scholarly journals Pegasus, a small extracellular peptide regulating the short-range diffusion of Wingless

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emile G Magny ◽  
Jose I Pueyo ◽  
Sarah A Bishop ◽  
Daniel Aguilar-Hidalgo ◽  
Juan Pablo Couso
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Short Range ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Wing Margin ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Developmental Context ◽  
Functional Consequences ◽  
Gradient Measurements ◽  
Small Open Reading Frame

AbstractSmall Open Reading Frames (smORFs) coding for peptides of less than 100 amino-acids are emerging as a fundamental and pervasive gene class, found in the hundreds of thousands in metazoan genomes. Even though some of these genes are annotated, their function, if any, remains unknown. Here we characterize the function of a smORF encoding a short 80 aa peptide, pegasus (peg), which facilitates Wg diffusion during the development of the Drosophila wing imaginal disc. During wing development, Wg has sequential functions, and in the later stages, when peg is strongly expressed, it patterns the presumptive wing margin. A reduction in Wg protein secretion at this stage produces effects ranging from total abolition of the wing margin to partial loss of bristles and reduction of proneural gene expression. Here we show that the Peg peptide enhances the short-range of Wg diffusion in this context, in order to produce a proper wing margin. We show that CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mutations of pegasus generate wing margin phenotypes, and changes in target gene expression, consistent with a role in Wg signalling. We find that Peg is secreted, and that it co-localizes and co-immunoprecipitates with Wg, suggesting that Peg directly binds Wg in order to enhance its signalling, and our data from fixed and in-vivo Wg gradient measurements supports a model in which this enhancement occurs by increasing diffusion of extracellular Wg. Our results unveil a new element in the regulation of the Wg signalling pathway, and shed light on the functional consequences of the miss-regulation of Wg diffusion in this developmental context, while also reminding us of the functional diversity, and relevance of small open reading frame genes.

scholarly journals Pegasus, a small extracellular peptide enhancing short-range diffusion of Wingless

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emile G. Magny ◽  
Ana Isabel Platero ◽  
Sarah A. Bishop ◽  
Jose I. Pueyo ◽  
Daniel Aguilar-Hidalgo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Short Range ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Physical Interaction ◽  
Wing Margin ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Amino Acid Peptide ◽  
Small Open Reading Frame ◽  
Small Open Reading Frames

AbstractSmall Open Reading Frames (smORFs) coding for peptides of less than 100 amino-acids are an enigmatic and pervasive gene class, found in the tens of thousands in metazoan genomes. Here we reveal a short 80 amino-acid peptide (Pegasus) which enhances Wingless/Wnt1 protein short-range diffusion and signalling. During Drosophila wing development, Wingless has sequential functions, including late induction of proneural gene expression and wing margin development. Pegasus mutants produce wing margin defects and proneural expression loss similar to those of Wingless. Pegasus is secreted, and co-localizes and co-immunoprecipitates with Wingless, suggesting their physical interaction. Finally, measurements of fixed and in-vivo Wingless gradients support that Pegasus increases Wingless diffusion in order to enhance its signalling. Our results unveil a new element in Wingless signalling and clarify the patterning role of Wingless diffusion, while corroborating the link between small open reading frame peptides, and regulation of known proteins with membrane-related functions.

scholarly journals The Open Reading Frame 3a Protein of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Associated Coronavirus Promotes Membrane Rearrangement and Cell Death

2009 ◽  
Vol 84 (2) ◽  
pp. 1097-1109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric C. Freundt ◽  
Li Yu ◽  
Cynthia S. Goldsmith ◽  
Sarah Welsh ◽  
Aaron Cheng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Death ◽  
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Vero Cells ◽  
Small Gtpase ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Accessory Proteins ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Golgi Fragmentation

ABSTRACT The genome of the severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV) contains eight open reading frames (ORFs) that encode novel proteins. These accessory proteins are dispensable for in vitro and in vivo replication and thus may be important for other aspects of virus-host interactions. We investigated the functions of the largest of the accessory proteins, the ORF 3a protein, using a 3a-deficient strain of SARS-CoV. Cell death of Vero cells after infection with SARS-CoV was reduced upon deletion of ORF 3a. Electron microscopy of infected cells revealed a role for ORF 3a in SARS-CoV induced vesicle formation, a prominent feature of cells from SARS patients. In addition, we report that ORF 3a is both necessary and sufficient for SARS-CoV-induced Golgi fragmentation and that the 3a protein accumulates and localizes to vesicles containing markers for late endosomes. Finally, overexpression of ADP-ribosylation factor 1 (Arf1), a small GTPase essential for the maintenance of the Golgi apparatus, restored Golgi morphology during infection. These results establish an important role for ORF 3a in SARS-CoV-induced cell death, Golgi fragmentation, and the accumulation of intracellular vesicles.

scholarly journals Targeted Nuclear Import of Open Reading Frame 1 Protein Is Required for In Vivo Retrotransposition of a Telomere-Specific Non-Long Terminal Repeat Retrotransposon, SART1

2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takumi Matsumoto ◽  
Hidekazu Takahashi ◽  
Haruhiko Fujiwara
Keyword(s):  
Long Terminal Repeat ◽  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Terminal Repeat ◽  
Ltr Retrotransposons ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Localization Pattern ◽  
Nuclear Localization Signals

ABSTRACT Non-long terminal repeat (non-LTR) retrotransposons, most of which carry two open reading frames (ORFs), are abundant mobile elements that are distributed widely among eukaryotes. ORF2 encodes enzymatic domains, such as reverse transcriptase, that are conserved in all retroelements, but the functional roles of ORF1 in vivo are little understood. We show with green fluorescent protein-ORF1 fusion proteins that the ORF1 proteins of SART1, a telomeric repeat-specific non-LTR retrotransposon in Bombyx mori, are transported into the nucleus to produce a dotted localization pattern. Nuclear localization signals N1 (RRKR) and N2 (PSKRGRG) at the N terminus and a highly basic region in the center of SART1 ORF1 are involved in nuclear import and the dotted localization pattern in the nucleus, respectively. An in vivo retrotransposition assay clarified that at least three ORF1 domains, N1/N2, the central basic domain, and CCHC zinc fingers are required for SART1 retrotransposition. The nuclear import activity of SART1 ORF1 makes it clear that the ORF1 proteins of non-LTR retrotransposons work mainly in the nucleus, in contrast to the cytoplasmic action of Gag proteins of LTR elements. The functional domains found here in SART1 ORF1 will be useful for developing a more efficient and target-specific LINE-based gene delivery vector.

scholarly journals Conserved Upstream Open Reading Frame Nascent Peptides That Control Translation

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 237-264
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Dever ◽  
Ivaylo P. Ivanov ◽  
Matthew S. Sachs
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Upstream Open Reading Frame ◽  
Messenger Rnas ◽  
Regulate Gene Expression ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Ribosome Stalling ◽  
Evolutionarily Conserved ◽  
Upstream Open Reading Frames ◽  
Control Translation

Cells utilize transcriptional and posttranscriptional mechanisms to alter gene expression in response to environmental cues. Gene-specific controls, including changing the translation of specific messenger RNAs (mRNAs), provide a rapid means to respond precisely to different conditions. Upstream open reading frames (uORFs) are known to control the translation of mRNAs. Recent studies in bacteria and eukaryotes have revealed the functions of evolutionarily conserved uORF-encoded peptides. Some of these uORF-encoded nascent peptides enable responses to specific metabolites to modulate the translation of their mRNAs by stalling ribosomes and through ribosome stalling may also modulate the level of their mRNAs. In this review, we highlight several examples of conserved uORF nascent peptides that stall ribosomes to regulate gene expression in response to specific metabolites in bacteria, fungi, mammals, and plants.

scholarly journals Translation Initiation from Conserved Non-AUG Codons Provides Additional Layers of Regulation and Coding Capacity

mBio ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivaylo P. Ivanov ◽  
Jiajie Wei ◽  
Stephen Z. Caster ◽  
Kristina M. Smith ◽  
Audrey M. Michel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Neurospora Crassa ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Coding Sequence ◽  
Cell Extracts ◽  
Upstream Open Reading Frames ◽  
Reading Frames

ABSTRACT Neurospora crassa cpc-1 and Saccharomyces cerevisiae GCN4 are homologs specifying transcription activators that drive the transcriptional response to amino acid limitation. The cpc-1 mRNA contains two upstream open reading frames (uORFs) in its >700-nucleotide (nt) 5′ leader, and its expression is controlled at the level of translation in response to amino acid starvation. We used N. crassa cell extracts and obtained data indicating that cpc-1 uORF1 and uORF2 are functionally analogous to GCN4 uORF1 and uORF4, respectively, in controlling translation. We also found that the 5′ region upstream of the main coding sequence of the cpc-1 mRNA extends for more than 700 nucleotides without any in-frame stop codon. For 100 cpc-1 homologs from Pezizomycotina and from selected Basidiomycota, 5′ conserved extensions of the CPC1 reading frame are also observed. Multiple non-AUG near-cognate codons (NCCs) in the CPC1 reading frame upstream of uORF2, some deeply conserved, could potentially initiate translation. At least four NCCs initiated translation in vitro . In vivo data were consistent with initiation at NCCs to produce N-terminally extended N. crassa CPC1 isoforms. The pivotal role played by CPC1, combined with its translational regulation by uORFs and NCC utilization, underscores the emerging significance of noncanonical initiation events in controlling gene expression. IMPORTANCE There is a deepening and widening appreciation of the diverse roles of translation in controlling gene expression. A central fungal transcription factor, the best-studied example of which is Saccharomyces cerevisiae GCN4, is crucial for the response to amino acid limitation. Two upstream open reading frames (uORFs) in the GCN4 mRNA are critical for controlling GCN4 synthesis. We observed that two uORFs in the corresponding Neurospora crassa cpc-1 mRNA appear functionally analogous to the GCN4 uORFs. We also discovered that, surprisingly, unlike GCN4, the CPC1 coding sequence extends far upstream from the presumed AUG start codon with no other in-frame AUG codons. Similar extensions were seen in homologs from many filamentous fungi. We observed that multiple non-AUG near-cognate codons (NCCs) in this extended reading frame, some conserved, initiated translation to produce longer forms of CPC1, underscoring the significance of noncanonical initiation in controlling gene expression.

Cloning and characterization of theddsAgene encoding decaprenyl diphosphate synthase fromRhodobacter capsulatusB10

2006 ◽  
Vol 52 (12) ◽  
pp. 1141-1147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinyi Liu ◽  
Haizhen Wu ◽  
Jiang Ye ◽  
Qinsheng Yuan ◽  
Huizhan Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Rhodobacter Capsulatus ◽  
Open Reading Frame ◽  
High Similarity ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Endogenous Production ◽  
Genome Library

A decaprenyl diphosphate synthase gene (ddsA, GenBank accession No. DQ191802) was cloned from Rhodobacter capsulatus B10 by constructing and screening the genome library. An open reading frame of 1002 bp was revealed from sequence analysis. The deduced polypeptide consisted of 333 amino acids residues with an molecular mass of about 37 kDa. The DdsA protein contained the conserved amino acid sequence (DDXXD) of E-type polyprenyl diphosphate synthase and showed high similarity to others. In contrast, DdsA showed only 39% identity to a solanesyl diphosphate synthase cloned from R. capsulatus SB1003. DdsA was expressed successfully in Escherichia coli. Assaying the enzyme in vivo found it made E.coli synthesize UQ-10 in addition to the endogenous production UQ-8.Key words: ubiquinone, polyprenyl diphosphate synthase, gene expression, Rhodobacter capsulatus.

scholarly journals Characterization of late gene expression factors lef-9 and lef-8 from Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus

2002 ◽  
Vol 83 (8) ◽  
pp. 2015-2023 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asha Acharya ◽  
Karumathil P. Gopinathan
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Bombyx Mori ◽  
Late Gene ◽  
Late Gene Expression ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Early Transcription ◽  
A Site ◽  
Translational Termination

Late gene expression factors, LEF-4, LEF-8, LEF-9 and P47 constitute the primary components of the Autographa californica multinucleocapsid polyhedrovirus (AcMNPV)-encoded RNA polymerase, which initiates transcription from late and very late promoters. Here, characterization of lef-9 and lef-8, which encode their corresponding counterparts, from Bombyx mori NPV is reported. Transcription of lef-9 initiated at two independent sites: from a GCACT sequence located at −38 nt and a CTCTT sequence located at −50 nt, with respect to the +1 ATG of the open reading frame. The 3′ end of the transcript was mapped to a site 17 nt downstream of a canonical polyadenylation signal located 7 nt downstream of the first of the two tandem translational termination codons. Maximum synthesis of LEF-9 was seen from 36 h post-infection (p.i.). The transcription of lef-8 initiated early in infection from a GTGCAAT sequence that differed in the corresponding region from its AcMNPV counterpart (GCGCAGT), with consequent elimination of the consensus early transcription start site motif (underlined). Peak levels of lef-8 transcripts were attained by 24 h p.i. Immunocopurification analyses suggested that there was an association between LEF-8 and LEF-9 in vivo.

scholarly journals Small open reading frames and cellular stress responses

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 108-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Khitun ◽  
Travis J. Ness ◽  
Sarah A. Slavoff
Keyword(s):  
Stress Responses ◽  
Cellular Stress ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Open Reading Frame ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Cellular Stress Responses ◽  
Small Open Reading Frame ◽  
Reading Frames ◽  
Small Open Reading Frames

Increasing evidence suggests that some small open reading frame-encoded polypeptides (SEPs) function in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cellular stress responses.

scholarly journals Leaky Scanning and Reinitiation Regulate BACE1 Gene Expression

2006 ◽  
Vol 26 (9) ◽  
pp. 3353-3364 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weihui Zhou ◽  
Weihong Song
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Translation Initiation ◽  
Amyloid Β ◽  
Upstream Open Reading Frame ◽  
Amyloid Β Protein ◽  
Leaky Scanning ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Bace1 Expression ◽  
Weak Expression

ABSTRACT β-Site β-amyloid precursor protein (APP)-cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1) is the β-secretase in vivo for processing APP to generate amyloid β protein (Aβ). Aβ deposition in the brain is the hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) neuropathology. Inhibition of BACE1 activity has major pharmaceutical potential for AD treatment. The expression of the BACE1 gene is relatively low in vivo. The control of BACE1 expression has not been well defined. There are six upstream AUGs (uAUGs) in the 5′ leader sequence of the human BACE1 mRNA. We investigated the role of the promoter and the uATGs in the 5′ untranslated region (UTR) of the human BACE1 gene in BACE1 gene transcription and translation initiation. Our results show that the first and second uATGs are the integral part of the core minimal promoter of the human BACE1 gene, while the third uAUG is skipped over by ribosomal scanning. The fourth uAUG can function as a translation initiation codon, and deletion or mutation of this uAUG increases downstream gene expression. The fourth uAUG of the BACE1 5′UTR is responsible for inhibiting the expression of BACE1. Translation initiation by the BACE1 uAUGs and physiological AUG requires intact eIF4G. Our results demonstrate that during human BACE1 gene expression, ribosomes skipped some uAUGs by leaky scanning and translated an upstream open reading frame, initiated efficiently at the fourth uAUG, and subsequently reinitiated BACE1 translation at the physiological AUG site. Such leaky scanning and reinitiation resulted in weak expression of BACE1 under normal conditions. Alterations of the leaky scanning and reinitiation in BACE1 gene expression could play an important role in AD pathogenesis.

scholarly journals smORFunction: A Tool for Predicting Functions of Small Open Reading Frames and Microproteins

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiangwen Ji ◽  
Chunmei Cui ◽  
Qinghua Cui
Keyword(s):  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Open Reading Frame ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Functional Annotations ◽  
Uniprot Database ◽  
Muscle Formation ◽  
Small Open Reading Frame ◽  
Reading Frames ◽  
Small Open Reading Frames

Abstract Background Small open reading frame (smORF) is open reading frame with a length of less than 100 codons. Microproteins, translated from smORFs, have been found to participate in a variety of biological processes such as muscle formation and contraction, cell proliferation, and immune activation. Although previous studies have collected and annotated a large abundance of smORFs, functions of the vast majority of smORFs are still unknown. It is thus increasingly important to develop computational methods to annotate the functions of these smORFs. Results In this study, we collected 617,462 unique smORFs from three studies. The expression of smORF RNAs was estimated by reannotated microarray probes. Using a speed-optimized correlation algorism, the functions of smORFs were predicted by their correlated genes with known functional annotations. After applying our method to 5 known microproteins from literatures, our method successfully predicted their functions. Further validation from the UniProt database showed that at least one function of 202 out of 270 microproteins was predicted. Conclusions We developed a method, smORFunction, to provide function predictions of smORFs/microproteins in at most 265 models generated from 173 datasets, including 48 tissues/cells, 82 diseases (and normal). The tool can be available at http://www.cuilab.cn/smorfunction.

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