scholarly journals Rice Floury Shrunken Endosperm5 encodes a putative plant organelle RNA recognition protein that is required for cis-splicing of mitochondrial nad4 intron 1

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liang Wang ◽  
Wenwei Zhang ◽  
Shijia Liu ◽  
Yunlu Tian ◽  
Xi Liu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Some important mitochondrial-encoded genes for respiration in higher plants are interrupted by introns. Many nuclear-encoded factors are involved in the splicing of these introns, but the underlying mechanisms remain to be deciphered.Results: Here, we isolated and characterized a rice mutant named floury shrunken endosperm5 (fse5). In addition to floury shrunken endosperm seeds with mutant phenotype either failed to germinate or produced retarded lethal seedlings. The Fse5 encodes a putative plant organelle RNA recognition (PORR) protein targeted to mitochondria. Mutation of Fse5 hindered splicing of the first intron of nad4, that encodes an essential subunit of mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase Complex I. The assembly and NADH dehydrogenase activity of Complex I were disrupted and the structure of the mitochondria was abnormal in the fse5 mutant. FSE5 protein was shown to interact with Mitochondrial Intron Splicing Factor 68 (MISF68), which is also a splicing factor for nad4 intron 1 identified previously in a yeast two-hybrid assay.Conclusion: Fse5 encoding a PORR protein is essential for splicing of nad4 intron 1, and loss of function affects seed development and seedling growth.

Rice ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Liang Wang ◽  
Wenwei Zhang ◽  
Shijia Liu ◽  
Yunlu Tian ◽  
Xi Liu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The sequences of several important mitochondrion-encoded genes involved in respiration in higher plants are interrupted by introns. Many nuclear-encoded factors are involved in splicing these introns, but the mechanisms underlying this splicing remain unknown. Results We isolated and characterized a rice mutant named floury shrunken endosperm 5 (fse5). In addition to having floury shrunken endosperm, the fse5 seeds either failed to germinate or produced seedlings which grew slowly and died ultimately. Fse5 encodes a putative plant organelle RNA recognition (PORR) protein targeted to mitochondria. Mutation of Fse5 hindered the splicing of the first intron of nad4, which encodes an essential subunit of mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase complex I. The assembly and NADH dehydrogenase activity of complex I were subsequently disrupted by this mutation, and the structure of the mitochondria was abnormal in the fse5 mutant. The FSE5 protein was shown to interact with mitochondrial intron splicing factor 68 (MISF68), which is also a splicing factor for nad4 intron 1 identified previously via yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) assays. Conclusion Fse5 which encodes a PORR domain-containing protein, is essential for the splicing of nad4 intron 1, and loss of Fse5 function affects seed development and seedling growth.


2019 ◽  
Vol 60 (8) ◽  
pp. 1734-1746 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhenjing Ren ◽  
Kaijian Fan ◽  
Ting Fang ◽  
Jiaojiao Zhang ◽  
Li Yang ◽  
...  

Abstract Pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) proteins play crucial roles in intron splicing, which is important for RNA maturation. Identification of novel PPR protein with the function of intron splicing would help to understand the RNA splicing mechanism. In this study, we identified the maize empty pericarp602 (emp602) mutants, the mature kernels of which showed empty pericarp phenotype. We cloned the Emp602 gene from emp602 mutants and revealed that Emp602 encodes a mitochondrial-localized P-type PPR protein. We further revealed that Emp602 is specific for the cis-splicing of mitochondrial Nad4 intron 1 and intron 3, and mutation of Emp602 led to the loss of mature Nad4 transcripts. The loss of function of Emp602 nearly damaged the assembly and accumulation of complex I and arrested mitochondria formation, which arrested the seed development. The failed assembly of complex I triggers significant upregulation of Aox expression in emp602 mutants. Transcriptome analysis showed that the expression of mitochondrial-related genes, e.g. the genes associated with mitochondrial inner membrane presequence translocase complex and electron carrier activity, were extensively upregulated in emp602 mutant. These results demonstrate that EMP602 functions in the splicing of Nad4 intron 1 and intron 3, and the loss of function of Emp602 arrested maize seed development by disrupting the mitochondria complex I assembly.


Author(s):  
Jane S. Paulsen

Huntington disease (HD) is a autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disease caused by expansion of a trinucleotide repeat (cytosine, adenine, and guanine [CAG]) on the short arm of chromosome four. Average age of motor diagnosis is 39 years, and age at diagnosis is associated with the length of the CAG mutation. The prodrome of HD can be recognized 15 years prior to motor diagnosis and is characterized by subtle impairments in emotional recognition, smell identification, speed of processing, time estimation and production, and psychiatric abnormalities. HD shows particular vulnerability of the medium spiny neuron in the basal ganglia. Progressive brain dysfunction and neuron death lead to insidious loss of function in motor, cognitive, and behavioral control over 34 years (17 prodromal and 17 post-diagnosis). Treatment plans rely on genetic counseling, psychiatric symptom treatment as needed, physical therapy, and environmental modifications. There are two treatments for the reduction of chorea, but there are no disease-modifying therapies. Experimental therapeutics are rapidly emerging with multiple and various targets, however, and gene therapies to silence the mutant HD gene are currently ongoing. This chapter reviews clinical and neuropathological descriptions of HD and discusses potential underlying mechanisms and animal models, diagnostic and clinical assessments used to characterize and track the disease, treatment planning, and challenges for research to advance care.


Genetics ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 155 (4) ◽  
pp. 1667-1682 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas N Kuhn ◽  
David A Brow

AbstractThe highly conserved splicing factor Prp8 has been implicated in multiple stages of the splicing reaction. However, assignment of a specific function to any part of the 280-kD U5 snRNP protein has been difficult, in part because Prp8 lacks recognizable functional or structural motifs. We have used a large-scale screen for Saccharomyces cerevisiae PRP8 alleles that suppress the cold sensitivity caused by U4-cs1, a mutant U4 RNA that blocks U4/U6 unwinding, to identify with high resolution five distinct regions of PRP8 involved in the control of spliceosome activation. Genetic interactions between two of these regions reveal a potential long-range intramolecular fold. Identification of a yeast two-hybrid interaction, together with previously reported results, implicates two other regions in direct and indirect contacts to the U1 snRNP. In contrast to the suppressor mutations in PRP8, loss-of-function mutations in the genes for two other splicing factors implicated in U4/U6 unwinding, Prp44 (Brr2/Rss1/Slt22/Snu246) and Prp24, show synthetic enhancement with U4-cs1. On the basis of these results we propose a model in which allosteric changes in Prp8 initiate spliceosome activation by (1) disrupting contacts between the U1 snRNP and the U4/U6-U5 tri-snRNP and (2) orchestrating the activities of Prp44 and Prp24.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Evi Goulielmaki ◽  
Maria Tsekrekou ◽  
Nikos Batsiotos ◽  
Mariana Ascensão-Ferreira ◽  
Eleftheria Ledaki ◽  
...  

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.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (12) ◽  
pp. 6524
Author(s):  
Bo-Yu Lin ◽  
Gui-Teng Zheng ◽  
Kai-Wen Teng ◽  
Juan-Yu Chang ◽  
Chao-Chang Lee ◽  
...  

NADH dehydrogenase (ubiquinone) Fe-S protein 8 (NDUFS8) is a nuclear-encoded core subunit of human mitochondrial complex I. Defects in NDUFS8 are associated with Leigh syndrome and encephalomyopathy. Cell-penetrating peptide derived from the HIV-1 transactivator of transcription protein (TAT) has been successfully applied as a carrier to bring fusion proteins into cells without compromising the biological function of the cargoes. In this study, we developed a TAT-mediated protein transduction system to rescue complex I deficiency caused by NDUFS8 defects. Two fusion proteins (TAT-NDUFS8 and NDUFS8-TAT) were exogenously expressed and purified from Escherichia coli for transduction of human cells. In addition, similar constructs were generated and used in transfection studies for comparison. The results showed that both exogenous TAT-NDUFS8 and NDUFS8-TAT were delivered into mitochondria and correctly processed. Interestingly, the mitochondrial import of TAT-containing NDUFS8 was independent of mitochondrial membrane potential. Treatment with TAT-NDUFS8 not only significantly improved the assembly of complex I in an NDUFS8-deficient cell line, but also partially rescued complex I functions both in the in-gel activity assay and the oxygen consumption assay. Our current findings suggest the considerable potential of applying the TAT-mediated protein transduction system for treatment of complex I deficiency.


2017 ◽  
Vol 234 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Zhang ◽  
XiaoXin Zhang ◽  
Xuejing Zhang ◽  
Yu Lu ◽  
Lei Li ◽  
...  

MicroRNAs (MiRNAs) play important regulatory roles in many cellular processes. MiR-143 is highly enriched in the mouse ovary, but its roles and underlying mechanisms are not well understood. In the current study, we show that miR-143 is located in granulosa cells of primary, secondary and antral follicles. To explore the specific functions of miR-143, we transfected miR-143 inhibitor into primary cultured granulosa cells to study the loss of function of miR-143 and the results showed that miR-143 silencing significantly increased estradiol production and steroidogenesis-related gene expression. Moreover, our in vivo and in vitro studies showed that follicular stimulating hormone (FSH) significantly decreased miR-143 expression. This function of miR-143 is accomplished by its binding to the 3’-UTR of KRAS mRNA. Furthermore, our results demonstrated that miR-143 acts as a negative regulating molecule mediating the signaling pathway of FSH and affecting estradiol production by targeting KRAS. MiR-143 also negatively acts in regulating granulosa cells proliferation and cell cycle-related genes expression. These findings indicate that miR-143 plays vital roles in FSH-induced estradiol production and granulosa cell proliferation, providing a novel mechanism that involves miRNA in regulating granulosa cell functions.


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