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Shoaib M, Murugesan A, Devanesan S, AlSalhi MS, Kandhavelu M. Growth phase-dependent ribonucleic acid production dynamics. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 270:132457. [PMID: 38772467 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.132457] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2024] [Revised: 04/18/2024] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024]
Abstract
Transcriptional events play a crucial role in major cellular processes that specify the activity of an individual cells and influences cell population behavior in response to environment. Active (ON) and an inactive (OFF) states controls the transcriptional burst. Yet, the mechanism and kinetics of ON/OFF-state across the different growth phases of Escherichia coli remains elusive. Here, we have used a single mRNA detection method in live-cells to comprehend the ON/OFF mechanism of the first transcriptional (TF) and consecutive events (TC) controlled by lactose promoters, Plac and Plac/ara1. We determined that the duration of TF ON/OFF has different modes, exhibiting a close to inverse behavior to that of TC ON/OFF. Dynamics of ON/OFF states in fast and slow-dividing cells were affected by the promoter region during the initiation of transcription. Period of TF ON-state defines the behavior of TC by altering the number and the frequency of mRNAs formed. Furthermore, we have shown that delayed OFF-time in TF affects the dynamics of TC in both states, which is mainly determined by the upstream promoter region. Furthermore, using elongation arrest experiments, we independently validate that mRNA noise in TC is governed by the delayed OFF-period in TF. We have identified the position of the regulatory regions that plays a crucial role in noise (Fano) modulation. Taken together, our results suggest that the dynamics of the first transcriptional event, TF, pre-defines the diversity of the population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Shoaib
- Molecular Signaling Group, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University and BioMediTech, P.O. Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Akshaya Murugesan
- Molecular Signaling Group, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University and BioMediTech, P.O. Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland; Department of Biotechnology, Lady Doak College, Madurai Kamaraj University, Thallakulam, Madurai 625002, India
| | - Sandhanasamy Devanesan
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, College of Science, King Saud University, P. O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mohamad S AlSalhi
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, College of Science, King Saud University, P. O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Meenakshisundaram Kandhavelu
- Molecular Signaling Group, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University and BioMediTech, P.O. Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland; BioMeditech and Tays Cancer Center, Tampere University, Hospital, P.O. Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland.
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2
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Murugesan A, Alshagrawi RA, Thiyagarajan R, Kandhavelu M. A dual fluorescence protein expression system detects cell cycle dependent protein noise. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 263:130262. [PMID: 38378117 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.130262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2023] [Revised: 02/14/2024] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024]
Abstract
Inherently identical cells exhibit significant phenotypic variation. It can be essential for many biological processes and is known to arise from stochastic, 'noisy', gene expression that is determined by intrinsic and extrinsic components. It is now obvious that the noise varies as a function of inducer concentration. However, its fluctuation over the cell cycle is limited. Applying dual colour fluorescence protein reporter system, Cyan Fluorescent Protein (CFP) and Yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) tagged multi-copy plasmids, we determine variation of the noise components over the phases in lac promoter induced by Isopropyl β-D-1-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) and in presence of additional Magnesium, Mg2+ ion. We, also, estimate the how such system deviates from observations of single-copy plasmid. Found 25 % difference between multi-copy system and single-copy system clarifies that observed noise is considerable and estimates population behaviour during the cell cycle. We show that total variation in cells induced with IPTG is determined by higher extrinsic than intrinsic noise. It increases from Lag to Exponential phase and decreases from Retardation to Stationary phase. By observing slow and fast dividing cells, we show that 5 mM Mg2+ increases population homogeneity compared to 2.5 mM Mg2+ in the environment. The experimental data obtained using dual colour fluorescence protein reporter system demonstrates that protein expression noise, depending on intra cellular ionic concentration, is tightly controlled by phase of the cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akshaya Murugesan
- Molecular Signaling Group, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University and BioMediTech, P.O. Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland.; Department of Biotechnology, Lady Doak College, Madurai Kamaraj University, Thallakulam, Madurai 625002, India
| | - Reshod A Alshagrawi
- Department of Food Science and Nutrition, College of Food Science and Agriculture, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ramesh Thiyagarajan
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj 11942, Saudi Arabia
| | - Meenakshisundaram Kandhavelu
- Molecular Signaling Group, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University and BioMediTech, P.O. Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland..
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Lloyd-Price J, Startceva S, Kandavalli V, Chandraseelan JG, Goncalves N, Oliveira SMD, Häkkinen A, Ribeiro AS. Dissecting the stochastic transcription initiation process in live Escherichia coli. DNA Res 2016; 23:203-14. [PMID: 27026687 PMCID: PMC4909308 DOI: 10.1093/dnares/dsw009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2015] [Accepted: 02/11/2016] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
We investigate the hypothesis that, in Escherichia coli, while the concentration of RNA polymerases differs in different growth conditions, the fraction of RNA polymerases free for transcription remains approximately constant within a certain range of these conditions. After establishing this, we apply a standard model-fitting procedure to fully characterize the in vivo kinetics of the rate-limiting steps in transcription initiation of the Plac/ara-1 promoter from distributions of intervals between transcription events in cells with different RNA polymerase concentrations. We find that, under full induction, the closed complex lasts ∼788 s while subsequent steps last ∼193 s, on average. We then establish that the closed complex formation usually occurs multiple times prior to each successful initiation event. Furthermore, the promoter intermittently switches to an inactive state that, on average, lasts ∼87 s. This is shown to arise from the intermittent repression of the promoter by LacI. The methods employed here should be of use to resolve the rate-limiting steps governing the in vivo dynamics of initiation of prokaryotic promoters, similar to established steady-state assays to resolve the in vitro dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason Lloyd-Price
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, Office TC336, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Sofia Startceva
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, Office TC336, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Vinodh Kandavalli
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, Office TC336, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Jerome G Chandraseelan
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, Office TC336, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Nadia Goncalves
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, Office TC336, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Samuel M D Oliveira
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, Office TC336, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Antti Häkkinen
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, Office TC336, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Andre S Ribeiro
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, Office TC336, 33101 Tampere, Finland
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Viswanathan A, Anufrieva O, Sala A, Yli-Harja O, Kandhavelu M. Phase-dependent dynamics of the lac promoter under nutrient stress. Res Microbiol 2016; 167:451-61. [PMID: 27106257 DOI: 10.1016/j.resmic.2016.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2016] [Revised: 04/04/2016] [Accepted: 04/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
To survive, a bacterial population must sense nutrient availability and adjust its growth phase accordingly. Few studies have quantitatively analyzed the single-cell behavior of stress and growth phase-related transcriptional changes in Escherichia coli. To investigate the dynamic changes in transcription during different growth phases and starvation, we analyzed the single-cell transcriptional dynamics of the E. coli lac promoter. Cells were grown under different starvation conditions, including glucose, magnesium, phosphate and thiamine limitations, and transcription dynamics was quantified using a single RNA detection method at different phases. Differences in gene expression over conditions and phases indicate that stochasticity in transcription dynamics is directly connected to cell phase and availability of nutrients. Except for glucose, the pattern of transcription dynamics under all starvation conditions appears to be similar. Transcriptional bursts were more prominent in lag and stationary phase cells starved for energy sources. Identical behavior was observed in exponential phase cells starved for phosphate and thiamine. Noise measurements under all nutrient exhaustion conditions indicate that intrinsic noise is higher than extrinsic noise. Our results, obtained in a relA1 mutational background, which led to suboptimal production of ppGpp, suggest that the single-cell transcriptional changes we observed were largely ppGpp-independent. Taken together, we propose that, under different starvation conditions, cells are able to decrease the trend in cell-to-cell variability in transcription as a common means of adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anisha Viswanathan
- Molecular Signaling Lab, Computational Systems Biology Research Group, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, P.O.Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Olga Anufrieva
- Molecular Signaling Lab, Computational Systems Biology Research Group, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, P.O.Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Adrien Sala
- Molecular Signaling Lab, Computational Systems Biology Research Group, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, P.O.Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland
| | - Olli Yli-Harja
- Molecular Signaling Lab, Computational Systems Biology Research Group, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, P.O.Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland; Institute for Systems Biology, 1441N 34th Street, Seattle, WA, 98103-8904, USA
| | - Meenakshisundaram Kandhavelu
- Molecular Signaling Lab, Computational Systems Biology Research Group, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, P.O.Box 553, 33101 Tampere, Finland.
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Sala A, Shoaib M, Anufrieva O, Mutharasu G, Jahan Hoque R, Yli-Harja O, Kandhavelu M. Transcription closed and open complex dynamics studies reveal balance between genetic determinants and co-factors. Phys Biol 2015; 12:036003. [PMID: 25988584 DOI: 10.1088/1478-3975/12/3/036003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
In E. coli, promoter closed and open complexes are key steps in transcription initiation, where magnesium-dependent RNA polymerase catalyzes RNA synthesis. However, the exact mechanism of initiation remains to be fully elucidated. Here, using single mRNA detection and dual reporter studies, we show that increased intracellular magnesium concentration affects Plac initiation complex formation resulting in a highly dynamic process over the cell growth phases. Mg2+ regulates transcription transition, which modulates bimodality of mRNA distribution in the exponential phase. We reveal that Mg2+ regulates the size and frequency of the mRNA burst by changing the open complex duration. Moreover, increasing magnesium concentration leads to higher intrinsic and extrinsic noise in the exponential phase. RNAP-Mg2+ interaction simulation reveals critical movements creating a shorter contact distance between aspartic acid residues and Nucleotide Triphosphate residues and increasing electrostatic charges in the active site. Our findings provide unique biophysical insights into the balanced mechanism of genetic determinants and magnesium ion in transcription initiation regulation during cell growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrien Sala
- Molecular Signaling Lab, Computational Systems Biology Research Group, Signal Processing Department, Tampere University of Technology, PO Box 553, 33101, Tampere, Finland
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Muthukrishnan AB, Martikainen A, Neeli-Venkata R, Ribeiro AS. In vivo transcription kinetics of a synthetic gene uninvolved in stress-response pathways in stressed Escherichia coli cells. PLoS One 2014; 9:e109005. [PMID: 25268540 PMCID: PMC4182640 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0109005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2014] [Accepted: 08/29/2014] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The fast adaptation of Escherichia coli to stressful environments includes the regulation of gene expression rates, mainly of transcription, by specific and global stress-response mechanisms. To study the effects of mechanisms acting on a global level, we observed with single molecule sensitivity the effects of mild acidic shift and oxidative stress on the in vivo transcription dynamics of a probe gene encoding an RNA target for MS2d-GFP, under the control of a synthetic promoter. After showing that this promoter is uninvolved in fast stress-response pathways, we compared its kinetics of transcript production under stress and in optimal conditions. We find that, following the application of either stress, the mean rates of transcription activation and of subsequent RNA production of the probe gene are reduced, particularly under oxidative stress. Meanwhile, the noise in RNA production decreases under oxidative stress, but not under acidic shift. From distributions of intervals between consecutive RNA productions, we infer that the number and duration of the rate-limiting steps in transcription initiation change, following the application of stress. These changes differ in the two stress conditions and are consistent with the changes in noise in RNA production. Overall, our measurements of the transcription initiation kinetics of the probe gene indicate that, following sub-lethal stresses, there are stress-specific changes in the dynamics of transcription initiation of the probe gene that affect its mean rate and noise of transcript production. Given the non-involvement of the probe gene in stress-response pathways, we suggest that these changes are caused by global response mechanisms of E. coli to stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anantha-Barathi Muthukrishnan
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland
| | - Antti Martikainen
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland
| | - Ramakanth Neeli-Venkata
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland
| | - Andre S. Ribeiro
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland
- * E-mail:
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Enomoto G, Nomura R, Shimada T, Ni-Ni-Win, Narikawa R, Ikeuchi M. Cyanobacteriochrome SesA is a diguanylate cyclase that induces cell aggregation in Thermosynechococcus. J Biol Chem 2014; 289:24801-9. [PMID: 25059661 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m114.583674] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Cyanobacteria have unique photoreceptors, cyanobacteriochromes, that show diverse spectral properties to sense near-UV/visible lights. Certain cyanobacteriochromes have been shown to regulate cellular phototaxis or chromatic acclimation of photosynthetic pigments. Some cyanobacteriochromes have output domains involved in bacterial signaling using a second messenger cyclic dimeric GMP (c-di-GMP), but its role in cyanobacteria remains elusive. Here, we characterize the recombinant Tlr0924 from a thermophilic cyanobacterium Thermosynechococcus elongatus, which was expressed in a cyanobacterial system. The protein reversibly photoconverts between blue- and green-absorbing forms, which is consistent with the protein prepared from Escherichia coli, and has diguanylate cyclase activity, which is enhanced 38-fold by blue light compared with green light. Therefore, Tlr0924 is a blue light-activated diguanylate cyclase. The protein's relatively low affinity (10.5 mM) for Mg(2+), which is essential for diguanylate cyclase activity, suggests that Mg(2+) might also regulate c-di-GMP signaling. Finally, we show that blue light irradiation under low temperature is responsible for Thermosynechococcus vulcanus cell aggregation, which is abolished when tlr0924 is disrupted, suggesting that Tlr0924 mediates blue light-induced cell aggregation by producing c-di-GMP. Given our results, we propose the name "sesA (sessility-A)" for tlr0924. This is the first report for cyanobacteriochrome-dependent regulation of a sessile/planktonic lifestyle in cyanobacteria via c-di-GMP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gen Enomoto
- From the Department of Life Sciences (Biology), Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and
| | - Ryouhei Nomura
- Department of Biological Science, Graduate School of Sciences, University of Tokyo, Komaba 3-8-1, Meguro, Tokyo 153-8902
| | - Takashi Shimada
- the Life Science Research Center, Shimadzu Corp., 3-1 Kanda-Nishikicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 108-8639, and
| | - Ni-Ni-Win
- From the Department of Life Sciences (Biology), Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and
| | - Rei Narikawa
- From the Department of Life Sciences (Biology), Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and PRESTO and
| | - Masahiko Ikeuchi
- From the Department of Life Sciences (Biology), Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and Department of Biological Science, Graduate School of Sciences, University of Tokyo, Komaba 3-8-1, Meguro, Tokyo 153-8902, CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), 4-1-8 Honcho Kawaguchi, Saitama 332-0012, Japan
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Muthukrishnan AB, Kandhavelu M, Lloyd-Price J, Kudasov F, Chowdhury S, Yli-Harja O, Ribeiro AS. Dynamics of transcription driven by the tetA promoter, one event at a time, in live Escherichia coli cells. Nucleic Acids Res 2012; 40:8472-83. [PMID: 22730294 PMCID: PMC3458540 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gks583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
In Escherichia coli, tetracycline prevents translation. When subject to tetracycline, E. coli express TetA to pump it out by a mechanism that is sensitive, while fairly independent of cellular metabolism. We constructed a target gene, PtetA-mRFP1-96BS, with a 96 MS2-GFP binding site array in a single-copy BAC vector, whose expression is controlled by the tetA promoter. We measured the in vivo kinetics of production of individual RNA molecules of the target gene as a function of inducer concentration and temperature. From the distributions of intervals between transcription events, we find that RNA production by PtetA is a sub-Poissonian process. Next, we infer the number and duration of the prominent sequential steps in transcription initiation by maximum likelihood estimation. Under full induction and at optimal temperature, we observe three major steps. We find that the kinetics of RNA production under the control of PtetA, including number and duration of the steps, varies with induction strength and temperature. The results are supported by a set of logical pairwise Kolmogorov-Smirnov tests. We conclude that the expression of TetA is controlled by a sequential mechanism that is robust, whereas sensitive to external signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anantha-Barathi Muthukrishnan
- Laboratory of Biosystem Dynamics, Computational Systems Biology Research Group, Department of Signal Processing, Tampere University of Technology, FI-33101 Tampere, Finland
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