scholarly journals Quantitative modelling predicts the impact of DNA methylation on RNA polymerase II traffic

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (30) ◽  
pp. 14995-15000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justyna Cholewa-Waclaw ◽  
Ruth Shah ◽  
Shaun Webb ◽  
Kashyap Chhatbar ◽  
Bernard Ramsahoye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Dna Methylation ◽  
Rna Polymerase ◽  
Rna Polymerase Ii ◽  
Rett Syndrome ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Expression Patterns ◽  
Global Gene Expression ◽  
A Genome ◽  
The Impact

Patterns of gene expression are primarily determined by proteins that locally enhance or repress transcription. While many transcription factors target a restricted number of genes, others appear to modulate transcription levels globally. An example is MeCP2, an abundant methylated-DNA binding protein that is mutated in the neurological disorder Rett syndrome. Despite much research, the molecular mechanism by which MeCP2 regulates gene expression is not fully resolved. Here, we integrate quantitative, multidimensional experimental analysis and mathematical modeling to indicate that MeCP2 is a global transcriptional regulator whose binding to DNA creates “slow sites” in gene bodies. We hypothesize that waves of slowed-down RNA polymerase II formed behind these sites travel backward and indirectly affect initiation, reminiscent of defect-induced shockwaves in nonequilibrium physics transport models. This mechanism differs from conventional gene-regulation mechanisms, which often involve direct modulation of transcription initiation. Our findings point to a genome-wide function of DNA methylation that may account for the reversibility of Rett syndrome in mice. Moreover, our combined theoretical and experimental approach provides a general method for understanding how global gene-expression patterns are choreographed.

scholarly journals Quantitative modelling predicts the impact of DNA methylation on RNA polymerase II traffic

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justyna Cholewa-Waclaw ◽  
Ruth Shah ◽  
Shaun Webb ◽  
Kashyap Chhatbar ◽  
Bernard Ramsahoye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Dna Methylation ◽  
Rna Polymerase ◽  
Rna Polymerase Ii ◽  
Rett Syndrome ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Expression Patterns ◽  
Global Gene Expression ◽  
A Genome ◽  
The Impact

Patterns of gene expression are primarily determined by proteins that locally enhance or repress transcription. While many transcription factors target a restricted number of genes, others appear to modulate transcription levels globally. An example is MeCP2, an abundant methylated-DNA binding protein that is mutated in the neurological disorder Rett Syndrome. Despite much research, the molecular mechanism by which MeCP2 regulates gene expression is not fully resolved. Here we integrate quantitative, multi-dimensional experimental analysis and mathematical modelling to show that MeCP2 is a novel type of global transcriptional regulator whose binding to DNA creates "slow sites" in gene bodies. Waves of slowed-down RNA polymerase II formed behind these sites travel backward and indirectly affect initiation, reminiscent of defect-induced shock waves in non-equilibrium physics transport models. This mechanism differs from conventional gene regulation mechanisms, which often involve direct modulation of transcription initiation. Our findings uncover a genome-wide function of DNA methylation that may account for the reversibility of Rett syndrome in mice. Moreover, our combined theoretical and experimental approach provides a general method for understanding how global gene expression patterns are choreographed.

scholarly journals Genome organization is a major component of gene expression control in response to stress and during the cell division cycle in trypanosomes

Open Biology ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 120033 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Kelly ◽  
S. Kramer ◽  
A. Schwede ◽  
P. K. Maini ◽  
K. Gull ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Cell Division ◽  
Rna Polymerase Ii ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Expression Patterns ◽  
Cell Division Cycle ◽  
Control Of Gene Expression ◽  
Polycistronic Transcription ◽  
A Genome ◽  
Gene Expression Control

The trypanosome genome is characterized by RNA polymerase II-driven polycistronic transcription of protein-coding genes. Ten to hundreds of genes are co-transcribed from a single promoter; thus, selective regulation of individual genes via initiation is impossible. However, selective responses to external stimuli occur and post-transcriptional mechanisms are thought to account for all temporal gene expression patterns. We show that genes encoding mRNAs that are differentially regulated during the heat-shock response are selectively positioned in polycistronic transcription units; downregulated genes are close to transcription initiation sites and upregulated genes are distant. We demonstrate that the position of a reporter gene within a transcription unit is sufficient to reproduce this effect. Analysis of gene ontology annotations reveals that positional bias is not restricted to stress–response genes and that there is a genome-wide organization based on proximity to transcription initiation sites. Furthermore, we show that the relative abundance of mRNAs at different time points in the cell division cycle is dependent on the location of the corresponding genes to transcription initiation sites. This work provides evidence that the genome in trypanosomes is organized to facilitate co-coordinated temporal control of gene expression in the absence of selective promoters.

scholarly journals Live-cell single particle imaging reveals the role of RNA polymerase II in histone H2A.Z eviction

eLife ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anand Ranjan ◽  
Vu Q Nguyen ◽  
Sheng Liu ◽  
Jan Wisniewski ◽  
Jee Min Kim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rna Polymerase ◽  
Rna Polymerase Ii ◽  
Single Molecule ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
General Mechanism ◽  
Pol Ii ◽  
Promoter Escape ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
A Genome ◽  
Particle Imaging

The H2A.Z histone variant, a genome-wide hallmark of permissive chromatin, is enriched near transcription start sites in all eukaryotes. H2A.Z is deposited by the SWR1 chromatin remodeler and evicted by unclear mechanisms. We tracked H2A.Z in living yeast at single-molecule resolution, and found that H2A.Z eviction is dependent on RNA Polymerase II (Pol II) and the Kin28/Cdk7 kinase, which phosphorylates Serine 5 of heptapeptide repeats on the carboxy-terminal domain of the largest Pol II subunit Rpb1. These findings link H2A.Z eviction to transcription initiation, promoter escape and early elongation activities of Pol II. Because passage of Pol II through +1 nucleosomes genome-wide would obligate H2A.Z turnover, we propose that global transcription at yeast promoters is responsible for eviction of H2A.Z. Such usage of yeast Pol II suggests a general mechanism coupling eukaryotic transcription to erasure of the H2A.Z epigenetic signal.

scholarly journals Screening thousands of transcribed coding and non-coding regions reveals sequence determinants of RNA polymerase II elongation potential

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanneke Vlaming ◽  
Claudia A Mimoso ◽  
Benjamin JE Martin ◽  
Andrew R Field ◽  
Karen Adelman
Keyword(s):  
Rna Polymerase ◽  
Rna Polymerase Ii ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
High Throughput Sequencing ◽  
Messenger Rnas ◽  
Sequence Motifs ◽  
Specific Sequence ◽  
Protein Coding ◽  
Non Coding Rna ◽  
The Impact

Organismal growth and development rely on RNA Polymerase II (RNAPII) synthesizing the appropriate repertoire of messenger RNAs (mRNAs) from protein-coding genes. Productive elongation of full-length transcripts is essential for mRNA function, however what determines whether an engaged RNAPII molecule will terminate prematurely or transcribe processively remains poorly understood. Notably, despite a common process for transcription initiation across RNAPII-synthesized RNAs, RNAPII is highly susceptible to termination when transcribing non-coding RNAs such as upstream antisense RNAs (uaRNAs) and enhancers RNAs (eRNAs), suggesting that differences arise during RNAPII elongation. To investigate the impact of transcribed sequence on elongation potential, we developed a method to screen the effects of thousands of INtegrated Sequences on Expression of RNA and Translation using high-throughput sequencing (INSERT-seq). We found that higher AT content in uaRNAs and eRNAs, rather than specific sequence motifs, underlies the propensity for RNAPII termination on these transcripts. Further, we demonstrate that 5' splice sites exert both splicing-dependent and autonomous, splicing-independent stimulation of transcription, even in the absence of polyadenylation signals. Together, our results reveal a potent role for transcribed sequence in dictating gene output at mRNA and non-coding RNA loci, and demonstrate the power of INSERT-seq towards illuminating these contributions.

scholarly journals A genome-wide transcriptional analysis of morphology determination inCandida albicans

2013 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 246-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia L. Carlisle ◽  
David Kadosh
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Fungal Infections ◽  
Transcriptional Profiling ◽  
Expression Patterns ◽  
Global Gene Expression ◽  
Transcriptional Analysis ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
A Genome ◽  
Genetically Manipulated

Candida albicans, the most common cause of human fungal infections, undergoes a reversible morphological transition from yeast to pseudohyphal and hyphal filaments, which is required for virulence. For many years, the relationship among global gene expression patterns associated with determination of specific C. albicans morphologies has remained obscure. Using a strain that can be genetically manipulated to sequentially transition from yeast to pseudohyphae to hyphae in the absence of complex environmental cues and upstream signaling pathways, we demonstrate by whole-genome transcriptional profiling that genes associated with pseudohyphae represent a subset of those associated with hyphae and are generally expressed at lower levels. Our results also strongly suggest that in addition to dosage, extended duration of filament-specific gene expression is sufficient to drive the C. albicans yeast-pseudohyphal-hyphal transition. Finally, we describe the first transcriptional profile of the C. albicans reverse hyphal-pseudohyphal-yeast transition and demonstrate that this transition involves not only down-regulation of known hyphal-specific, genes but also differential expression of additional genes that have not previously been associated with the forward transition, including many involved in protein synthesis. These findings provide new insight into genome-wide expression patterns important for determining fungal morphology and suggest that in addition to similarities, there are also fundamental differences in global gene expression as pathogenic filamentous fungi undergo forward and reverse morphological transitions.

Gene insulation. Part I: natural strategies in yeast and Drosophila

2010 ◽  
Vol 88 (6) ◽  
pp. 875-884 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michèle Amouyal
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Rna Polymerase ◽  
Rna Polymerase Ii ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Rna Polymerase Iii ◽  
Eukaryotic Cells ◽  
Trna Genes ◽  
Initiation Complex ◽  
Heterochromatin Formation ◽  
Transcription Initiation Complex

This review in two parts deals with the increasing number of processes known to be used by eukaryotic cells to protect gene expression from undesired genomic enhancer or chromatin effects, by means of the so-called insulators or barriers. The most advanced studies in this expanding field concern yeasts and Drosophila (this article) and the vertebrates (next article in this issue). Clearly, the cell makes use of every gene context to find the appropriate, economic, solution. Thus, besides the elements formerly identified and specifically dedicated to insulation, a number of unexpected elements are diverted from their usual function to structure the genome and enhancer action or to prevent heterochromatin spreading. They are, for instance, genes actively transcribed by RNA polymerase II or III, partial elements of these transcriptional machineries (stalled RNA polymerase II, normally required by genes that must respond quickly to stimuli, or TFIIIC bound at its B-box, normally required by RNA polymerase III for assembly of the transcription initiation complex at tRNA genes), or genomic sequences occupied by variants of standard histones, which, being rapidly and permanently replaced, impede heterochromatin formation.

scholarly journals Plasmodium falciparum var gene expression is developmentally controlled at the level of RNA polymerase II‐mediated transcription initiation

2007 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 1237-1247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sue Kyes ◽  
Zóe Christodoulou ◽  
Robert Pinches ◽  
Neline Kriek ◽  
Paul Horrocks ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Plasmodium Falciparum ◽  
Rna Polymerase ◽  
Rna Polymerase Ii ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Var Gene

scholarly journals H3K4me3 is neither instructive for, nor informed by, transcription

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Struan C Murray ◽  
Philipp Lorenz ◽  
Françoise S Howe ◽  
Meredith Wouters ◽  
Thomas Brown ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Expression Patterns ◽  
Gene Activity ◽  
Protein Levels ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
A Genome ◽  
Wide Scale ◽  
Cell Variation

AbstractH3K4me3 is a near-universal histone modification found predominantly at the 5’ region of genes, with a well-documented association with gene activity. H3K4me3 has been ascribed roles as both an instructor of gene expression and also a downstream consequence of expression, yet neither has been convincingly proven on a genome-wide scale. Here we test these relationships using a combination of bioinformatics, modelling and experimental data from budding yeast in which the levels of H3K4me3 have been massively ablated. We find that loss of H3K4me3 has no effect on the levels of nascent transcription or transcript in the population. Moreover, we observe no change in the rates of transcription initiation, elongation, mRNA export or turnover, or in protein levels, or cell-to-cell variation of mRNA. Loss of H3K4me3 also has no effect on the large changes in gene expression patterns that follow galactose induction. Conversely, loss of RNA polymerase from the nucleus has no effect on the pattern of H3K4me3 deposition and little effect on its levels, despite much larger changes to other chromatin features. Furthermore, large genome-wide changes in transcription, both in response to environmental stress and during metabolic cycling, are not accompanied by corresponding changes in H3K4me3. Thus, despite the correlation between H3K4me3 and gene activity, neither appear to be necessary to maintain levels of the other, nor to influence their changes in response to environmental stimuli. When we compare gene classes with very different levels of H3K4me3 but highly similar transcription levels we find that H3K4me3-marked genes are those whose expression is unresponsive to environmental changes, and that their histones are less acetylated and dynamically turned-over. Constitutive genes are generally well-expressed, which may alone explain the correlation between H3K4me3 and gene expression, while the biological role of H3K4me3 may have more to do with this distinction in gene class.

scholarly journals DNA methylation during human adipogenesis and the impact of fructose

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Tini ◽  
Vijayalakshmi Varma ◽  
Rosario Lombardo ◽  
Greg T. Nolen ◽  
Gregory Lefebvre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Dna Methylation ◽  
Differentially Expressed Genes ◽  
Time Dependent ◽  
Regulatory Mechanisms ◽  
Differentially Methylated Regions ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
A Genome ◽  
Final Maturation ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Increased adipogenesis and altered adipocyte function contribute to the development of obesity and associated comorbidities. Fructose modified adipocyte metabolism compared to glucose, but the regulatory mechanisms and consequences for obesity are unknown. Genome-wide methylation and global transcriptomics in SGBS pre-adipocytes exposed to 0, 2.5, 5, and 10 mM fructose, added to a 5-mM glucose-containing medium, were analyzed at 0, 24, 48, 96, 192, and 384 h following the induction of adipogenesis. Results Time-dependent changes in DNA methylation compared to baseline (0 h) occurred during the final maturation of adipocytes, between 192 and 384 h. Larger percentages (0.1% at 192 h, 3.2% at 384 h) of differentially methylated regions (DMRs) were found in adipocytes differentiated in the glucose-containing control media compared to adipocytes differentiated in fructose-supplemented media (0.0006% for 10 mM, 0.001% for 5 mM, and 0.005% for 2.5 mM at 384 h). A total of 1437 DMRs were identified in 5237 differentially expressed genes at 384 h post-induction in glucose-containing (5 mM) control media. The majority of them inversely correlated with the gene expression, but 666 regions were positively correlated to the gene expression. Conclusions Our studies demonstrate that DNA methylation regulates or marks the transformation of morphologically differentiating adipocytes (seen at 192 h), to the more mature and metabolically robust adipocytes (as seen at 384 h) in a genome-wide manner. Lower (2.5 mM) concentrations of fructose have the most robust effects on methylation compared to higher concentrations (5 and 10 mM), suggesting that fructose may be playing a signaling/regulatory role at lower concentrations of fructose and as a substrate at higher concentrations.

scholarly journals Human cap methyltransferase (RNMT) N-terminal non-catalytic domain mediates recruitment to transcription initiation sites

2013 ◽  
Vol 455 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Aregger ◽  
Victoria H. Cowling
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Cell Proliferation ◽  
Rna Polymerase ◽  
Rna Polymerase Ii ◽  
Translation Initiation ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Catalytic Domain ◽  
Terminal Domain

The mRNA methyl cap recruits the mediators of processing events and translation initiation. We report that RNMT, the human cap methyltransferase, is recruited to RNA polymerase II via the N-terminal domain and is required for gene expression and cell proliferation.

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