJ. PARP1-dependent alternative route may partially rescue the deficient repair phenotype presumably at the expense of an enhanced mutation rate.
