scholarly journals Uterus-specific transcriptional regulation underlies eggshell pigment production in Japanese quail

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Satoshi Ishishita ◽  
Shumpei Kitahara ◽  
Mayuko Takahashi ◽  
Sakura Iwasaki ◽  
Shoji Tatsumoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transcriptional Regulation ◽  
Japanese Quail ◽  
Aminolevulinic Acid ◽  
Protoporphyrin Ix ◽  
Genomic Region ◽  
Pigment Production ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Its Gene ◽  
Uterine Mucosa ◽  
In The Wild

The precursor of heme, protoporphyrin IX (PPIX), accumulates abundantly in the uterus of birds, such as Japanese quail, Coturnix japonica, resulting in brown-speckled eggshells. The molecular basis of PPIX production in the uterus remains largely unknown. Here, we investigated the cause of low PPIX production in a classical Japanese quail mutant exhibiting white eggshells by comparing its gene expression in the uterus with that of the wild type using transcriptome analysis and performed genetic linkage mapping to identify the causative genomic region of the white eggshell phenotype. We showed that 11 genes, including the 5-aminolevulinic acid synthase 1 (ALAS1) and ferroxidase hephaestin-like 1 (HEPHL1) genes, were specifically upregulated in the wild-type uterus and downregulated in the mutant. We mapped the 172 kb candidate genomic region on chromosome 6, which contains several genes, including a part of the paired-like homeodomain 3 (PITX3), which encodes a transcription factor. ALAS1, HEPHL1, and PITX3 were expressed in the apical cells of the luminal epithelium and lamina propria cells of the uterine mucosa of the wild-type quail, and their expression was downregulated in these cells of the mutant quail. Biochemical analysis using uterine homogenates indicated that the restricted availability of 5-aminolevulinic acid is the main cause of low PPIX production. These results suggest that uterus-specific transcriptional regulation of heme-biosynthesis-related genes is an evolutionarily acquired mechanism of eggshell pigment production in Japanese quail.

scholarly journals Identification and molecular characterization of a Chlamydomonas reinhardtii mutant that shows a light intensity dependent progressive chlorophyll deficiency

F1000Research ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 142
Author(s):  
Phillip B Grovenstein ◽  
Darryel A Wilson ◽  
Kathryn D Lankford ◽  
Kelsey A Gaston ◽  
Surangi Perera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Light Intensity ◽  
Insertional Mutagenesis ◽  
Protoporphyrin Ix ◽  
Model Organism ◽  
Genomic Region ◽  
Oxygenic Photosynthesis ◽  
Autotrophic Growth ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Light Intensities ◽  
In The Wild

The green micro-alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is an elegant model organism to study all aspects of oxygenic photosynthesis. Chlorophyll (Chl) and heme are major tetrapyrroles that play an essential role in energy metabolism in photosynthetic organisms. These tetrapyrroles are synthesized via a common branched pathway that involves mainly nuclear encoded enzymes. One of the enzymes in the pathway is Mg chelatase (MgChel) which inserts Mg2+ into protoporphyrin IX (PPIX, proto) to form Magnesium-protoporphyrin IX (MgPPIX, Mgproto), the first biosynthetic intermediate in the Chl branch. The GUN4 (genomes uncoupled 4) protein is not essential for the MgChel activity but has been shown to significantly stimulate its activity. We have isolated a light sensitive mutant, 6F14, by random DNA insertional mutagenesis. 6F14 cannot tolerate light intensities higher than 90-100 μmol photons m-2 s-1. It shows a light intensity dependent progressive photo-bleaching. 6F14 is incapable of photo-autotrophic growth under light intensity higher than 100 μmol photons m-2 s-1. PCR based analyses show that in 6F14 the insertion of the plasmid outside the GUN4 locus has resulted in a genetic rearrangement of the GUN4 gene and possible deletions in the genomic region flanking the GUN4 gene. Our gun4 mutant has a Chl content very similar to that in the wild type in the dark and is very sensitive to fluctuations in the light intensity in the environment unlike the earlier identified Chlamydomonas gun4 mutant. Complementation with a functional copy of the GUN4 gene restored light tolerance, Chl biosynthesis and photo-autotrophic growth under high light intensities in 6F14. 6F14 is the second gun4 mutant to be identified in C. reinhardtii. Additionally, we show that our two gun4 complements over-express the GUN4 protein and show a higher Chl content per cell compared to that in the wild type strain.

scholarly journals Identification and molecular characterization of the second Chlamydomonas gun4 mutant, gun4-II

F1000Research ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 142
Author(s):  
Phillip B Grovenstein ◽  
Darryel A Wilson ◽  
Kathryn D Lankford ◽  
Kelsey A Gaston ◽  
Surangi Perera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Light Intensity ◽  
Insertional Mutagenesis ◽  
Protoporphyrin Ix ◽  
Model Organism ◽  
Genomic Region ◽  
Oxygenic Photosynthesis ◽  
Autotrophic Growth ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Light Intensities ◽  
In The Wild

The green micro-alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is an elegant model organism to study oxygenic photosynthesis. Chlorophyll (Chl) and heme are major tetrapyrroles that play an essential role in photosynthesis and respiration. These tetrapyrroles are synthesized via a common branched pathway that involves mainly enzymes, encoded by nuclear genes. One of the enzymes in the pathway is Mg chelatase (MgChel). MgChel catalyzes insertion of Mg2+ into protoporphyrin IX (PPIX, proto) to form Magnesium-protoporphyrin IX (MgPPIX, Mgproto), the first biosynthetic intermediate in the Chl branch. The GUN4 (genomes uncoupled 4) protein is not essential for the MgChel activity but has been shown to significantly stimulate its activity. We have isolated a light sensitive mutant, 6F14, by random DNA insertional mutagenesis. 6F14 cannot tolerate light intensities higher than 90-100 μmol photons m-2 s-1. It shows a light intensity dependent progressive photo-bleaching. 6F14 is incapable of photo-autotrophic growth under light intensity higher than 100 μmol photons m-2 s-1. PCR based analyses show that in 6F14 the insertion of the plasmid outside the GUN4 locus has resulted in a genetic rearrangement of the GUN4 gene and possible deletions in the genomic region flanking the GUN4 gene. Our gun4 mutant has a Chl content very similar to that in the wild type in the dark and is very sensitive to fluctuations in the light intensity in the environment unlike the earlier identified Chlamydomonas gun4 mutant. Complementation with a functional copy of the GUN4 gene restored light tolerance, Chl biosynthesis and photo-autotrophic growth under high light intensities in 6F14. 6F14 is the second gun4 mutant to be identified in C. reinhardtii. Additionally, we show that our two gun4 complements over-express the GUN4 protein and show a higher Chl content per cell compared to that in the wild type strain.

scholarly journals Iron-Dependent Cytochrome c1 Expression Is Mediated by the Status of Heme in Bradyrhizobium japonicum

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (15) ◽  
pp. 5084-5089 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao Gao ◽  
Mark R. O'Brian
Keyword(s):  
Bradyrhizobium Japonicum ◽  
Aminolevulinic Acid ◽  
Iron Status ◽  
Covalent Binding ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Prosthetic Group ◽  
Protein Levels ◽  
Genes Encoding ◽  
In The Wild

ABSTRACT The heme prosthetic group of heme proteins contains iron, which can be a limiting nutrient. Here, we show that cytochrome c 1 protein from Bradyrhizobium japonicum was strongly affected by the iron status, with low expression in cells grown under iron limitation. This control was not affected in mutants encoding the iron regulator Irr or Fur. Furthermore, cytochrome c 1 mRNA was not influenced by the iron status, suggesting control at a posttranscriptional step. Cytochrome c 1 protein levels were very low in mutants defective in the genes encoding δ-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) synthase and ferrochelatase, enzymes that catalyze the first and final steps of the heme biosynthetic pathway, respectively. Iron-dependent cytochrome c 1 expression was restored in the ALA synthase mutant by supplementation of the medium with the heme precursor ALA. Supplementation with heme resulted in high levels of cytochrome c 1 protein in the wild type and in both mutants, but expression was no longer iron dependent. Cytochrome c 1 is synthesized as a protein precursor fused with cytochrome b. A plasmid-borne construct encoding only cytochrome c 1 was expressed in an iron- and heme-dependent manner similar to that of the wild-type gene, indicating that control by those effectors is not linked to posttranslational processing of the fusion protein. Mutation of the cytochrome c 1 cysteines involved in covalent binding to heme nearly abolished immunodetectable protein. Thus, defects in heme synthesis or heme binding abrogate cytochrome c 1 accumulation, apparently due to protein degradation. We suggest that iron-dependent cytochrome c 1 expression is mediated by heme availability for heme protein formation

scholarly journals takeout, a Novel DrosophilaGene under Circadian Clock Transcriptional Regulation

2000 ◽  
Vol 20 (18) ◽  
pp. 6935-6944 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Venus So ◽  
Lea Sarov-Blat ◽  
Carolyn K. Kotarski ◽  
Michael J. McDonald ◽  
Ravi Allada ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Transcriptional Regulation ◽  
Transcription Factors ◽  
Gene Family ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Circadian Control ◽  
Its Gene ◽  
E Box ◽  
Identification And Characterization

ABSTRACT We report the identification and characterization of a newDrosophila clock-regulated gene, takeout(to). to is a member of a novel gene family and is implicated in circadian control of feeding behavior. Its gene expression is down-regulated in all of the clock mutants tested. In wild-type flies, to mRNA exhibits daily cycling expression but with a novel phase, delayed relative to those of the better-characterized clock mRNAs, period andtimeless. The E-box-containing sequence in theto promoter shows impressive similarities with those ofperiod and timeless. However, our results suggest that the E box is not involved in the amplitude and phase of the transcriptional cycling of to. The circadian delayed transcriptional phase is therefore most likely the result of indirect regulation through unknown transcription factors.

The glnAntrBC operon of Herbaspirillum seropedicae is transcribed by two oppositely regulated promoters upstream of glnA

2007 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 100-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Schwab ◽  
Emanuel M Souza ◽  
Marshall G Yates ◽  
Darlene C Persuhn ◽  
M Berenice R. Steffens ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transcriptional Regulation ◽  
Endophytic Bacterium ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Herbaspirillum Seropedicae ◽  
Promoter Sequences ◽  
Intergenic Regions ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Ammonium Regulation ◽  
Regulated Promoters ◽  
Wild Type Promoter

Herbaspirillum seropedicae is an endophytic bacterium that fixes nitrogen under microaerophilic conditions. The putative promoter sequences glnAp1 (σ70-dependent) and glnAp2 (σ54), and two NtrC-binding sites were identified upstream from the glnA, ntrB and ntrC genes of this microorganism. To study their transcriptional regulation, we used lacZ fusions to the H. seropedicae glnA gene, and the glnA-ntrB and ntrB-ntrC intergenic regions. Expression of glnA was up-regulated under low ammonium, but no transcription activity was detected from the intergenic regions under any condition tested, suggesting that glnA, ntrB and ntrC are co-transcribed from the promoters upstream of glnA. Ammonium regulation was lost in the ntrC mutant strain. A point mutation was introduced in the conserved –25/–24 dinucleotide (GG→TT) of the putative σ54-dependent promoter (glnAp2). Contrary to the wild-type promoter, glnA expression with the mutant glnAp2 promoter was repressed in the wild-type strain under low ammonium levels, but this repression was abolished in an ntrC background. Together our results indicate that the H. seropedicae glnAntrBC operon is regulated from two functional promoters upstream from glnA, which are oppositely regulated by the NtrC protein.Key words: Herbaspirillum seropedicae, nitrogen assimilation, glnAntrBC operon, transcriptional regulation.

Co-ordination of iron acquisition, iron porphyrin chelation and iron–protoporphyrin export via the cytochrome c biogenesis protein CcmC in Pseudomonas fluorescens

Microbiology ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 149 (12) ◽  
pp. 3543-3552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Baysse ◽  
Sandra Matthijs ◽  
Max Schobert ◽  
Gunhild Layer ◽  
Dieter Jahn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Fluorescens ◽  
Aminolevulinic Acid ◽  
Light Exposure ◽  
Iron Acquisition ◽  
Protoporphyrin Ix ◽  
Indicator Strain ◽  
Proteinase K ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Feeding Experiments ◽  
Iron Protoporphyrin

The cytoplasmic membrane protein CcmC is, together with other Ccm proteins, a component for the maturation of c-type cytochromes in Gram-negative bacteria. A Pseudomonas fluorescens ATCC 17400 ccmC mutant is cytochrome c-deficient and shows considerably reduced production of the two siderophores pyoverdine and quinolobactin, paralleled by a general inability to utilize various iron sources, with the exception of haem. The ccmC mutant accumulates in a 5-aminolevulinic acid-dependent synthesis a reddish, fluorescent pigment identified as protoporphyrin IX. As a consequence a visA phenotype similar to that of a ferrochelatase-deficient hemH mutant characterized by drastically reduced growth upon light exposure was observed for the ccmC mutant. The defect of iron–protoporphyrin formation was further demonstrated by the failure of ccmC cell-free proteinase K-treated extracts to stimulate the growth of a haem auxotrophic hemH indicator strain, compared to similarly prepared wild-type extracts. In addition, the ccmC mutant did not sustain hemH growth in cross-feeding experiments while the wild-type did. Significantly reduced resistance to oxidative stress mediated by haem-containing catalases was observed for the ccmC mutant. A double hemH ccmC mutant could not be obtained in the presence of external haem without the hemH gene in trans, indicating that the combination of the two mutations is lethal. It was concluded that CcmC, apart from its known function in cytochrome c biogenesis, plays a role in haem biosynthesis. A function in the regulatory co-ordination of iron acquisition via siderophores, iron insertion into porphyrin via ferrochelatase and iron–protoporphyrin export for cytochrome c formation is predicted.

scholarly journals Neurofilament deficiency in quail caused by nonsense mutation in neurofilament-L gene.

1993 ◽  
Vol 121 (2) ◽  
pp. 387-395 ◽  
Author(s):  
O Ohara ◽  
Y Gahara ◽  
T Miyake ◽  
H Teraoka ◽  
T Kitamura
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Japanese Quail ◽  
Nonsense Mutation ◽  
Trace Amount ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Deficient Mutant ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Genetic Events

The existence of a neurofilament-deficient mutant of Japanese quail was recently documented (Yamasaki, H., C. Itakura, and M. Mizutani. 1991. Acta Neuropathol. 82:427-434), but the genetic events leading to the neurofilament deficiency have yet to be determined. Our molecular biological analyses revealed that the expression of neurofilament-L (NF-L) gene was specifically repressed in neurons of this mutant. To search for mutation(s) responsible for the shutdown of this gene expression, we cloned and sequenced the NF-L genes in the wild-type and mutant quails. It is eventually found that the NF-L gene in the mutant includes a nonsense mutation at the deduced amino acid residue 114, indicating that the mutant is incapable of producing even a trace amount of polymerization-competent NF-L protein at any situation. The identification of this nonsense mutation provides us with a solid basis on which molecular mechanisms underlying the alteration in the neuronal cytoskeletal architecture in the mutant should be interpreted.

scholarly journals MpkA-Dependent and -Independent Cell Wall Integrity Signaling in Aspergillus nidulans

2007 ◽  
Vol 6 (8) ◽  
pp. 1497-1510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomonori Fujioka ◽  
Osamu Mizutani ◽  
Kentaro Furukawa ◽  
Natsuko Sato ◽  
Akira Yoshimi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Transcriptional Regulation ◽  
Aspergillus Nidulans ◽  
Cell Wall Integrity ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Glucan Synthase ◽  
Cell Wall Biogenesis ◽  
In The Wild

ABSTRACT Cell wall integrity signaling (CWIS) maintains cell wall biogenesis in fungi, but only a few transcription factors (TFs) and target genes downstream of the CWIS cascade in filamentous fungi are known. Because a mitogen-activated protein kinase (MpkA) is a key CWIS enzyme, the transcriptional regulation of mpkA and of cell wall-related genes (CWGs) is important in cell wall biogenesis. We cloned Aspergillus nidulans mpkA; rlmA, a TF gene orthologous to Saccharomyces cerevisiae RLM1 that encodes Rlm1p, a major Mpk1p-dependent TF that regulates the transcription of MPK1 besides that of CWGs; and Answi4 and Answi6, homologous to S. cerevisiae SWI4 and SWI6, encoding the Mpk1p-activating TF complex Swi4p-Swi6p, which regulates CWG transcription in a cell cycle-dependent manner. A. nidulans rlmA and mpkA cDNA functionally complemented S. cerevisiae rlm1Δ and mpk1Δ mutants, respectively, but Answi4 and Answi6 cDNA did not complement swi4Δ and swi6Δ mutants. We constructed A. nidulans rlmA, Answi4 and Answi6, and mpkA disruptants (rlmAΔ, Answi4Δ Answi6Δ, and mpkAΔ strains) and analyzed mpkA and CWG transcripts after treatment with a β-1,3-glucan synthase inhibitor (micafungin) that could activate MpkA via CWIS. Levels of mpkA transcripts in the mutants as well as those in the wild type were changed after micafungin treatment. The β-glucuronidase reporter gene controlled by the mpkA promoter was expressed in the wild type but not in the mpkAΔ strain. Thus, mpkA transcription seems to be autoregulated by CWIS via MpkA but not by RlmA or AnSwi4-AnSwi6. The transcription of most CWGs except α-1,3-glucan synthase genes (agsA and agsB) was independent of RlmA and AnSwi4-AnSwi6 and seemed to be regulated by non-MpkA signaling. The transcriptional regulation of mpkA and of CWGs via CWIS in A. nidulans differs significantly from that in S. cerevisiae.

scholarly journals Structural and Functional Complexity of the Genomic Region Controlling AK-Toxin Biosynthesis and Pathogenicity in the Japanese Pear Pathotype of Alternaria alternata

2000 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 975-986 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aiko Tanaka ◽  
Takashi Tsuge
Keyword(s):  
Blot Analysis ◽  
Alternaria Alternata ◽  
Black Spot ◽  
Genomic Region ◽  
Cosmid Clone ◽  
Japanese Pear ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Single Chromosome ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Functional Complexity

The Japanese pear pathotype of Alternaria alternata produces host-specific AK-toxin and causes black spot of Japanese pear. Previously, a cosmid clone, pcAKT-1, was isolated that contains two genes, AKT1 and AKT2, within a 5.0-kb region required for AK-toxin biosynthesis. The wild-type strain has multiple, nonfunctional copies of these genes. In the present study, two additional genes, AKTR-1 and AKT3-1, downstream of AKT2 were identified. Transformation of the wild type with AKTR-1- and AKT3-1-targeting vectors produced toxin-deficient (Tox¯), nonpathogenic mutants. DNA gel blot analysis, however, demonstrated that the fragments targeted in Tox¯ mutants were different from those containing AKTR-1 and AKT3-1 on the transforming vectors. A cosmid clone, pcAKT-2, containing the targeted DNA was isolated and shown to carry two genes, AKTR-2 and AKT3-2, with high similarity to AKTR-1 and AKT3-1, respectively. Transcripts from not only AKTR-2 and AKT3-2 but also AKTR-1 and AKT3-1 were found in the wild type. DNA gel blot analysis with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis showed that AKT1, AKT2, AKT3, and AKTR and their homologues are on a single chromosome. These results indicate the structural and functional complexity of the genomic region controlling AK-toxin biosynthesis.

scholarly journals A Dominant Mutation in Mitochondrial Unfoldase CLPX Results in Erythropoietic Protoporphyria

Blood ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 128 (22) ◽  
pp. 77-77
Author(s):  
Yvette Y Yien ◽  
Gael Nicolas ◽  
Lisa van der Vorm ◽  
Laurent Gouya ◽  
Hector Begonia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Enzymatic Activity ◽  
Protein Stability ◽  
Pyridoxal Phosphate ◽  
Protein Quality ◽  
Aminolevulinic Acid ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
Mitochondrial Protein ◽  
Protoporphyrin Ix ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Heme Synthesis

Abstract Red cells synthesize large quantities of heme during terminal differentiation. Central to erythropoiesis is heme synthesis, which requires tight coordination between mitochondrial iron import and synthesis of protoporphyrin IX (PPIX). Most individuals with erythropoietic porphyria carry loss of function mutations in FECH, or gain of function mutations in ALAS2, resulting in protoporphyrin IX accumulation. We performed whole exome sequencing to identify novel mutations in an individual exhibiting symptoms in whom FECH and ALAS2 mutations were absent (Fig. A, asterisk). We identified a novel CLPX point mutation in this individual (III.2), her father (II.4) and her paternal uncle (II.2), who also exhibited increased porphyrin levels relative to healthy individuals. The individual's mother was healthy and had a wild-type CLPX genotype (Fig. A). CLPX encodes a mitochondrial protein unfoldase that partially unfolds ALA synthase (ALAS) to allow efficient incorporation of its cofactor, pyridoxal phosphate (Kardon et al. 2015 Cell). This greatly stimulates the synthesis of d-aminolevulinic acid (ALA), the first step in heme biosynthesis. To determine if the CLPX mutation was causative for porphyria, we expressed mutant CLPX in HEK293T embryonic kidney cells and Friend mouse erythroleukemia (MEL) cells. Mutant CLPX expression (MUT) caused a significant increase in ALAS1 (non-erythroid isoform) (Fig. B) and ALAS2 (erythroid isoform) (Fig. C) activity relative to control and wild-type CLPX expressing samples (WT). This increase in ALAS enzymatic activity translated to an increase in PPIX levels (Fig. D, E), consistent with the porphyria phenotype observed in the individuals in this study. We observed that MUT-expressing samples had increased levels of ALAS1 and ALAS2. To determine if mutant CLPX altered ALAS protein stability, we transfected WT or MUT CLPX into HEK293T and MEL cells. Cells were treated with cycloheximide to block translation. We quantitated degradation rate of ALAS by western blot analysis of cell lysates obtained at several time points after cycloheximide treatment (chase). Expression of MUT CLPX stabilized both ALAS1 and ALAS2, accounting for the increase in ALAS protein levels, activity and downstream production of PPIX. The control of ALAS enzymatic activity and protein stability by CLPX unveils a novel cause of protoporphyria and insights revealing the ways in which mitochondrial physiology and heme synthesis are interdependent. Our results reveal an important regulatory node where the mitochondrial protein quality control machinery intersects with a key step in heme synthesis and provides an important genetic tool for understanding the pathology of porphyrias. Figure 1. Figure 1. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

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