scholarly journals A miRNA catalogue and ncRNA annotation of the short-living fish Nothobranchius furzeri

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Baumgart ◽  
Emanuel Barth ◽  
Aurora Savino ◽  
Marco Groth ◽  
Philipp Koch ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTBackground: The short-lived fish Nothobranchius furzeri is the shortest-lived vertebrate that can be cultured in captivity and was recently established as a model organism for aging research. Small non-coding RNAs, especially miRNAs, are implicated in age-dependent control of gene expression.Results: Here, we present a comprehensive catalogue of miRNAs and several other non-coding RNA classes (ncRNAs) for Nothobranchius furzeri. Analyzing multiple small RNA-Seq libraries, we show most of these identified miRNAs are expressed in at least one of seven Nothobranchius species. Additionally, duplication and clustering of N. furzeri miRNAs was analyzed and compared to the four fish species Danio rerio, Oryzias latipes, Gasterosteus aculeatus and Takifugu rubripes. A peculiar characteristic of N. furzeri as compared to other teleosts was a duplication of the miR-29 cluster.Conclusion: The completeness of the catalogue we provide is comparable to that of zebrafish. This catalogue represents a basis to investigate the role of miRNAs in aging and development in this species.Availability: All supplementary material can be found online at http://www.rna.uni-jena.de/en/supplements/nothobranchius-furzeri-mirnome/.

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 743-743
Author(s):  
Anne Brunet

Abstract We have pioneered a new model organism for aging research, the naturally short-lived African killifish Nothobranchius furzeri. The African killifish lives in ephemeral pools of water in Africa, and has evolved a short life cycle adapted to this habitat. Its embryos can also resist drought until the next wet season in a state of ‘suspended life’. In laboratory conditions, the African killifish has a maximal lifespan of about 4-6 months, and is, so far, the shortest-lived vertebrate that can be bred in captivity. We have successfully transformed this natural short-lived vertebrate into a usable model organism for aging research, including de novo assembly of the genome and CRISPR-Cas9 mediated genome-editing. Our goal is to use this model to discover new principles underlying aging, longevity, and ‘suspended animation’ in vertebrates.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessia Montesano ◽  
Elena De Felice ◽  
Adele Leggieri ◽  
Antonio Palladino ◽  
Carla Lucini ◽  
...  

Nesfatin-1 (Nesf-1) was identified as an anorexigenic and well conserved molecule in rodents and fish. While tissue distribution of NUCB2 (Nucleobindin 2)/Nesf-1 is discretely known in vertebrates, reports on ontogenetic expression are scarce. Here, we examine the age-related central and peripheral expression of NUCB2/Nesf-1 in the teleost African turquoise killifish Nothobranchius furzeri, a consolidated model organism for aging research. We focused our analysis on brain areas responsible for the regulation of food intake and the rostral intestinal bulb, which is analogous of the mammalian stomach. We hypothesize that in our model, the stomach equivalent structure is the main source of NUCB2 mRNA, displaying higher expression levels than those observed in the brain, mainly during aging. Remarkably, its expression significantly increased in the rostral intestinal bulb compared to the brain, which is likely due to the typical anorexia of aging. When analyzing the pattern of expression, we confirmed the distribution in diencephalic areas involved in food intake regulation at all age stages. Interestingly, in the rostral bulb, NUCB2 mRNA was localized in the lining epithelium of young and old animals, while Nesf-1 immunoreactive cells were distributed in the submucosae. Taken together, our results represent a useful basis for gaining deeper knowledge regarding the mechanisms that regulate food intake during vertebrate aging.


Author(s):  
Sara Bagnoli ◽  
Eva Terzibasi Tozzini

Background: The annual killifish Nothobranchius furzeri is a new experimental model organism in biology, since it represents the vertebrate species with the shortest captive life span and also shows the fastest maturation and senescence recorded in the laboratory. Here, we use this model to investigate the age-dependent decay of neurogenesis in the telencephalon (brain region sharing the same embryonic origin with the mammalian adult niches), focusing on the expression of the Notch pathway genes.Results: We observed that the major ligands/receptors of the pathway showed a negative correlation with age, indicating age-dependent downregulation of the Notch pathway. Moreover, expression of notch1a was clearly limited to active neurogenic niches and declined during aging, without changing its regional patterning. Expression of notch3 is not visibly influenced by aging.Conclusion: Both expression pattern and regulation differ between notch1a and notch3, with the former being limited to mitotically active regions and reduced by aging and the latter being present in all cells with a neurogenic potential, regardless of the level of their actual mitotic activity, and so is less influenced by age. This finally suggests a possible differential role of the two receptors in the regulation of the niche proliferative potential throughout the entire fish life.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 513
Author(s):  
Zheng Zhang ◽  
Meng Gu ◽  
Zhongze Gu ◽  
Yan-Ru Lou

Genetic polymorphisms are defined as the presence of two or more different alleles in the same locus, with a frequency higher than 1% in the population. Since the discovery of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which refer to a non-coding RNA with a length of more than 200 nucleotides, their biological roles have been increasingly revealed in recent years. They regulate many cellular processes, from pluripotency to cancer. Interestingly, abnormal expression or dysfunction of lncRNAs is closely related to the occurrence of human diseases, including cancer and degenerative neurological diseases. Particularly, their polymorphisms have been found to be associated with altered drug response and/or drug toxicity in cancer treatment. However, molecular mechanisms are not yet fully elucidated, which are expected to be discovered by detailed studies of RNA–protein, RNA–DNA, and RNA–lipid interactions. In conclusion, lncRNAs polymorphisms may become biomarkers for predicting the response to chemotherapy in cancer patients. Here we review and discuss how gene polymorphisms of lncRNAs affect cancer chemotherapeutic response. This knowledge may pave the way to personalized oncology treatments.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Weiwei Liu ◽  
Dongmei Yao ◽  
Bo Huang

Abstract Cervical cancer (CC) is a huge threat to the health of women worldwide. Long non-coding RNA plasmacytoma variant translocation 1 gene (PVT1) was proved to be associated with the development of diverse human cancers, including CC. Nevertheless, the exact mechanism of PVT1 in CC progression remains unclear. Levels of PVT1, microRNA-503 (miR-503), and ADP ribosylation factor-like protein 2 (ARL2) were measured by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction or western blot assay. 3-(4,5)-Dimethylthiazole-2-y1)-2,5-biphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) and flow cytometry were used to examine cell viability and apoptosis, respectively. For migration and invasion detection, transwell assay was performed. The interaction between miR-503 and PVT1 or ARL2 was shown by dual luciferase reporter assay. A nude mouse model was constructed to clarify the role of PVT1 in vivo. PVT1 and ARL2 expressions were increased, whereas miR-503 expression was decreased in CC tissues and cells. PVT1 was a sponge of miR-503, and miR-503 targeted ARL2. PVT1 knockdown suppressed proliferation, migration, and invasion of CC cells, which could be largely reverted by miR-503 inhibitor. In addition, upregulated ARL2 could attenuate si-PVT1-mediated anti-proliferation and anti-metastasis effects on CC cells. Silenced PVT1 also inhibited CC tumor growth in vivo. PVT1 knockdown exerted tumor suppressor role in CC progression via the miR-503/ARL2 axis, at least in part.


Genes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 902
Author(s):  
Eva Costanzi ◽  
Carolina Simioni ◽  
Gabriele Varano ◽  
Cinzia Brenna ◽  
Ilaria Conti ◽  
...  

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have attracted interest as mediators of intercellular communication following the discovery that EVs contain RNA molecules, including non-coding RNA (ncRNA). Growing evidence for the enrichment of peculiar RNA species in specific EV subtypes has been demonstrated. ncRNAs, transferred from donor cells to recipient cells, confer to EVs the feature to regulate the expression of genes involved in differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis, and other biological processes. These multiple actions require accuracy in the isolation of RNA content from EVs and the methodologies used play a relevant role. In liver, EVs play a crucial role in regulating cell–cell communications and several pathophysiological events in the heterogeneous liver class of cells via horizontal transfer of their cargo. This review aims to discuss the rising role of EVs and their ncRNAs content in regulating specific aspects of hepatocellular carcinoma development, including tumorigenesis, angiogenesis, and tumor metastasis. We analyze the progress in EV-ncRNAs’ potential clinical applications as important diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for liver conditions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 215-236
Author(s):  
Nadine Saul ◽  
Steffen Möller ◽  
Francesca Cirulli ◽  
Alessandra Berry ◽  
Walter Luyten ◽  
...  

AbstractSeveral biogerontology databases exist that focus on genetic or gene expression data linked to health as well as survival, subsequent to compound treatments or genetic manipulations in animal models. However, none of these has yet collected experimental results of compound-related health changes. Since quality of life is often regarded as more valuable than length of life, we aim to fill this gap with the “Healthy Worm Database” (http://healthy-worm-database.eu). Literature describing health-related compound studies in the aging model Caenorhabditis elegans was screened, and data for 440 compounds collected. The database considers 189 publications describing 89 different phenotypes measured in 2995 different conditions. Besides enabling a targeted search for promising compounds for further investigations, this database also offers insights into the research field of studies on healthy aging based on a frequently used model organism. Some weaknesses of C. elegans-based aging studies, like underrepresented phenotypes, especially concerning cognitive functions, as well as the convenience-based use of young worms as the starting point for compound treatment or phenotype measurement are discussed. In conclusion, the database provides an anchor for the search for compounds affecting health, with a link to public databases, and it further highlights some potential shortcomings in current aging research.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Lu ◽  
Xinglei Qin ◽  
Yajun Zhou ◽  
Gang Li ◽  
Zhaoyang Liu ◽  
...  

AbstractGemcitabine is the first-line chemotherapy drug for cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), but acquired resistance has been frequently observed in CCA patients. To search for potential long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) involved in gemcitabine resistance, two gemcitabine resistant CCA cell lines were established and dysregulated lncRNAs were identified by lncRNA microarray. Long intergenic non-protein coding RNA 665 (LINC00665) were found to rank the top 10 upregulated lncRNAs in our study, and high LINC00665 expression was closely associated with poor prognosis and chemoresistance of CCA patients. Silencing LINC00665 in gemcitabine resistant CCA cells impaired gemcitabine tolerance, while enforced LINC00665 expression increased gemcitabine resistance of sensitive CCA cells. The gemcitabine resistant CCA cells showed increased EMT and stemness properties, and silencing LINC00665 suppressed sphere formation, migration, invasion and expression of EMT and stemness markers. In addition, Wnt/β-Catenin signaling was activated in gemcitabine resistant CCA cells, but LINC00665 knockdown suppressed Wnt/β-Catenin activation. B-cell CLL/lymphoma 9-like (BCL9L), the nucleus transcriptional regulators of Wnt/β-Catenin signaling, plays a key role in the nucleus translocation of β-Catenin and promotes β-Catenin-dependent transcription. In our study, we found that LINC00665 regulated BCL9L expression by acting as a molecular sponge for miR-424-5p. Moreover, silencing BCL9L or miR-424-5p overexpression suppressed gemcitabine resistance, EMT, stemness and Wnt/β-Catenin activation in resistant CCA cells. In conclusion, our results disclosed the important role of LINC00665 in gemcitabine resistance of CCA cells, and provided a new biomarker or therapeutic target for CCA treament.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (15) ◽  
pp. 8197
Author(s):  
Kinga Kęska ◽  
Michał Wojciech Szcześniak ◽  
Adela Adamus ◽  
Małgorzata Czernicka

Low oxygen level is a phenomenon often occurring during the cucumber cultivation period. Genes involved in adaptations to stress can be regulated by non-coding RNA. The aim was the identification of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) involved in the response to long-term waterlogging stress in two cucumber haploid lines, i.e., DH2 (waterlogging tolerant—WL-T) and DH4 (waterlogging sensitive—WL-S). Plants, at the juvenile stage, were waterlogged for 7 days (non-primed, 1xH), and after a 14-day recovery period, plants were stressed again for another 7 days (primed, 2xH). Roots were collected for high-throughput RNA sequencing. Implementation of the bioinformatic pipeline made it possible to determine specific lncRNAs for non-primed and primed plants of both accessions, highlighting differential responses to hypoxia stress. In total, 3738 lncRNA molecules were identified. The highest number (1476) of unique lncRNAs was determined for non-primed WL-S plants. Seventy-one lncRNAs were depicted as potentially being involved in acquiring tolerance to hypoxia in cucumber. Understanding the mechanism of gene regulation under long-term waterlogging by lncRNAs and their interactions with miRNAs provides sufficient information in terms of adaptation to the oxygen deprivation in cucumber. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report concerning the role of lncRNAs in the regulation of long-term waterlogging tolerance by priming application in cucumber.


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