Conserved patterns of nuclear compartmentalization are not observed in the chordate Oikopleura

Cytogenetic characterization reveals differences in nuclear organization of cystic cells among Brazilian species of Triatoma (Heteroptera, Reduviidae)

Cytogenetic studies in triatomines have described the occurrence of holokinetic chromosomes, heterochromatin distribution and the location of rDNA (ribosomal DNA) sites, but few aspects of nuclear organization in this group have been discussed. We have focused on ultrastructural and cytogenetic features and differences in cystic cells of seminiferous tubules between five species of Triatoma. Cystic cells showed evidence of polyploidy events and heterochromatic blocks appeared predominantly in the central region of the nuclei. Cytogenetic analyses showed that there was variation in chromocenter number between species, and that the central regions were AT-rich [DAPI+ (4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole+)], whereas the periphery was CG-rich (CMA+). Another characteristic was the distribution of 45S rDNA, which differed according to the chromosomal location of this sequence. In all we have compared aspects of nuclear organization, polyploidy, heterochromatin, rDNA site distribution and methylation levels, as well as the relationships between five species of Triatoma from a cystic cell perspective.

The evolving proteome of a complex extracellular matrix, the Oikopleura house

Extracellular matrices regulate biological processes at the level of cells, tissues, and in some cases, entire multicellular organisms. The subphylum Urochordata exemplifies the latter case, where animals are partially or completely enclosed in “houses” or “tunics”. Despite this common strategy, we show that the house proteome of the appendicularian, Oikopleura, has very little in common with the proteome of the sister class, ascidian, Ciona. Of 80 identified house proteins (oikosins), ∼half lack domain modules or similarity to known proteins, suggesting de novo appearance in appendicularians. Gene duplication has been important in generating almost 1/3 of the current oikosin complement, with serial duplications up to 8 paralogs in one family. Expression pattern analyses revealed that individual oikosins are produced from specific fields of cells within the secretory epithelium, but in some cases, migrate up to at least 20 cell diameters in extracellular space to combine in defined house structures. Interestingly, peroxidasin and secretory phospholipase A₂ domains, implicated in innate immune defence are secreted from the anlage associated with the food-concentrating filter, suggesting that this extra-organismal structure may play, in part, such a role in Oikopleura. We also show that sulfation of proteoglycans is required for the hydration and inflation of pre-house rudiments into functional houses. Though correct proportioning in the production of oikosins would seem important in repetitive assembly of the complex house structure, the genomic organization of oikosin loci appears incompatible with common enhancers or locus control regions exerting such a coordinate regulatory role. Thus, though all tunicates employ extracellular matrices based on a cellulose scaffold as a defining feature of the subphylum, they have evolved radically different protein compositions associated with this common underlying structural theme.

Transcriptional enhancers in ascidian development

The study of cis-regulatory DNAs that control developmental gene expression is integral to the modeling of comprehensive genomic regulatory networks for embryogenesis. Ascidian embryos provide a unique opportunity for the analysis of cis-regulatory DNAs with cellular resolution in the context of a simple but typical chordate body plan. Here, we review landmark studies that have laid the foundations for the study of transcriptional enhancers, among other cis-regulatory DNAs, and their roles in ascidian development. The studies using ascidians of the Ciona genus have capitalized on a unique electroporation technique that permits the simultaneous transfection of hundreds of fertilized eggs, which develop rapidly and express transgenes with little mosaicism. Current studies using the ascidian embryo benefit from extensively annotated genomic resources to characterize transcript models in silico. The search for functional noncoding sequences can be guided by bioinformatic analyses combining evolutionary conservation, gene coexpression, and combinations of overrepresented short-sequence motifs. The power of the transient transfection assays has allowed thorough dissection of numerous cis-regulatory modules, which provided insights into the functional constraints that shape enhancer architecture and diversification. Future studies will benefit from pioneering stable transgenic lines and the analysis of chromatin states. Whole genome expression, functional and DNA binding data are being integrated into comprehensive genomic regulatory network models of early ascidian cell specification with a single-cell resolution that is unique among chordate model systems.

Histone variant innovation in a rapidly evolving chordate lineage

Background

Histone variants alter the composition of nucleosomes and play crucial roles in transcription, chromosome segregation, DNA repair, and sperm compaction. Modification of metazoan histone variant lineages occurs on a background of genome architecture that shows global similarities from sponges to vertebrates, but the urochordate, Oikopleura dioica, a member of the sister group to vertebrates, exhibits profound modification of this ancestral architecture.

Results

We show that a histone complement of 47 gene loci encodes 31 histone variants, grouped in distinct sets of developmental expression profiles throughout the life cycle. A particularly diverse array of 15 male-specific histone variants was uncovered, including a testes-specific H4t, the first metazoan H4 sequence variant reported. Universal histone variants H3.3, CenH3, and H2A.Z are present but O. dioica lacks homologs of macroH2A and H2AX. The genome encodes many H2A and H2B variants and the repertoire of H2A.Z isoforms is expanded through alternative splicing, incrementally regulating the number of acetylatable lysine residues in the functionally important N-terminal "charge patch". Mass spectrometry identified 40 acetylation, methylation and ubiquitylation posttranslational modifications (PTMs) and showed that hallmark PTMs of "active" and "repressive" chromatin were present in O. dioica. No obvious reduction in silent heterochromatic marks was observed despite high gene density in this extraordinarily compacted chordate genome.

Conclusions

These results show that histone gene complements and their organization differ considerably even over modest phylogenetic distances. Substantial innovation among all core and linker histone variants has evolved in concert with adaptation of specific life history traits in this rapidly evolving chordate lineage.

Functional nuclear architecture studied by microscopy: present and future

In this review we describe major contributions of light and electron microscopic approaches to the present understanding of functional nuclear architecture. The large gap of knowledge, which must still be bridged from the molecular level to the level of higher order structure, is emphasized by differences of currently discussed models of nuclear architecture. Molecular biological tools represent new means for the multicolor visualization of various nuclear components in living cells. New achievements offer the possibility to surpass the resolution limit of conventional light microscopy down to the nanometer scale and require improved bioinformatics tools able to handle the analysis of large amounts of data. In combination with the much higher resolution of electron microscopic methods, including ultrastructural cytochemistry, correlative microscopy of the same cells in their living and fixed state is the approach of choice to combine the advantages of different techniques. This will make possible future analyses of cell type- and species-specific differences of nuclear architecture in more detail and to put different models to critical tests.

Rapidly evolving lamins in a chordate, Oikopleura dioica, with unusual nuclear architecture

Metazoan lamins are implicated in the organization of numerous critical nuclear processes. Among chordates, the appendicularian, Oikopleura dioica, has an unusually short life cycle involving rapid growth through extensive recourse to endoreduplication, a characteristic more associated with some invertebrates. In some tissues, this is accompanied by the formation of elaborate, bilaterally symmetric nuclear morphologies associated with specific gene expression patterns. Lamin composition can mediate nuclear shape in spermiogenesis as well as during pathological and normal aging and we have analyzed the O. dioica lamin and intermediate filament (IF) complement, comparing it to that present in other deuterostomes. O. dioica has one lamin gene coding two splice variants. Both variants share with the sister class ascidians a highly reduced C-terminal tail region lacking the immunoglobulin fold, indicating this derivation occurred at the base of the urochordate lineage. The OdLamin2 variant has a unique insertion of 63 amino acids in the normally short N-terminal region and has a developmental expression profile corresponding to the occurrence of endocycling. O. dioica has 4 cytoplasmic IF proteins, IF-A, C, Dalpha, and Dbeta. No homologues to the ascidian IF-B or F proteins were identified, reinforcing the suggestion that these proteins are unique to ascidians. The degree of sequence evolution in the rod domains of O. dioica cytoplasmic IF proteins and their closest ascidian and vertebrate homologues was similar. In contrast, whereas the rate of lamin B rod domain sequence evolution has also been similar in vertebrates, cephalochordates and the sea urchin, faster rates have occurred among the urochordates, with the O. dioica lamin displaying a far greater rate than any other lamin.