scholarly journals Common and unique strategies of male killing evolved in two distinct Drosophila symbionts

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1875) ◽  
pp. 20172167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toshiyuki Harumoto ◽  
Takema Fukatsu ◽  
Bruno Lemaitre
Keyword(s):  
Dna Damage ◽  
Neural Development ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Neural Tissue ◽  
Symbiotic Bacteria ◽  
Male Killing ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Fundamental Biology ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Common Target

Male killing is a selfish reproductive manipulation caused by symbiotic bacteria, where male offspring of infected hosts are selectively killed. The underlying mechanisms and the process of their evolution are of great interest not only in terms of fundamental biology, but also their potential applications. The two bacterial Drosophila symbionts, Wolbachia and Spiroplasma , have independently evolved male-killing ability. This raises the question whether the underlying mechanisms share some similarities or are specific to each bacterial species. Here, we analyse pathogenic phenotypes of D. bifasciata infected with its natural male-killing Wolbachia strain and compare them with those of D. melanogaster infected with male-killing Spiroplasma . We show that male progeny infected with the Wolbachia strain die during embryogenesis with abnormal apoptosis. Interestingly, male-killing Wolbachia infection induces DNA damage and segregation defects in the dosage-compensated chromosome in male embryos, which are reminiscent of the phenotypes caused by male-killing Spiroplasma in D. melanogaster . By contrast, host neural development seems to proceed normally unlike male-killing Spiroplasma infection. Our results demonstrate that the dosage-compensated chromosome is a common target of two distinct male killers, yet Spiroplasma uniquely evolved the ability to damage neural tissue of male embryos.

scholarly journals Identification of New Markers of Alcohol-Derived DNA Damage in Humans

Biomolecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 366
Author(s):  
Valeria Guidolin ◽  
Erik S. Carlson ◽  
Andrea Carrà ◽  
Peter W. Villalta ◽  
Laura A. Maertens ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Damage ◽  
Dna Adducts ◽  
Neutral Loss ◽  
Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Dose Dependence ◽  
Accurate Mass ◽  
Constant Neutral Loss ◽  
Covalent Modifications ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

Alcohol consumption is a risk factor for the development of several cancers, including those of the head and neck and the esophagus. The underlying mechanisms of alcohol-induced carcinogenesis remain unclear; however, at these sites, alcohol-derived acetaldehyde seems to play a major role. By reacting with DNA, acetaldehyde generates covalent modifications (adducts) that can lead to mutations. Previous studies have shown a dose dependence between levels of a major acetaldehyde-derived DNA adduct and alcohol exposure in oral-cell DNA. The goal of this study was to optimize a mass spectrometry (MS)-based DNA adductomic approach to screen for all acetaldehyde-derived DNA adducts to more comprehensively characterize the genotoxic effects of acetaldehyde in humans. A high-resolution/-accurate-mass data-dependent constant-neutral-loss-MS3 methodology was developed to profile acetaldehyde-DNA adducts in purified DNA. This resulted in the identification of 22 DNA adducts. In addition to the expected N2-ethyldeoxyguanosine (after NaBH3CN reduction), two previously unreported adducts showed prominent signals in the mass spectra. MSn fragmentation spectra and accurate mass were used to hypothesize the structure of the two new adducts, which were then identified as N6-ethyldeoxyadenosine and N4-ethyldeoxycytidine by comparison with synthesized standards. These adducts were quantified in DNA isolated from oral cells collected from volunteers exposed to alcohol, revealing a significant increase after the exposure. In addition, 17 of the adducts identified in vitro were detected in these samples confirming our ability to more comprehensively characterize the DNA damage deriving from alcohol exposures.

scholarly journals The splicing factor XAB2 interacts with ERCC1-XPF and XPG for R-loop processing

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Evi Goulielmaki ◽  
Maria Tsekrekou ◽  
Nikos Batsiotos ◽  
Mariana Ascensão-Ferreira ◽  
Eleftheria Ledaki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Damage ◽  
Rna Splicing ◽  
Excision Repair ◽  
Intron Retention ◽  
Dna Lesions ◽  
Splicing Factor ◽  
Loop Formation ◽  
Rna Targets ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

AbstractRNA splicing, transcription and the DNA damage response are intriguingly linked in mammals but the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Using an in vivo biotinylation tagging approach in mice, we show that the splicing factor XAB2 interacts with the core spliceosome and that it binds to spliceosomal U4 and U6 snRNAs and pre-mRNAs in developing livers. XAB2 depletion leads to aberrant intron retention, R-loop formation and DNA damage in cells. Studies in illudin S-treated cells and Csbm/m developing livers reveal that transcription-blocking DNA lesions trigger the release of XAB2 from all RNA targets tested. Immunoprecipitation studies reveal that XAB2 interacts with ERCC1-XPF and XPG endonucleases outside nucleotide excision repair and that the trimeric protein complex binds RNA:DNA hybrids under conditions that favor the formation of R-loops. Thus, XAB2 functionally links the spliceosomal response to DNA damage with R-loop processing with important ramifications for transcription-coupled DNA repair disorders.

scholarly journals Genotoxicity and inflammatory potential of stainless steel welding fume particles: an in vitro study on standard vs Cr(VI)-reduced flux-cored wires and the role of released metals

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah McCarrick ◽  
Valentin Romanovski ◽  
Zheng Wei ◽  
Elin M. Westin ◽  
Kjell-Arne Persson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Damage ◽  
In Vitro Study ◽  
Human Monocyte ◽  
Welding Fumes ◽  
Welding Fume ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Cored Wires

AbstractWelders are daily exposed to various levels of welding fumes containing several metals. This exposure can lead to an increased risk for different health effects which serves as a driving force to develop new methods that generate less toxic fumes. The aim of this study was to explore the role of released metals for welding particle-induced toxicity and to test the hypothesis that a reduction of Cr(VI) in welding fumes results in less toxicity by comparing the welding fume particles of optimized Cr(VI)-reduced flux-cored wires (FCWs) to standard FCWs. The welding particles were thoroughly characterized, and toxicity (cell viability, DNA damage and inflammation) was assessed following exposure to welding particles as well as their released metal fraction using cultured human bronchial epithelial cells (HBEC-3kt, 5–100 µg/mL) and human monocyte-derived macrophages (THP-1, 10–50 µg/mL). The results showed that all Cr was released as Cr(VI) for welding particles generated using standard FCWs whereas only minor levels (< 3% of total Cr) were released from the newly developed FCWs. Furthermore, the new FCWs were considerably less cytotoxic and did not cause any DNA damage in the doses tested. For the standard FCWs, the Cr(VI) released in cell media seemed to explain a large part of the cytotoxicity and DNA damage. In contrast, all particles caused rather similar inflammatory effects suggesting different underlying mechanisms. Taken together, this study suggests a potential benefit of substituting standard FCWs with Cr(VI)-reduced wires to achieve less toxic welding fumes and thus reduced risks for welders.

scholarly journals Apoptosis mediated chemosensitization of tumor cells to 5-fluorouracil on supplementation of fish oil in experimental colon carcinoma

Tumor Biology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 101042831769501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isha Rani ◽  
Bhoomika Sharma ◽  
Sandeep Kumar ◽  
Satinder Kaur ◽  
Navneet Agnihotri
Keyword(s):  
Fatty Acids ◽  
Dna Damage ◽  
Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids ◽  
Fish Oil ◽  
Tumor Cells ◽  
Apoptotic Index ◽  
Apoptotic Pathway ◽  
Apoptotic Effect ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Apoptotic Pathways

5-Fluorouracil has been considered as a cornerstone therapy for colorectal cancer; however, it suffers from low therapeutic response rate and severe side effects. Therefore, there is an urgent need to increase the clinical efficacy of 5-fluorouracil. Recently, fish oil rich in n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids has been reported to chemosensitize tumor cells to anti-cancer drugs. This study is designed to understand the underlying mechanisms of synergistic effect of fish oil and 5-fluorouracil by evaluation of tumor cell–associated markers such as apoptosis and DNA damage. The colon cancer was developed by administration of N,N-dimethylhydrazine dihydrochloride and dextran sulfate sodium salt. Further these animals were treated with 5-fluorouracil, fish oil, or a combination of both. In carcinogen-treated animals, a decrease in DNA damage and apoptotic index was observed. There was also a decrease in the expression of Fas, FasL, caspase 8, and Bax, and an increase in Bcl-2. In contrast, administration of 5-fluorouracil and fish oil as an adjuvant increased both DNA damage and apoptotic index by activation of both extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways as compared to the other groups. The increased pro-apoptotic effect by synergism of 5-fluorouracil and fish oil may be attributed to the incorporation of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in membrane, which alters membrane fluidity in cancer cells. In conclusion, this study highlights that the induction of apoptotic pathway by fish oil may increase the susceptibility of tumors to chemotherapeutic regimens.

scholarly journals Transcriptional response of Hoxb genes to retinoid signalling is regionally restricted along the neural tube rostrocaudal axis

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 160913 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicoletta Carucci ◽  
Emanuele Cacci ◽  
Paola S. Nisi ◽  
Valerio Licursi ◽  
Yu-Lee Paul ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neural Tube ◽  
Neural Development ◽  
Transcriptional Response ◽  
Neural Tissue ◽  
Positional Information ◽  
Multiple Roles ◽  
Chromatin Activation ◽  
Neural Stem Progenitor Cells ◽  
Rostrocaudal Axis

During vertebrate neural development, positional information is largely specified by extracellular morphogens. Their distribution, however, is very dynamic due to the multiple roles played by the same signals in the developing and adult neural tissue. This suggests that neural progenitors are able to modify their competence to respond to morphogen signalling and autonomously maintain positional identities after their initial specification. In this work, we take advantage of in vitro culture systems of mouse neural stem/progenitor cells (NSPCs) to show that NSPCs isolated from rostral or caudal regions of the mouse neural tube are differentially responsive to retinoic acid (RA), a pivotal morphogen for the specification of posterior neural fates. Hoxb genes are among the best known RA direct targets in the neural tissue, yet we found that RA could promote their transcription only in caudal but not in rostral NSPCs. Correlating with these effects, key RA-responsive regulatory regions in the Hoxb cluster displayed opposite enrichment of activating or repressing histone marks in rostral and caudal NSPCs. Finally, RA was able to strengthen Hoxb chromatin activation in caudal NSPCs, but was ineffective on the repressed Hoxb chromatin of rostral NSPCs. These results suggest that the response of NSPCs to morphogen signalling across the rostrocaudal axis of the neural tube may be gated by the epigenetic configuration of target patterning genes, allowing long-term maintenance of intrinsic positional values in spite of continuously changing extrinsic signals.

Symbiotic bacteria of helminths: what role may they play in ecosystems under anthropogenic stress?

2016 ◽  
Vol 90 (6) ◽  
pp. 647-657 ◽  
Author(s):  
N.J. Morley
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Stress ◽  
Bacterial Communities ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Symbiotic Bacteria ◽  
Anthropogenic Pressure ◽  
Anthropogenic Stress ◽  
Similar Function ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Terrestrial Habitats

AbstractSymbiotic bacteria are a common feature of many animals, particularly invertebrates, from both aquatic and terrestrial habitats. These bacteria have increasingly been recognized as performing an important role in maintaining invertebrate health. Both ecto- and endoparasitic helminths have also been found to harbour a range of bacterial species which provide a similar function. The part symbiotic bacteria play in sustaining homeostasis of free-living invertebrates exposed to anthropogenic pressure (climate change, pollution), and the consequences to invertebrate populations when their symbionts succumb to poor environmental conditions, are increasingly important areas of research. Helminths are also susceptible to environmental stress and their symbiotic bacteria may be a key aspect of their responses to deteriorating conditions. This article summarizes the ecophysiological relationship helminths have with symbiotic bacteria and the role they play in maintaining a healthy parasite and the relevance of specific changes that occur in free-living invertebrate–bacteria interactions under anthropogenic pressure to helminths and their bacterial communities. It also discusses the importance of understanding the mechanistic sensitivity of helminth–bacteria relationships to environmental stress for comprehending the responses of parasites to challenging conditions.

Dominant symbiotic bacteria associated with wild medfly populations reveal a bacteriocin-like killing phenotype: a ‘cold-case’ study

2019 ◽  
Vol 110 (4) ◽  
pp. 457-462
Author(s):  
Silvia Ciolfi ◽  
Laura Marri
Keyword(s):  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Klebsiella Oxytoca ◽  
Pcr Amplification ◽  
Fruit Trees ◽  
Antagonistic Activity ◽  
Culture Collection ◽  
Symbiotic Bacteria ◽  
Bacterial Populations

AbstractThe gut of the agricultural pest Ceratitis capitata hosts a varied community of bacteria, mainly Enterobacteriaceae, that were implicated in several processes that increase the fitness of the insect. In this study, we investigated the antagonistic activity in vitro of Klebsiella oxytoca strains isolated in the 1990s from the alimentary tract of wild medflies collected from different varieties of fruit trees at diverse localities. Assays were carried out against reference strains (representative of Gram-negative and -positive bacterial species) of the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC). Eight Klebsiella, out of 11, expressed a killing activity against Escherichia coli ATCC 23739, and Enterobacter cloacae ATCC 13047; among the eight strains, at least one showed activity against Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 23853. Genomic DNA derived from all Klebsiella strains was then subjected to PCR amplification using specific primer pairs designed from each of the four bacteriocin (KlebB, C, D, CCL) sequences found so far in Klebsiella. KlebD primer pairs were the only to produce a single product for all strains expressing the killing phenotype in vitro. One of the amplicons was cloned and sequenced; the DNA sequence shows 93% identity with a plasmid-carried colicin-D gene of a strain of Klebsiella michiganensis, and 86% identity with the sequence encoding for the klebicin D activity protein in K. oxytoca. Our work provides the first evidence that dominant symbiotic bacteria associated with wild medfly populations express a killing phenotype that may mediate inter and intraspecies competition among bacterial populations in the insect gut in vivo.

scholarly journals Extracellular Vesicles in Smoking-Mediated HIV Pathogenesis and their Potential Role in Biomarker Discovery and Therapeutic Interventions

Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 864 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanjana Haque ◽  
Sunitha Kodidela ◽  
Kelli Gerth ◽  
Elham Hatami ◽  
Neha Verma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Extracellular Vesicles ◽  
Biomarker Discovery ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Therapeutic Interventions ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Hiv Replication ◽  
Hiv Pathogenesis ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

In the last two decades, the mortality rate in people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) has decreased significantly, resulting in an almost normal longevity in this population. However, a large portion of this population still endures a poor quality of life, mostly due to an increased inclination for substance abuse, including tobacco smoking. The prevalence of smoking in PLWHA is consistently higher than in HIV negative persons. A predisposition to cigarette smoking in the setting of HIV potentially leads to exacerbated HIV replication and a higher risk for developing neurocognitive and other CNS disorders. Oxidative stress and inflammation have been identified as mechanistic pathways in smoking-mediated HIV pathogenesis and HIV-associated neuropathogenesis. Extracellular vesicles (EVs), packaged with oxidative stress and inflammatory agents, show promise in understanding the underlying mechanisms of smoking-induced HIV pathogenesis via cell-cell interactions. This review focuses on recent advances in the field of EVs with an emphasis on smoking-mediated HIV pathogenesis and HIV-associated neuropathogenesis. This review also provides an overview of the potential applications of EVs in developing novel therapeutic carriers for the treatment of HIV-infected individuals who smoke, and in the discovery of novel biomarkers that are associated with HIV-smoking interactions in the CNS.

scholarly journals Characterization of the SOS Regulon of Caulobacter crescentus

2007 ◽  
Vol 190 (4) ◽  
pp. 1209-1218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raquel Paes da Rocha ◽  
Apuã César de Miranda Paquola ◽  
Marilis do Valle Marques ◽  
Carlos Frederico Martins Menck ◽  
Rodrigo S. Galhardo
Keyword(s):  
Dna Damage ◽  
Caulobacter Crescentus ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Direct Repeat ◽  
Site Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Promoter Regions ◽  
Potential Promoter

ABSTRACT The SOS regulon is a paradigm of bacterial responses to DNA damage. A wide variety of bacterial species possess homologs of lexA and recA, the central players in the regulation of the SOS circuit. Nevertheless, the genes actually regulated by the SOS have been determined only experimentally in a few bacterial species. In this work, we describe 37 genes regulated in a LexA-dependent manner in the alphaproteobacterium Caulobacter crescentus. In agreement with previous results, we have found that the direct repeat GTTCN7GTTC is the SOS operator of C. crescentus, which was confirmed by site-directed mutagenesis studies of the imuA promoter. Several potential promoter regions containing the SOS operator were identified in the genome, and the expression of the corresponding genes was analyzed for both the wild type and the lexA strain, demonstrating that the vast majority of these genes are indeed SOS regulated. Interestingly, many of these genes encode proteins with unknown functions, revealing the potential of this approach for the discovery of novel genes involved in cellular responses to DNA damage in prokaryotes, and illustrating the diversity of SOS-regulated genes among different bacterial species.

scholarly journals Elevated Hedgehog activity contributes to attenuated DNA damage responses in aged hematopoietic cells

Leukemia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 1125-1134
Author(s):  
Annika Scheffold ◽  
Ali H. Baig ◽  
Zhiyang Chen ◽  
Sarah E. von Löhneysen ◽  
Friedrich Becker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Damage ◽  
Therapeutic Strategy ◽  
Damage Tolerance ◽  
Dna Lesions ◽  
Hematopoietic Progenitors ◽  
Dna Damage Tolerance ◽  
Hematopoietic System ◽  
Dna Damage Responses ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Bulky Dna Lesions

AbstractAccumulation of DNA damage and myeloid-skewed differentiation characterize aging of the hematopoietic system, yet underlying mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Here, we show that aging hematopoietic progenitor cells particularly of the myeloid branch exhibit enhanced resistance to bulky DNA lesions—a relevant type of DNA damage induced by toxins such as cancer drugs or endogenous aldehydes. We identified aging-associated activation of the Hedgehog (Hh) pathway to be connected to this phenotype. Inhibition of Hh signaling reverts DNA damage tolerance and DNA damage-resistant proliferation in aged hematopoietic progenitors. Vice versa, elevating Hh activity in young hematopoietic progenitors is sufficient to impair DNA damage responses. Altogether, these findings provide experimental evidence for aging-associated increases in Hh activity driving DNA damage tolerance in myeloid progenitors and myeloid-skewed differentiation. Modulation of Hh activity could thus be explored as a therapeutic strategy to prevent DNA damage tolerance, myeloid skewing, and disease development in the aging hematopoietic system.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document