scholarly journals Posttranscriptional regulation of cytochrome c expression during the developmental cycle of Trypanosoma brucei.

1988 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 4625-4633 ◽  
Author(s):  
A F Torri ◽  
S L Hajduk

We examined the expression of a nucleus-encoded mitochondrial protein, cytochrome c, during the life cycle of Trypanosoma brucei. The bloodstream forms of T. brucei, the long slender and short stumpy trypanosomes, have inactive mitochondria with no detectable cytochrome-mediated respiration. The insect form of T. brucei, the procyclic trypanosomes, has fully functional mitochondria. Cytochrome c is spectrally undetectable in the bloodstream forms of trypanosomes, but during differentiation to the procyclic form, spectrally detected holo-cytochrome c accumulates rapidly. We have purified T. brucei cytochrome c and raised antibodies that react to both holo- and apo-cytochrome c. In addition, we isolated a partial cDNA to trypanosome cytochrome c. An examination of protein expression and steady-state mRNA levels in T. brucei indicated that bloodstream trypanosomes did not express cytochrome c but maintained significant steady-state levels of cytochrome c mRNA. The results suggest that in T. brucei, cytochrome c is developmentally regulated by a posttranscriptional mechanism which prevents either translation or accumulation of cytochrome c in the bloodstream trypanosomes.

1988 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 4625-4633
Author(s):  
A F Torri ◽  
S L Hajduk

We examined the expression of a nucleus-encoded mitochondrial protein, cytochrome c, during the life cycle of Trypanosoma brucei. The bloodstream forms of T. brucei, the long slender and short stumpy trypanosomes, have inactive mitochondria with no detectable cytochrome-mediated respiration. The insect form of T. brucei, the procyclic trypanosomes, has fully functional mitochondria. Cytochrome c is spectrally undetectable in the bloodstream forms of trypanosomes, but during differentiation to the procyclic form, spectrally detected holo-cytochrome c accumulates rapidly. We have purified T. brucei cytochrome c and raised antibodies that react to both holo- and apo-cytochrome c. In addition, we isolated a partial cDNA to trypanosome cytochrome c. An examination of protein expression and steady-state mRNA levels in T. brucei indicated that bloodstream trypanosomes did not express cytochrome c but maintained significant steady-state levels of cytochrome c mRNA. The results suggest that in T. brucei, cytochrome c is developmentally regulated by a posttranscriptional mechanism which prevents either translation or accumulation of cytochrome c in the bloodstream trypanosomes.


2003 ◽  
Vol 285 (4) ◽  
pp. G714-G725 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon L. Jenkins ◽  
Jiafang Wang ◽  
Mukta Vazir ◽  
Jose Vela ◽  
Omar Sahagun ◽  
...  

Numerous genes expressed by intestinal epithelial cells are developmentally regulated, and the influence that adaptive (AI) and passive (PI) immunity have in controlling their expression has not been evaluated. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that both PI and AI influenced enterocyte gene expression by developing a breeding scheme that used T and B cell-deficient recombination-activating gene ( RAG) mice. RNA was isolated from the liver and proximal/distal small intestine at various ages, and the steady-state levels of six different transcripts were evaluated by RNase protection assay. In wild-type (WT) pups, all transcripts [Fc receptor of the neonate ( FcRn), polymeric IgA receptor ( pIgR), GLUT5, lactase-phlorizin hydrolase ( lactase), apical sodium-dependent bile acid transporter ( ASBT), and Na+/glucose cotransporter ( SGLT1)] studied were developmentally regulated at the time of weaning, and all transcripts except ASBT had the highest levels of expression in the proximal small intestine. In WT suckling pups reared in the absence of PI, pIgR mRNA levels were increased 100% during the early phase of development. In mice lacking AI, the expression of pIgR and lactase were significantly attenuated, whereas FcRn and GLUT5 levels were higher compared with WT mice. Finally, in the absence of both passive and active immunity, expression levels of pIgR and lactase were significantly lower than similarly aged WT mice. In summary, we report that the adaptive and passive immune status of mice influences steady-state mRNA levels of several important, developmentally regulated enterocyte genes during the suckling and weaning periods of life.


2002 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Elaine Epperson ◽  
Sandra L. Martin

Hibernators in torpor dramatically reduce their metabolic, respiratory, and heart rates and core body temperature. These extreme physiological conditions are frequently and rapidly reversed during the winter hibernation season via endogenous mechanisms. This phenotype must derive from regulated expression of the hibernator’s genome; to identify its molecular components, a cDNA subtraction was used to enrich for seasonally upregulated mRNAs in liver of golden-mantled ground squirrels. The relative steady-state levels for seven mRNAs identified by this screen, plus five others, were measured and analyzed for seasonal and stage-specific differences using kinetic RT-PCR. Four mRNAs show seasonal upregulation in which all five winter stages differ significantly from and are higher than summer (α2-macroglobulin, apolipoprotein A1, cathepsin H, and thyroxine-binding globulin). One of these mRNAs, α2-macroglobulin, varies during the winter stages with significantly lower levels at late torpor. None of the 12 mRNAs increased during torpor. The implications for these newly recognized upregulated mRNAs for hibernation as well as more global issues of maintaining steady-state levels of mRNA during torpor are discussed.


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 480-490
Author(s):  
M P King ◽  
Y Koga ◽  
M Davidson ◽  
E A Schon

Cytoplasts from two unrelated patients with MELAS (mitochondrial myopathy, encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and strokelike episodes) harboring an A----G transition at nucleotide position 3243 in the tRNA(Leu(UUR)) gene of the mitochondrial genome were fused with human cells lacking endogenous mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) (rho 0 cells). Selected cybrid lines, containing less than 15 or greater than or equal to 95% mutated genomes, were examined for differences in genetic, biochemical, and morphological characteristics. Cybrids containing greater than or equal to 95% mutant mtDNA, but not those containing normal mtDNA, exhibited decreases in the rates of synthesis and in the steady-state levels of the mitochondrial translation products. In addition, NADH dehydrogenase subunit 1 (ND 1) exhibited a slightly altered mobility on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The mutation also correlated with a severe respiratory chain deficiency. A small but consistent increase in the steady-state levels of an RNA transcript corresponding to 16S rRNA + tRNA(Leu(UUR)) + ND 1 genes was detected. However, there was no evidence of major errors in processing of the heavy-strand-encoded transcripts or of altered steady-state levels or ratios of mitochondrial rRNAs or mRNAs. These results provide evidence for a direct relationship between the tRNALeu(UUR) mutation and the pathogenesis of this mitochondrial disease.


1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 3642-3651 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Devlin ◽  
K Tice-Baldwin ◽  
D Shore ◽  
K T Arndt

The major in vitro binding activity to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae HIS4 promoter is due to the RAP1 protein. In the absence of GCN4, BAS1, and BAS2, the RAP1 protein binds to the HIS4 promoter in vivo but cannot efficiently stimulate HIS4 transcription. RAP1, which binds adjacently to BAS2 on the HIS4 promoter, is required for BAS1/BAS2-dependent activation of HIS4 basal-level transcription. In addition, the RAP1-binding site overlaps with the single high-affinity HIS4 GCN4-binding site. Even though RAP1 and GCN4 bind competitively in vitro, RAP1 is required in vivo for (i) the normal steady-state levels of GCN4-dependent HIS4 transcription under nonstarvation conditions and (ii) the rapid increase in GCN4-dependent steady-state HIS4 mRNA levels following amino acid starvation. The presence of the RAP1-binding site in the HIS4 promoter causes a dramatic increase in the micrococcal nuclease sensitivity of two adjacent regions within HIS4 chromatin: one region contains the high-affinity GCN4-binding site, and the other region contains the BAS1- and BAS2-binding sites. These results suggest that RAP1 functions at HIS4 by increasing the accessibility of GCN4, BAS1, and BAS2 to their respective binding sites when these sites are present within chromatin.


2004 ◽  
Vol 48 (8) ◽  
pp. 2958-2965 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adriana Renzoni ◽  
Patrice Francois ◽  
Dongmei Li ◽  
William L. Kelley ◽  
Daniel P. Lew ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The impact of glycopeptide resistance on the molecular regulation of Staphylococcus aureus virulence and attachment to host tissues is poorly documented. We compared stable teicoplanin-resistant methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strain 14-4 with its teicoplanin-susceptible MRSA parent, strain MRGR3, which exhibits a high degree of virulence in a rat model of chronic foreign body MRSA infection. The levels of fibronectin-mediated adhesion and surface display of fibronectin-binding proteins were higher in teicoplanin-resistant strain 14-4 than in its teicoplanin-susceptible parent or a teicoplanin-susceptible revertant (strain 14-4rev) that spontaneously emerged during tissue cage infection. Quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) showed four- and twofold higher steady-state levels of fnbA and fnbB transcripts, respectively, in strain 14-4 than in its teicoplanin-susceptible counterparts. Analysis of global regulatory activities by qRT-PCR revealed a strong reduction in the steady-state levels of RNAIII and RNAII in the teicoplanin-resistant strain compared to in its teicoplanin-susceptible counterparts. In contrast, sarA mRNA levels were more than fivefold higher in strain 14-4 than in MRGR3 and 14-4rev. Furthermore, the alternative transcription factor sigma B had a higher level of functional activity in the teicoplanin-resistant strain than in its teicoplanin-susceptible counterparts, as evidenced by significant increases in both the sigma B-dependent asp23 mRNA levels and the sarA P3 promoter-derived transcript levels, as assayed by qRT-PCR and Northern blotting, respectively. These data provide further evidence that the emergence of glycopeptide resistance is linked by still poorly understood molecular pathways with significant pleiotropic changes in the expression and regulation of some major virulence genes. These molecular and phenotypic changes may have a profound impact on the bacterial adhesion and colonization properties of such multiresistant organisms.


2015 ◽  
Vol 119 (10) ◽  
pp. 1210-1218 ◽  
Author(s):  
David K. Harrison ◽  
Mario Fasching ◽  
Mona Fontana-Ayoub ◽  
Erich Gnaiger

Mitochondrial control of cellular redox states is a fundamental component of cell signaling in the coordination of core energy metabolism and homeostasis during normoxia and hypoxia. We investigated the relationship between cytochrome redox states and mitochondrial oxygen consumption at steady-state levels of hypoxia in mitochondria isolated from beef and mouse heart (BHImt, MHImt), comparing two species with different cardiac dynamics and local oxygen demands. A low-noise, rapid spectrophotometric system using visible light for the measurement of cytochrome redox states was combined with high-resolution respirometry. Monophasic hyperbolic relationships were observed between oxygen consumption, JO2, and oxygen partial pressure, Po2, within the range <1.1 kPa (8.3 mmHg; 13 μM). P50 j (Po2 at 0.5· Jmax) was 0.015 ± 0.0004 and 0.021 ± 0.003 kPa (0.11 and 0.16 mmHg) for BHImt and MHImt, respectively. Maximum oxygen consumption, Jmax, was measured at saturating ADP levels (OXPHOS capacity) with Complex I-linked substrate supply. Redox states of cytochromes aa3 and c were biphasic hyperbolic functions of Po2. The relationship between cytochrome oxidation state and oxygen consumption revealed a separation of distinct phases from mild to severe and deep hypoxia. When cytochrome c oxidation increased from fully reduced to 45% oxidized at 0.1 Jmax, Po2 was as low as 0.002 kPa (0.02 μM), and trace amounts of oxygen are sufficient to partially oxidize the cytochromes. At higher Po2 under severe hypoxia, respiration increases steeply, whereas redox changes are small. Under mild hypoxia, the steep slope of oxidation of cytochrome c when flux remains more stable represents a cushioning mechanism that helps to maintain respiration high at the onset of hypoxia.


1993 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
P Soultanas ◽  
P D Andrews ◽  
D R Burton ◽  
D P Hornby

ABSTRACT The regulation of DNA (cytosine-5) methyltransferase (DNA MeTase) enzyme activity and gene expression was examined in the monoblastoid U937 cell line induced to differentiate with either dibutyryl cyclic AMP (dbcAMP) or phorbol ester. dbcAMP treatment was found to cause the rapid (<4 h) suppression of DNA MeTase specific activity, with no DNA MeTase activity detectable after 10 h. Equally, no DNA MeTase activity was detectable in nuclear extracts of fresh peripheral blood monocytes. Using both a U937 DNA MeTase cDNA and a mouse DNA MeTase cDNA as probes, steady-state levels of DNA MeTase mRNA were found to decline sharply between 4 and 15 h after dbcAMP treatment. No DNA MeTase mRNA was detectable after 20 h of dbcAMP treatment. Nuclear run-on analysis showed there to be only a small (40%) suppression of DNA MeTase gene transcription in cells treated with dbcAMP for 24 h, implying a role for post-transcriptional processes in the regulation of DNA MeTase mRNA levels. The observed decline in DNA MeTase activity/mRNA levels appeared to precede the dbcAMP-induced arrest in DNA replication, as judged by the incorporation of tritiated thymidine into DNA. In contrast to the effect of dbcAMP, treatment of U937 cells with the phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) led to an overall stimulation of DNA MeTase specific activity. The TPA response was found to be complex and broadly consisted of an early (0–15 h) burst of DNA MeTase activity followed by a more gradual sustained increase in DNA MeTase activity after prolonged (16–40 h) TPA treatment. The early phase of high DNA MeTase activity was not mirrored by an increase in steady-state levels of DNA MeTase mRNA, as judged by Northern blot analysis. However, a substantial induction of DNA MeTase mRNA levels was observed after 20–24 h of TPA treatment. Nuclear run-on analysis showed this not to be due to any significant increase in DNA MeTase gene transcription. The observed increases in DNA MeTase activity/mRNA levels were observed whilst cells were undergoing deproliferation. Interestingly, the addition of TPA and more physiological protein kinase C (PKC) activators, such as diacylglycerol and phosphatidylserine, to DNA MeTase-enriched nuclear extracts generated a 4·5-fold and a 1·5-fold increase in DNA MeTase specific activity respectively. The TPA-induced stimulation of DNA MeTase activity could be inhibited by the PKC inhibitor H-9, implicating a role for PKC in the regulation of DNA MeTase activity in vivo.


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