scholarly journals Prediction of mRNA subcellular localization using deep recurrent neural networks

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (14) ◽  
pp. i333-i342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zichao Yan ◽  
Eric Lécuyer ◽  
Mathieu Blanchette

Abstract Motivation Messenger RNA subcellular localization mechanisms play a crucial role in post-transcriptional gene regulation. This trafficking is mediated by trans-acting RNA-binding proteins interacting with cis-regulatory elements called zipcodes. While new sequencing-based technologies allow the high-throughput identification of RNAs localized to specific subcellular compartments, the precise mechanisms at play, and their dependency on specific sequence elements, remain poorly understood. Results We introduce RNATracker, a novel deep neural network built to predict, from their sequence alone, the distributions of mRNA transcripts over a predefined set of subcellular compartments. RNATracker integrates several state-of-the-art deep learning techniques (e.g. CNN, LSTM and attention layers) and can make use of both sequence and secondary structure information. We report on a variety of evaluations showing RNATracker’s strong predictive power, which is significantly superior to a variety of baseline predictors. Despite its complexity, several aspects of the model can be isolated to yield valuable, testable mechanistic hypotheses, and to locate candidate zipcode sequences within transcripts. Availability and implementation Code and data can be accessed at https://www.github.com/HarveyYan/RNATracker. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolai von Kuegelgen ◽  
Samantha Mendonsa ◽  
Sayaka Dantsuji ◽  
Maya Ron ◽  
Marieluise Kirchner ◽  
...  

Cells adopt highly polarized shapes and form distinct subcellular compartments largely due to the localization of many mRNAs to specific areas, where they are translated into proteins with local functions. This mRNA localization is mediated by specific cis-regulatory elements in mRNAs, commonly called "zipcodes." Their recognition by RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) leads to the integration of the mRNAs into macromolecular complexes and their localization. While there are hundreds of localized mRNAs, only a few zipcodes have been characterized. Here, we describe a novel neuronal zipcode identification protocol (N-zip) that can identify zipcodes across hundreds of 3'UTRs. This approach combines a method of separating the principal subcellular compartments of neurons - cell bodies and neurites - with a massively parallel reporter assay. Our analysis identifies the let-7 binding site and (AU)n motif as de novo zipcodes in mouse primary cortical neurons and suggests a strategy for detecting many more.


2016 ◽  
Vol 212 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benoit Chabot ◽  
Lulzim Shkreta

Examples of associations between human disease and defects in pre–messenger RNA splicing/alternative splicing are accumulating. Although many alterations are caused by mutations in splicing signals or regulatory sequence elements, recent studies have noted the disruptive impact of mutated generic spliceosome components and splicing regulatory proteins. This review highlights recent progress in our understanding of how the altered splicing function of RNA-binding proteins contributes to myelodysplastic syndromes, cancer, and neuropathologies.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina Chekulaeva ◽  
Nicolai von Kügelgen ◽  
Samantha Mendonsa ◽  
Sayaka Dantsuji ◽  
Maya Ron ◽  
...  

Abstract Cells adopt highly polarized shapes and form distinct subcellular compartments largely due to the localization of many mRNAs to specific areas, where they are translated into proteins with local functions. This mRNA localization is mediated by specific cis-regulatory elements in mRNAs, commonly called "zipcodes." Their recognition by RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) leads to the integration of the mRNAs into macromolecular complexes and their localization. While there are hundreds of localized mRNAs, only a few zipcodes have been characterized. Here, we describe a novel neuronal zipcode identification protocol (N-zip) that can identify zipcodes across hundreds of 3'UTRs. This approach combines a method of separating the principal subcellular compartments of neurons – cell bodies and neurites - with a massively parallel reporter assay. Our analysis identifies the let-7 binding site and (AU)n motif as de novo zipcodes in mouse primary cortical neurons and suggests a strategy for detecting many more.


2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (33) ◽  
pp. 16410-16419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadiya Khyzha ◽  
Melvin Khor ◽  
Peter V. DiStefano ◽  
Liangxi Wang ◽  
Ljubica Matic ◽  
...  

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease that is driven, in part, by activation of vascular endothelial cells (ECs). In response to inflammatory stimuli, the nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) signaling pathway orchestrates the expression of a network of EC genes that contribute to monocyte recruitment and diapedesis across the endothelium. Although many long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are dysregulated in atherosclerosis, they remain poorly characterized, especially in the context of human vascular inflammation. Prior studies have illustrated that lncRNAs can regulate their neighboring protein-coding genes via interaction with protein complexes. We therefore identified and characterized neighboring interleukin-1β (IL-1β)−regulated messenger RNA (mRNA)−lncRNA pairs in ECs. We found these pairs to be highly correlated in expression, especially when located within the same chromatin territory. Additionally, these pairs were predominantly divergently transcribed and shared common gene regulatory elements, characterized by active histone marks and NF-κB binding. Further analysis was performed on lncRNA-CCL2, which is transcribed divergently to the gene, CCL2, encoding a proatherosclerotic chemokine. LncRNA-CCL2 and CCL2 showed coordinate up-regulation in response to inflammatory stimuli, and their expression was correlated in unstable symptomatic human atherosclerotic plaques. Knock-down experiments revealed that lncRNA-CCL2 positively regulated CCL2 mRNA levels in multiple primary ECs and EC cell lines. This regulation appeared to involve the interaction of lncRNA-CCL2 with RNA binding proteins, including HNRNPU and IGF2BP2. Hence, our approach has uncovered a network of neighboring mRNA−lncRNA pairs in the setting of inflammation and identified the function of an lncRNA, lncRNA-CCL2, which may contribute to atherogenesis in humans.


Author(s):  
Feng Xiong ◽  
Ruoyu Wang ◽  
Joo-Hyung Lee ◽  
Shenglan Li ◽  
Shin-Fu Chen ◽  
...  

AbstractThe molecular basis underlying the interaction between retrotransposable elements (RTEs) and the human genome remains poorly understood. Here, we profiled N6-methyladenosine (m6A) deposition on nascent RNAs in human cells by developing a new method MINT-Seq, which revealed that many classes of RTE RNAs, particularly intronic LINE-1s (L1s), are strongly methylated. These m6A-marked intronic L1s (MILs) are evolutionarily young, sense-oriented to hosting genes, and are bound by a dozen RNA binding proteins (RBPs) that are putative novel readers of m6A-modified RNAs, including a nuclear matrix protein SAFB. Notably, m6A positively controls the expression of both autonomous L1s and co-transcribed L1 relics, promoting L1 retrotransposition. We showed that MILs preferentially reside in long genes with critical roles in DNA damage repair and sometimes in L1 suppression per se, where they act as transcriptional “roadblocks” to impede the hosting gene expression, revealing a novel host-weakening strategy by the L1s. In counteraction, the host uses the SAFB reader complex to bind m6A-L1s to reduce their levels, and to safeguard hosting gene transcription. Remarkably, our analysis identified thousands of MILs in multiple human fetal tissues, enlisting them as a novel category of cell-type-specific regulatory elements that often compromise transcription of long genes and confer their vulnerability in neurodevelopmental disorders. We propose that this m6A-orchestrated L1–host interaction plays widespread roles in gene regulation, genome integrity, human development and diseases.


2002 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 195-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gideon Dreyfuss ◽  
V. Narry Kim ◽  
Naoyuki Kataoka

2019 ◽  
Vol 144 (2) ◽  
pp. 79-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhigang Ouyang ◽  
Huihui Duan ◽  
Lanfang Mi ◽  
Wei Hu ◽  
Jianmei Chen ◽  
...  

In eukaryotic systems, messenger RNA regulations, including splicing, 3′-end formation, editing, localization, and translation, are achieved by different RNA-binding proteins and noncoding RNAs. The YTH domain is a newly identified RNA-binding domain that was identified by comparing its sequence with that of splicing factor YT521-B. Previous study showed that the YTH gene plays an important role in plant resistance to abiotic and biotic stress. In this study, 211 YTH genes were identified in 26 species that represent four major plant lineages. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that these genes could be divided into eight subgroups. All of the YTH genes contain a YT521 domain and have different structures. Ten YTH genes were identified in navel orange (Citrus sinensis). The expression profiles of these CitYTH genes were analyzed in different tissues and at different fruit developmental stages, and CitYTH genes displayed distinct expression patterns under heat, cold, salt, and drought stress. Furthermore, expression of the CitYTH genes in response to exogenous hormones was measured. Nuclear localization was also confirmed for five of the proteins encoded by these genes after transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana cells. This study provides valuable information on the role of CitYTHs in the signaling pathways involved in environmental stress responses in Citrus.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 34
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Forman ◽  
Brenna J. C. Dennison ◽  
Katherine A. Fantauzzo

Cranial neural crest (NC) cells delaminate from the neural folds in the forebrain to the hindbrain during mammalian embryogenesis and migrate into the frontonasal prominence and pharyngeal arches. These cells generate the bone and cartilage of the frontonasal skeleton, among other diverse derivatives. RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) have emerged as critical regulators of NC and craniofacial development in mammals. Conventional RBPs bind to specific sequence and/or structural motifs in a target RNA via one or more RNA-binding domains to regulate multiple aspects of RNA metabolism and ultimately affect gene expression. In this review, we discuss the roles of RBPs other than core spliceosome components during human and mouse NC and craniofacial development. Where applicable, we review data on these same RBPs from additional vertebrate species, including chicken, Xenopus and zebrafish models. Knockdown or ablation of several RBPs discussed here results in altered expression of transcripts encoding components of developmental signaling pathways, as well as reduced cell proliferation and/or increased cell death, indicating that these are common mechanisms contributing to the observed phenotypes. The study of these proteins offers a relatively untapped opportunity to provide significant insight into the mechanisms underlying gene expression regulation during craniofacial morphogenesis.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott I Adamson ◽  
Lijun Zhan ◽  
Brenton R Graveley

Background: RNA binding protein-RNA interactions mediate a variety of processes including pre-mRNA splicing, translation, decay, polyadenylation and many others. Previous high-throughput studies have characterized general sequence features associated with increased and decreased splicing of certain exons, but these studies are limited by not knowing the mechanisms, and in particular, the mediating RNA binding proteins, underlying these associations. Results: Here we utilize ENCODE data from diverse data modalities to identify functional splicing regulatory elements and their associated RNA binding proteins. We identify features which make splicing events more sensitive to depletion of RNA binding proteins, as well as which RNA binding proteins act as splicing regulators sensitive to depletion. To analyze the sequence determinants underlying RBP-RNA interactions impacting splicing, we assay tens of thousands of sequence variants in a high-throughput splicing reporter called Vex-seq and confirm a small subset in their endogenous loci using CRISPR base editors. Finally, we leverage other large transcriptomic datasets to confirm the importance of RNA binding proteins which we designed experiments around and identify additional RBPs which may act as additional splicing regulators of the exons studied. Conclusions: This study identifies sequence and other features underlying splicing regulation mediated specific RNA binding proteins, as well as validates and identifies other potentially important regulators of splicing in other large transcriptomic datasets.


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