Dephosphorylation of Orc2 by protein phosphatase 1 promotes the binding of the origin recognition complex to chromatin

•Protein phosphatase 1 physically interacts with Orc2.•The 119-KSVSF-123 motif of Orc2 is required for the dephosphorylation of Orc2 by PP1.•The dephosphorylation of Orc2 by PP1 is required for the binding of ORC to chromatin.

Phosphorylation of Orc2, one of the six subunits of the origin recognition complex (ORC), by cyclin A/CDK2 during S phase leads to the dissociation of Orc2, Orc3, Orc4, and Orc5 subunits (Orc2–5) from human chromatin and replication origins. Dephosphorylation of the phosphorylated Orc2 by protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) is accompanied by the binding of the dissociated subunits to chromatin. Here we show that PP1 physically interacts with Orc2. The binding of PP1 to Orc2 and the dephosphorylation of Orc2 by PP1 occurred in a cell cycle-dependent manner through an interaction with 119-KSVSF-123, which is the consensus motif for the binding of PP1, of Orc2. The dephosphorylation of Orc2 by PP1 is required for the binding of Orc2 to chromatin. These results support that PP1 dephosphorylates Orc2 to promote the binding of ORC to chromatin and replication origins for the subsequent round of the cell cycle.