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Bordini M, Soglia F, Davoli R, Zappaterra M, Petracci M, Meluzzi A. Molecular Pathways and Key Genes Associated With Breast Width and Protein Content in White Striping and Wooden Breast Chicken Pectoral Muscle. Front Physiol 2022; 13:936768. [PMID: 35874513 PMCID: PMC9304951 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.936768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Accepted: 06/17/2022] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Growth-related abnormalities affecting modern chickens, known as White Striping (WS) and Wooden Breast (WB), have been deeply investigated in the last decade. Nevertheless, their precise etiology remains unclear. The present study aimed at providing new insights into the molecular mechanisms involved in their onset by identifying clusters of co-expressed genes (i.e., modules) and key loci associated with phenotypes highly related to the occurrence of these muscular disorders. The data obtained by a Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) were investigated to identify hub genes associated with the parameters breast width (W) and total crude protein content (PC) of Pectoralis major muscles (PM) previously harvested from 12 fast-growing broilers (6 normal vs. 6 affected by WS/WB). W and PC can be considered markers of the high breast yield of modern broilers and the impaired composition of abnormal fillets, respectively. Among the identified modules, the turquoise (r = -0.90, p < 0.0001) and yellow2 (r = 0.91, p < 0.0001) were those most significantly related to PC and W, and therefore respectively named “protein content” and “width” modules. Functional analysis of the width module evidenced genes involved in the ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis and inflammatory response. GTPase activator activity, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, collagen catabolic process, and blood vessel development have been detected among the most significant functional categories of the protein content module. The most interconnected hub genes detected for the width module encode for proteins implicated in the adaptive responses to oxidative stress (i.e., THRAP3 and PRPF40A), and a member of the inhibitor of apoptosis family (i.e., BIRC2) involved in contrasting apoptotic events related to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-stress. The protein content module showed hub genes coding for different types of collagens (such as COL6A3 and COL5A2), along with MMP2 and SPARC, which are implicated in Collagen type IV catabolism and biosynthesis. Taken together, the present findings suggested that an ER stress condition may underly the inflammatory responses and apoptotic events taking place within affected PM muscles. Moreover, these results support the hypothesis of a role of the Collagen type IV in the cascade of events leading to the occurrence of WS/WB and identify novel actors probably involved in their onset.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Bordini
- Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Francesca Soglia
- Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Cesena, Italy
| | - Roberta Davoli
- Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Martina Zappaterra
- Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- *Correspondence: Martina Zappaterra,
| | - Massimiliano Petracci
- Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Cesena, Italy
| | - Adele Meluzzi
- Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
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2
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Sonawane AR, Aikawa E, Aikawa M. Connections for Matters of the Heart: Network Medicine in Cardiovascular Diseases. Front Cardiovasc Med 2022; 9:873582. [PMID: 35665246 PMCID: PMC9160390 DOI: 10.3389/fcvm.2022.873582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are diverse disorders affecting the heart and vasculature in millions of people worldwide. Like other fields, CVD research has benefitted from the deluge of multiomics biomedical data. Current CVD research focuses on disease etiologies and mechanisms, identifying disease biomarkers, developing appropriate therapies and drugs, and stratifying patients into correct disease endotypes. Systems biology offers an alternative to traditional reductionist approaches and provides impetus for a comprehensive outlook toward diseases. As a focus area, network medicine specifically aids the translational aspect of in silico research. This review discusses the approach of network medicine and its application to CVD research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abhijeet Rajendra Sonawane
- Center for Interdisciplinary Cardiovascular Sciences, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Center for Excellence in Vascular Biology, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Elena Aikawa
- Center for Interdisciplinary Cardiovascular Sciences, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Center for Excellence in Vascular Biology, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Masanori Aikawa
- Center for Interdisciplinary Cardiovascular Sciences, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Center for Excellence in Vascular Biology, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
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3
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Development of a 15-Gene Signature Model as a Prognostic Tool in Sex Hormone-Dependent Cancers. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2021; 2021:3676107. [PMID: 34869761 PMCID: PMC8635877 DOI: 10.1155/2021/3676107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2020] [Revised: 05/09/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Sex hormone dependence is associated with tumor progression and prognosis. Here, we explored the molecular basis of luminal A-like phenotype in sex hormone-dependent cancers. RNA-sequencing data from 8 cancer types were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). We investigated the enrichment function of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in luminal A breast cancer (BRCA). Weighted coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) was used to identify gene modules associated with the luminal A-like phenotype, and we calculated the module's preservation in 8 cancer types. Module hub genes screened using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) were used to construct a gene signature model for the luminal A-like phenotype, and we assessed the model's relationship with prognosis, enriched pathways, and immune infiltration using bioinformatics approaches. Compared to other BRCA subtypes, the enrichment functions of upregulated genes in luminal A BRCA were related to hormone biological processes and receptor activity, and the downregulated genes were associated with the cell cycle and nuclear division. A gene module significantly associated with luminal A BRCA was shared by uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma (UCEC), leading to a similar phenotype. Fifteen hub genes were used to construct a gene signature model for the assessment of the luminal A-like phenotype, and the corrected C-statistics and Brier scores were 0.986 and 0.023, respectively. Calibration plots showed good performance, and decision curve analysis indicated a high net benefit of the model. The 15-gene signature model was associated with better overall survival in BRCA and UCEC and was characterized by downregulation of DNA replication, cell cycle and activated CD4 T cells. In conclusion, our study elucidated that BRCA and UCEC share a similar sex hormone-dependent phenotype and constructed a 15-gene signature model for use as a prognostic tool to quantify the probability of the phenotype.
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Abstract
Although oral venom systems are ecologically important characters, how they originated is still unclear. In this study, we show that oral venom systems likely originated from a gene regulatory network conserved across amniotes. This network, which we term the “metavenom network,” comprises over 3,000 housekeeping genes coexpressed with venom and play a role in protein folding and modification. Comparative transcriptomics revealed that the network is conserved between venom glands of snakes and salivary glands of mammals. This suggests that while these tissues have evolved different functions, they share a common regulatory core, that persisted since their common ancestor. We propose several evolutionary mechanisms that can utilize this common regulatory core to give rise to venomous animals from their nonvenomous ancestors. Oral venom systems evolved multiple times in numerous vertebrates enabling the exploitation of unique predatory niches. Yet how and when they evolved remains poorly understood. Up to now, most research on venom evolution has focused strictly on the toxins. However, using toxins present in modern day animals to trace the origin of the venom system is difficult, since they tend to evolve rapidly, show complex patterns of expression, and were incorporated into the venom arsenal relatively recently. Here we focus on gene regulatory networks associated with the production of toxins in snakes, rather than the toxins themselves. We found that overall venom gland gene expression was surprisingly well conserved when compared to salivary glands of other amniotes. We characterized the “metavenom network,” a network of ∼3,000 nonsecreted housekeeping genes that are strongly coexpressed with the toxins, and are primarily involved in protein folding and modification. Conserved across amniotes, this network was coopted for venom evolution by exaptation of existing members and the recruitment of new toxin genes. For instance, starting from this common molecular foundation, Heloderma lizards, shrews, and solenodon, evolved venoms in parallel by overexpression of kallikreins, which were common in ancestral saliva and induce vasodilation when injected, causing circulatory shock. Derived venoms, such as those of snakes, incorporated novel toxins, though still rely on hypotension for prey immobilization. These similarities suggest repeated cooption of shared molecular machinery for the evolution of oral venom in mammals and reptiles, blurring the line between truly venomous animals and their ancestors.
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Zinski AL, Carrion S, Michal JJ, Gartstein MA, Quock RM, Davis JF, Jiang Z. Genome-to-phenome research in rats: progress and perspectives. Int J Biol Sci 2021; 17:119-133. [PMID: 33390838 PMCID: PMC7757052 DOI: 10.7150/ijbs.51628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/06/2020] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Because of their relatively short lifespan (<4 years), rats have become the second most used model organism to study health and diseases in humans who may live for up to 120 years. First-, second- and third-generation sequencing technologies and platforms have produced increasingly greater sequencing depth and accurate reads, leading to significant advancements in the rat genome assembly during the last 20 years. In fact, whole genome sequencing (WGS) of 47 strains have been completed. This has led to the discovery of genome variants in rats, which have been widely used to detect quantitative trait loci underlying complex phenotypes based on gene, haplotype, and sweep association analyses. DNA variants can also reveal strain, chromosome and gene functional evolutions. In parallel, phenome programs have advanced significantly in rats during the last 15 years and more than 10 databases host genome and/or phenome information. In order to discover the bridges between genome and phenome, systems genetics and integrative genomics approaches have been developed. On the other hand, multiple level information transfers from genome to phenome are executed by differential usage of alternative transcriptional start (ATS) and polyadenylation (APA) sites per gene. We used our own experiments to demonstrate how alternative transcriptome analysis can lead to enrichment of phenome-related causal pathways in rats. Development of advanced genome-to-phenome assays will certainly enhance rats as models for human biomedical research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy L. Zinski
- Department of Animal Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7620
| | - Shane Carrion
- Department of Animal Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7620
| | - Jennifer J. Michal
- Department of Animal Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7620
| | - Maria A. Gartstein
- Department of Psychology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-4820
| | - Raymond M. Quock
- Department of Psychology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-4820
| | - Jon F. Davis
- Department of Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7620
| | - Zhihua Jiang
- Department of Animal Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7620
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Liu S, Harmston N, Glaser TL, Wong Y, Zhong Z, Madan B, Virshup DM, Petretto E. Wnt-regulated lncRNA discovery enhanced by in vivo identification and CRISPRi functional validation. Genome Med 2020; 12:89. [PMID: 33092630 PMCID: PMC7580003 DOI: 10.1186/s13073-020-00788-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2020] [Accepted: 10/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Wnt signaling is an evolutionarily conserved developmental pathway that is frequently hyperactivated in cancer. While multiple protein-coding genes regulated by Wnt signaling are known, the functional lncRNAs regulated by Wnt signaling have not been systematically characterized. METHODS We comprehensively mapped Wnt-regulated lncRNAs from an orthotopic Wnt-addicted pancreatic cancer model and examined the response of lncRNAs to Wnt inhibition between in vivo and in vitro cancer models. We further annotated and characterized these Wnt-regulated lncRNAs using existing genomic classifications (using data from FANTOM5) in the context of Wnt signaling and inferred their role in cancer pathogenesis (using GWAS and expression data from the TCGA). To functionally validate Wnt-regulated lncRNAs, we performed CRISPRi screens to assess their role in cancer cell proliferation both in vivo and in vitro. RESULTS We identified 3633 lncRNAs, of which 1503 were regulated by Wnt signaling in an orthotopic Wnt-addicted pancreatic cancer model. These lncRNAs were much more sensitive to changes in Wnt signaling in xenografts than in cultured cells. Our analysis suggested that Wnt signaling inhibition could influence the co-expression relationship of Wnt-regulated lncRNAs and their eQTL-linked protein-coding genes. Wnt-regulated lncRNAs were also implicated in specific gene networks involved in distinct biological processes that contribute to the pathogenesis of cancers. Consistent with previous genome-wide lncRNA CRISPRi screens, around 1% (13/1503) of the Wnt-regulated lncRNAs were found to modify cancer cell growth in vitro. This included CCAT1 and LINC00263, previously reported to regulate cancer growth. Using an in vivo CRISPRi screen, we doubled the discovery rate, identifying twice as many Wnt-regulated lncRNAs (25/1503) that had a functional effect on cancer cell growth. CONCLUSIONS Our study demonstrates the value of studying lncRNA functions in vivo, provides a valuable resource of lncRNAs regulated by Wnt signaling, and establishes a framework for systematic discovery of functional lncRNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiyang Liu
- Program in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore
- Program in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore
| | | | - Trudy Lee Glaser
- Program in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Yunka Wong
- Program in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Zheng Zhong
- Program in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Babita Madan
- Program in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore
| | - David M Virshup
- Program in Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore.
- Department of Pediatrics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, USA.
| | - Enrico Petretto
- Program in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore.
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, Imperial College London, London, UK.
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Farahbod M, Pavlidis P. Untangling the effects of cellular composition on coexpression analysis. Genome Res 2020; 30:849-859. [PMID: 32580998 PMCID: PMC7370889 DOI: 10.1101/gr.256735.119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Accepted: 06/18/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Coexpression analysis is widely used for inferring regulatory networks, predicting gene function, and interpretation of transcriptome profiling studies, based on methods such as clustering. The majority of such studies use data collected from bulk tissue, where the effects of cellular composition present a potential confound. However, the impact of composition on coexpression analysis has not been studied in detail. Here, we examine this issue for the case of human RNA analysis. Focusing on brain tissue, we found that, for most genes, differences in expression levels across cell types account for a large fraction of the variance of their measured RNA levels (median R 2 = 0.68). We then show that genes that have similar expression patterns across cell types will have correlated RNA levels in bulk tissue, due to the effect of variation in cellular composition. We demonstrate that much of the coexpression and the formation of coexpression clusters can be attributed to this effect for both brain and blood transcriptomes. For brain, we further show how this composition-induced coexpression masks underlying intra-cell-type coexpression observed in single-cell data. An attempt to correct for composition yielded mixed results. Our conclusion is that the dominant coexpression signal in brain, blood, and, likely, other complex tissues can be attributed to cellular compositional effects, rather than intra-cell-type regulatory relationships. These results have implications for the relevance and interpretation of coexpression analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marjan Farahbod
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z4, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 2A1, Canada
- Graduate Program in Bioinformatics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V5T 4S6, Canada
| | - Paul Pavlidis
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z4, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 2A1, Canada
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8
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Laaniste L, Srivastava PK, Stylianou J, Syed N, Cases-Cunillera S, Shkura K, Zeng Q, Rackham OJL, Langley SR, Delahaye-Duriez A, O'Neill K, Williams M, Becker A, Roncaroli F, Petretto E, Johnson MR. Integrated systems-genetic analyses reveal a network target for delaying glioma progression. Ann Clin Transl Neurol 2019; 6:1616-1638. [PMID: 31420939 PMCID: PMC6764637 DOI: 10.1002/acn3.50850] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2019] [Revised: 06/27/2019] [Accepted: 06/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective To identify a convergent, multitarget proliferation characteristic for astrocytoma transformation that could be targeted for therapy discovery. Methods Using an integrated functional genomics approach, we prioritized networks associated with astrocytoma progression using the following criteria: differential co‐expression between grade II and grade III IDH1‐mutated and 1p/19q euploid astrocytomas, preferential enrichment for genetic risk to cancer, association with patient survival and sample‐level genomic features. Drugs targeting the identified multitarget network characteristic for astrocytoma transformation were computationally predicted using drug transcriptional perturbation data and validated using primary human astrocytoma cells. Results A single network, M2, consisting of 177 genes, was associated with glioma progression on the basis of the above criteria. Functionally, M2 encoded physically interacting proteins regulating cell cycle processes and analysis of genome‐wide gene‐regulatory interactions using mutual information and DNA–protein interactions revealed the known regulators of cell cycle processes FoxM1, B‐Myb, and E2F2 as key regulators of M2. These results suggest functional disruption of M2 via gene mutation or altered expression as a convergent pathway regulating astrocytoma transformation. By considering M2 as a multitarget drug target regulating astrocytoma transformation, we identified several drugs that are predicted to restore M2 expression in anaplastic astrocytoma toward its low‐grade profile and of these, we validated the known antiproliferative drug resveratrol as down‐regulating multiple nodes of M2 including at nanomolar concentrations achievable in human cerebrospinal fluid by oral dosing. Interpretation Our results identify M2 as a multitarget network characteristic for astrocytoma progression and encourage M2‐based drug screening to identify new compounds for preventing glioma transformation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liisi Laaniste
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
| | | | - Julianna Stylianou
- John Fulcher Neuro-oncology Laboratory, Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
| | - Nelofer Syed
- John Fulcher Neuro-oncology Laboratory, Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
| | | | - Kirill Shkura
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
| | - Qingyu Zeng
- John Fulcher Neuro-oncology Laboratory, Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
| | | | - Sarah R Langley
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK.,Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | - Andree Delahaye-Duriez
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK.,PROTECT, INSERM, Université Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, France
| | - Kevin O'Neill
- Department of Neurosurgery, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK
| | - Matthew Williams
- Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Albert Becker
- Department of Neuropathology, University of Bonn Medical Centre, Bonn, Germany
| | - Federico Roncaroli
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Enrico Petretto
- Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.,MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMS), Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Michael R Johnson
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
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Chen H, Moreno-Moral A, Pesce F, Devapragash N, Mancini M, Heng EL, Rotival M, Srivastava PK, Harmston N, Shkura K, Rackham OJL, Yu WP, Sun XM, Tee NGZ, Tan ELS, Barton PJR, Felkin LE, Lara-Pezzi E, Angelini G, Beltrami C, Pravenec M, Schafer S, Bottolo L, Hubner N, Emanueli C, Cook SA, Petretto E. WWP2 regulates pathological cardiac fibrosis by modulating SMAD2 signaling. Nat Commun 2019; 10:3616. [PMID: 31399586 PMCID: PMC6689010 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-11551-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2018] [Accepted: 07/19/2019] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Cardiac fibrosis is a final common pathology in inherited and acquired heart diseases that causes cardiac electrical and pump failure. Here, we use systems genetics to identify a pro-fibrotic gene network in the diseased heart and show that this network is regulated by the E3 ubiquitin ligase WWP2, specifically by the WWP2-N terminal isoform. Importantly, the WWP2-regulated pro-fibrotic gene network is conserved across different cardiac diseases characterized by fibrosis: human and murine dilated cardiomyopathy and repaired tetralogy of Fallot. Transgenic mice lacking the N-terminal region of the WWP2 protein show improved cardiac function and reduced myocardial fibrosis in response to pressure overload or myocardial infarction. In primary cardiac fibroblasts, WWP2 positively regulates the expression of pro-fibrotic markers and extracellular matrix genes. TGFβ1 stimulation promotes nuclear translocation of the WWP2 isoforms containing the N-terminal region and their interaction with SMAD2. WWP2 mediates the TGFβ1-induced nucleocytoplasmic shuttling and transcriptional activity of SMAD2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huimei Chen
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore
| | - Aida Moreno-Moral
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore
| | - Francesco Pesce
- Department of Emergency and Organ Transplantation (DETO), University of Bari, 70124, Bari, Italy
| | - Nithya Devapragash
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore
| | - Massimiliano Mancini
- SOC di Anatomia Patologica, Ospedale San Giovanni di Dio, 50123, Florence, Italy
| | - Ee Ling Heng
- National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Maxime Rotival
- Unit of Human Evolutionary Genetics, Institute Pasteur, 75015, Paris, France
| | - Prashant K Srivastava
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, W12 0NN, UK
| | - Nathan Harmston
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore
| | - Kirill Shkura
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, W12 0NN, UK
| | - Owen J L Rackham
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore
| | - Wei-Ping Yu
- Animal Gene Editing Laboratory, BRC, A*STAR20 Biopolis Way, Singapore, 138668, Republic of Singapore
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, A*STAR, 61 Biopolis Drive, Singapore, 138673, Republic of Singapore
| | - Xi-Ming Sun
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMC), Imperial College, London, W12 0NN, UK
| | | | - Elisabeth Li Sa Tan
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore
| | - Paul J R Barton
- National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
- Cardiovascular Research Centre, Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust, London, SW3 6NP, UK
| | - Leanne E Felkin
- National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
- Cardiovascular Research Centre, Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust, London, SW3 6NP, UK
| | - Enrique Lara-Pezzi
- Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares - CNIC, 28029, Madrid, Spain
| | - Gianni Angelini
- National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
- Bristol Heart Institute, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS2 89HW, UK
| | - Cristina Beltrami
- National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Michal Pravenec
- Institute of Physiology, Czech Academy of Sciences, 142 00, Praha 4, Czech Republic
| | - Sebastian Schafer
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore
- National Heart Centre Singapore, Singapore, 169609, Republic of Singapore
| | - Leonardo Bottolo
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK
- The Alan Turing Institute, London, NW1 2DB, UK
- MRC Biostatistics Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 0SR, UK
| | - Norbert Hubner
- Cardiovascular and Metabolic Sciences, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125, Berlin, Germany
- DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), Partner Site Berlin, 13347, Berlin, Germany
- Charité-Universitätsmedizin, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Berlin Institute of Health (BIH), 10178, Berlin, Germany
| | - Costanza Emanueli
- National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
- Cardiovascular Research Centre, Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust, London, SW3 6NP, UK
| | - Stuart A Cook
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMC), Imperial College, London, W12 0NN, UK
- National Heart Centre Singapore, Singapore, 169609, Republic of Singapore
| | - Enrico Petretto
- Programme in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Republic of Singapore.
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMC), Imperial College, London, W12 0NN, UK.
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10
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Sonawane AR, Weiss ST, Glass K, Sharma A. Network Medicine in the Age of Biomedical Big Data. Front Genet 2019; 10:294. [PMID: 31031797 PMCID: PMC6470635 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2019.00294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 111] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2018] [Accepted: 03/19/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Network medicine is an emerging area of research dealing with molecular and genetic interactions, network biomarkers of disease, and therapeutic target discovery. Large-scale biomedical data generation offers a unique opportunity to assess the effect and impact of cellular heterogeneity and environmental perturbations on the observed phenotype. Marrying the two, network medicine with biomedical data provides a framework to build meaningful models and extract impactful results at a network level. In this review, we survey existing network types and biomedical data sources. More importantly, we delve into ways in which the network medicine approach, aided by phenotype-specific biomedical data, can be gainfully applied. We provide three paradigms, mainly dealing with three major biological network archetypes: protein-protein interaction, expression-based, and gene regulatory networks. For each of these paradigms, we discuss a broad overview of philosophies under which various network methods work. We also provide a few examples in each paradigm as a test case of its successful application. Finally, we delineate several opportunities and challenges in the field of network medicine. We hope this review provides a lexicon for researchers from biological sciences and network theory to come on the same page to work on research areas that require interdisciplinary expertise. Taken together, the understanding gained from combining biomedical data with networks can be useful for characterizing disease etiologies and identifying therapeutic targets, which, in turn, will lead to better preventive medicine with translational impact on personalized healthcare.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abhijeet R. Sonawane
- Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Scott T. Weiss
- Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Kimberly Glass
- Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Amitabh Sharma
- Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Center for Interdisciplinary Cardiovascular Sciences, Cardiovascular Division, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
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11
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Roy S, Zaman KI, Williams RW, Homayouni R. Evaluation of Sirtuin-3 probe quality and co-expressed genes using literature cohesion. BMC Bioinformatics 2019; 20:104. [PMID: 30871457 PMCID: PMC6419539 DOI: 10.1186/s12859-019-2621-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Gene co-expression studies can provide important insights into molecular and cellular signaling pathways. The GeneNetwork database is a unique resource for co-expression analysis using data from a variety of tissues across genetically distinct inbred mice. However, extraction of biologically meaningful co-expressed gene sets is challenging due to variability in microarray platforms, probe quality, normalization methods, and confounding biological factors. In this study, we tested whether literature derived functional cohesion could be used as an objective metric in lieu of 'ground truth' to evaluate the quality of probes and microarray datasets. RESULTS We examined Sirtuin-3 (Sirt3) co-expressed gene sets extracted from either liver or brain tissues of BXD recombinant inbred mice in the GeneNetwork database. Depending on the microarray platform, there were as many as 26 probes that targeted different regions of Sirt3 primary transcript. Co-expressed gene sets (ranging from 100-1000 genes) associated with each Sirt3 probe were evaluated using the previously developed literature-derived cohesion p-value (LPv) and benchmarked against 'gold standards' derived from proteomic studies or Gene Ontology classifications. We found that the maximal F-measure was obtained at an average window size of 535 genes. Using set size of 500 genes, the Pearson correlations between LPv and F-measure as well as between LPv and mitochondrial gene enrichment p-values were 0.90 and 0.93, respectively. Importantly, we found that the LPv approach can distinguish high quality Sirt3 probes. Analysis of the most functionally cohesive Sirt3 co-expressed gene set revealed core metabolic pathways that were shared between hippocampus and liver as well as distinct pathways which were unique to each tissue. These results are consistent with other studies that suggest Sirt3 is a key metabolic regulator and has distinct functions in energy-producing vs. energy-demanding tissues. CONCLUSIONS Our results provide proof-of-concept that literature cohesion analysis is useful for evaluating the quality of probes and microarray datasets, particularly when experimentally derived gold standards are unavailable. Our approach would enable researchers to rapidly identify biologically meaningful co-expressed gene sets and facilitate discovery from high throughput genomic data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sujoy Roy
- Bioinformatics Program, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152 USA
- Center for Translational Informatics, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152 USA
| | - Kazi I. Zaman
- Bioinformatics Program, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152 USA
| | - Robert W. Williams
- Department of Genetics, Genomics and Informatics, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, 38163 USA
| | - Ramin Homayouni
- Bioinformatics Program, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152 USA
- Center for Translational Informatics, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152 USA
- Department of Biology, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152 USA
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12
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Lea A, Subramaniam M, Ko A, Lehtimäki T, Raitoharju E, Kähönen M, Seppälä I, Mononen N, Raitakari OT, Ala-Korpela M, Pajukanta P, Zaitlen N, Ayroles JF. Genetic and environmental perturbations lead to regulatory decoherence. eLife 2019; 8:e40538. [PMID: 30834892 PMCID: PMC6400502 DOI: 10.7554/elife.40538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2018] [Accepted: 02/14/2019] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Correlation among traits is a fundamental feature of biological systems that remains difficult to study. To address this problem, we developed a flexible approach that allows us to identify factors associated with inter-individual variation in correlation. We use data from three human cohorts to study the effects of genetic and environmental variation on correlations among mRNA transcripts and among NMR metabolites. We first show that environmental exposures (infection and disease) lead to a systematic loss of correlation, which we define as 'decoherence'. Using longitudinal data, we show that decoherent metabolites are better predictors of whether someone will develop metabolic syndrome than metabolites commonly used as biomarkers of this disease. Finally, we demonstrate that correlation itself is under genetic control by mapping hundreds of 'correlation quantitative trait loci (QTLs)'. Together, this work furthers our understanding of how and why coordinated biological processes break down, and points to a potential role for decoherence in disease. Editorial note This article has been through an editorial process in which the authors decide how to respond to the issues raised during peer review. The Reviewing Editor's assessment is that all the issues have been addressed (see decision letter).
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Lea
- Department of Ecology and EvolutionPrinceton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative GenomicsPrinceton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
| | - Meena Subramaniam
- Department of Medicine, Lung Biology CenterUniversity of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - Arthur Ko
- Department of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLAUniversity of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Terho Lehtimäki
- Department of Clinical Chemistry, Fimlab Laboratories, Faculty of Medicine and Health TechnologyTampere UniversityTampereFinland
- Finnish Cardiovascular Research Center, Faculty of Medicine and Health TechnologyTampere UniversityTampereFinland
| | - Emma Raitoharju
- Finnish Cardiovascular Research Center, Faculty of Medicine and Health TechnologyTampere UniversityTampereFinland
| | - Mika Kähönen
- Finnish Cardiovascular Research Center, Faculty of Medicine and Health TechnologyTampere UniversityTampereFinland
- Department of Clinical PhysiologyTampere University, Tampere University HospitalTampereFinland
| | - Ilkka Seppälä
- Finnish Cardiovascular Research Center, Faculty of Medicine and Health TechnologyTampere UniversityTampereFinland
| | - Nina Mononen
- Finnish Cardiovascular Research Center, Faculty of Medicine and Health TechnologyTampere UniversityTampereFinland
| | - Olli T Raitakari
- Research Centre of Applied and Preventive Cardiovascular MedicineUniversity of TurkuTurkuFinland
- Department of Clinical Physiology and Nuclear MedicineTurku University HospitalTurkuFinland
| | - Mika Ala-Korpela
- Systems Epidemiology, Baker Heart and Diabetes InstituteMelbourneAustralia
- Computational Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Biocenter OuluUniversity of OuluOuluFinland
- NMR Metabolomics Laboratory, School of PharmacyUniversity of Eastern FinlandKuopioFinland
- Population Health Science, Bristol Medical SchoolUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom
- Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology UnitUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom
- Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health SciencesThe Alfred Hospital, Monash UniversityMelbourneAustralia
| | - Päivi Pajukanta
- Department of Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLAUniversity of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Noah Zaitlen
- Department of Medicine, Lung Biology CenterUniversity of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - Julien F Ayroles
- Department of Ecology and EvolutionPrinceton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative GenomicsPrinceton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
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13
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Ritchie SC, Watts S, Fearnley LG, Holt KE, Abraham G, Inouye M. A Scalable Permutation Approach Reveals Replication and Preservation Patterns of Network Modules in Large Datasets. Cell Syst 2019; 3:71-82. [PMID: 27467248 DOI: 10.1016/j.cels.2016.06.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2015] [Revised: 02/09/2016] [Accepted: 06/29/2016] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Network modules-topologically distinct groups of edges and nodes-that are preserved across datasets can reveal common features of organisms, tissues, cell types, and molecules. Many statistics to identify such modules have been developed, but testing their significance requires heuristics. Here, we demonstrate that current methods for assessing module preservation are systematically biased and produce skewed p values. We introduce NetRep, a rapid and computationally efficient method that uses a permutation approach to score module preservation without assuming data are normally distributed. NetRep produces unbiased p values and can distinguish between true and false positives during multiple hypothesis testing. We use NetRep to quantify preservation of gene coexpression modules across murine brain, liver, adipose, and muscle tissues. Complex patterns of multi-tissue preservation were revealed, including a liver-derived housekeeping module that displayed adipose- and muscle-specific association with body weight. Finally, we demonstrate the broader applicability of NetRep by quantifying preservation of bacterial networks in gut microbiota between men and women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott C Ritchie
- Centre for Systems Genomics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; Department of Pathology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia.
| | - Stephen Watts
- Centre for Systems Genomics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Bio21 Molecular Science and Biotechnology Institute, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Liam G Fearnley
- Centre for Systems Genomics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; Department of Pathology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Kathryn E Holt
- Centre for Systems Genomics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Bio21 Molecular Science and Biotechnology Institute, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Gad Abraham
- Centre for Systems Genomics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; Department of Pathology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Michael Inouye
- Centre for Systems Genomics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; Department of Pathology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia.
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14
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Carmelo VAO, Kogelman LJA, Madsen MB, Kadarmideen HN. WISH-R- a fast and efficient tool for construction of epistatic networks for complex traits and diseases. BMC Bioinformatics 2018; 19:277. [PMID: 30064383 PMCID: PMC6069724 DOI: 10.1186/s12859-018-2291-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2017] [Accepted: 07/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Genetic epistasis is an often-overlooked area in the study of the genomics of complex traits. Genome-wide association studies are a useful tool for revealing potential causal genetic variants, but in this context, epistasis is generally ignored. Data complexity and interpretation issues make it difficult to process and interpret epistasis. As the number of interaction grows exponentially with the number of variants, computational limitation is a bottleneck. Gene Network based strategies have been successful in integrating biological data and identifying relevant hub genes and pathways related to complex traits. In this study, epistatic interactions and network-based analysis are combined in the Weighted Interaction SNP hub (WISH) method and implemented in an efficient and easy to use R package. Results The WISH R package (WISH-R) was developed to calculate epistatic interactions on a genome-wide level based on genomic data. It is easy to use and install, and works on regular genomic data. The package filters data based on linkage disequilibrium and calculates epistatic interaction coefficients between SNP pairs based on a parallelized efficient linear model and generalized linear model implementations. Normalized epistatic coefficients are analyzed in a network framework, alleviating multiple testing issues and integrating biological signal to identify modules and pathways related to complex traits. Functions for visualizing results and testing runtimes are also provided. Conclusion The WISH-R package is an efficient implementation for analyzing genome-wide epistasis for complex diseases and traits. It includes methods and strategies for analyzing epistasis from initial data filtering until final data interpretation. WISH offers a new way to analyze genomic data by combining epistasis and network based analysis in one method and provides options for visualizations. This alleviates many of the existing hurdles in the analysis of genomic interactions. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12859-018-2291-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor A O Carmelo
- Quantitative and Systems Genomics Group, Department of Bio and Health Informatics, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet, Building 208, 2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.,Animal Breeding, Quantitative Genetics and Systems Biology group, Department of Large Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Denmark
| | - Lisette J A Kogelman
- Animal Breeding, Quantitative Genetics and Systems Biology group, Department of Large Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Denmark.,Danish Headache Center, Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Nordre Ringvej 69, 2600, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Majbritt Busk Madsen
- Institute of Biological Psychiatry, Mental Health Centre, Sct. Hans, Roskilde, Capital Region of Denmark, Denmark
| | - Haja N Kadarmideen
- Quantitative and Systems Genomics Group, Department of Bio and Health Informatics, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet, Building 208, 2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark. .,Animal Breeding, Quantitative Genetics and Systems Biology group, Department of Large Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Denmark.
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15
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Parker S, Fraczek MG, Wu J, Shamsah S, Manousaki A, Dungrattanalert K, de Almeida RA, Invernizzi E, Burgis T, Omara W, Griffiths-Jones S, Delneri D, O’Keefe RT. Large-scale profiling of noncoding RNA function in yeast. PLoS Genet 2018; 14:e1007253. [PMID: 29529031 PMCID: PMC5864082 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1007253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2017] [Revised: 03/22/2018] [Accepted: 02/13/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) are emerging as key regulators of cellular function. We have exploited the recently developed barcoded ncRNA gene deletion strain collections in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae to investigate the numerous ncRNAs in yeast with no known function. The ncRNA deletion collection contains deletions of tRNAs, snoRNAs, snRNAs, stable unannotated transcripts (SUTs), cryptic unstable transcripts (CUTs) and other annotated ncRNAs encompassing 532 different individual ncRNA deletions. We have profiled the fitness of the diploid heterozygous ncRNA deletion strain collection in six conditions using batch and continuous liquid culture, as well as the haploid ncRNA deletion strain collections arrayed individually onto solid rich media. These analyses revealed many novel environmental-specific haplo-insufficient and haplo-proficient phenotypes providing key information on the importance of each specific ncRNA in every condition. Co-fitness analysis using fitness data from the heterozygous ncRNA deletion strain collection identified two ncRNA groups required for growth during heat stress and nutrient deprivation. The extensive fitness data for each ncRNA deletion strain has been compiled into an easy to navigate database called Yeast ncRNA Analysis (YNCA). By expanding the original ncRNA deletion strain collection we identified four novel essential ncRNAs; SUT527, SUT075, SUT367 and SUT259/691. We defined the effects of each new essential ncRNA on adjacent gene expression in the heterozygote background identifying both repression and induction of nearby genes. Additionally, we discovered a function for SUT527 in the expression, 3' end formation and localization of SEC4, an essential protein coding mRNA. Finally, using plasmid complementation we rescued the SUT075 lethal phenotype revealing that this ncRNA acts in trans. Overall, our findings provide important new insights into the function of ncRNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven Parker
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Marcin G. Fraczek
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Jian Wu
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Sara Shamsah
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Alkisti Manousaki
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Kobchai Dungrattanalert
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Rogerio Alves de Almeida
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Edith Invernizzi
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Tim Burgis
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Walid Omara
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Sam Griffiths-Jones
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Daniela Delneri
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Raymond T. O’Keefe
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
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16
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Bellazzi R, Engel F, Ferrazzi F. Gene network analysis: from heart development to cardiac therapy. Thromb Haemost 2017; 113:522-31. [DOI: 10.1160/th14-06-0483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2014] [Accepted: 08/14/2014] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
SummaryNetworks offer a flexible framework to represent and analyse the complex interactions between components of cellular systems. In particular gene networks inferred from expression data can support the identification of novel hypotheses on regulatory processes. In this review we focus on the use of gene network analysis in the study of heart development. Understanding heart development will promote the elucidation of the aetiology of congenital heart disease and thus possibly improve diagnostics. Moreover, it will help to establish cardiac therapies. For example, understanding cardiac differentiation during development will help to guide stem cell differentiation required for cardiac tissue engineering or to enhance endogenous repair mechanisms. We introduce different methodological frameworks to infer networks from expression data such as Boolean and Bayesian networks. Then we present currently available temporal expression data in heart development and discuss the use of network-based approaches in published studies. Collectively, our literature-based analysis indicates that gene network analysis constitutes a promising opportunity to infer therapy-relevant regulatory processes in heart development. However, the use of network-based approaches has so far been limited by the small amount of samples in available datasets. Thus, we propose to acquire high-resolution temporal expression data to improve the mathematical descriptions of regulatory processes obtained with gene network inference methodologies. Especially probabilistic methods that accommodate the intrinsic variability of biological systems have the potential to contribute to a deeper understanding of heart development.
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17
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Hanna MH, Dalla Gassa A, Mayer G, Zaza G, Brophy PD, Gesualdo L, Pesce F. The nephrologist of tomorrow: towards a kidney-omic future. Pediatr Nephrol 2017; 32:393-404. [PMID: 26961492 DOI: 10.1007/s00467-016-3357-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2015] [Revised: 02/14/2016] [Accepted: 02/15/2016] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Omics refers to the collective technologies used to explore the roles and relationships of the various types of molecules that make up the phenotype of an organism. Systems biology is a scientific discipline that endeavours to quantify all of the molecular elements of a biological system. Therefore, it reflects the knowledge acquired by omics in a meaningful manner by providing insights into functional pathways and regulatory networks underlying different diseases. The recent advances in biotechnological platforms and statistical tools to analyse such complex data have enabled scientists to connect the experimentally observed correlations to the underlying biochemical and pathological processes. We discuss in this review the current knowledge of different omics technologies in kidney diseases, specifically in the field of pediatric nephrology, including biomarker discovery, defining as yet unrecognized biologic therapeutic targets and linking omics to relevant standard indices and clinical outcomes. We also provide here a unique perspective on the field, taking advantage of the experience gained by the large-scale European research initiative called "Systems Biology towards Novel Chronic Kidney Disease Diagnosis and Treatment" (SysKid). Based on the integrative framework of Systems biology, SysKid demonstrated how omics are powerful yet complex tools to unravel the consequences of diabetes and hypertension on kidney function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mina H Hanna
- Department of Pediatrics, Kentucky Children's Hospital, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA
| | | | - Gert Mayer
- Department of Internal Medicine IV (Nephrology and Hypertension), Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Gianluigi Zaza
- Renal Unit, Department of Medicine, Verona University Hospital, Verona, Italy
| | - Patrick D Brophy
- Pediatric Nephrology, University of Iowa Children's Hospital, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Loreto Gesualdo
- Dipartimento Emergenza e Trapianti di Organi (D.E.T.O), University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | - Francesco Pesce
- Dipartimento Emergenza e Trapianti di Organi (D.E.T.O), University of Bari, Bari, Italy. .,Cardiovascular Genetics and Genomics, National Heart and Lung Institute, Royal Brompton Hospital, Imperial College London, London, UK.
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18
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Anderson AM, Kalimutho M, Harten S, Nanayakkara DM, Khanna KK, Ragan MA. The metastasis suppressor RARRES3 as an endogenous inhibitor of the immunoproteasome expression in breast cancer cells. Sci Rep 2017; 7:39873. [PMID: 28051153 PMCID: PMC5209724 DOI: 10.1038/srep39873] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2016] [Accepted: 11/28/2016] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
In breast cancer metastasis, the dynamic continuum involving pro- and anti-inflammatory regulators can become compromised. Over 600 genes have been implicated in metastasis to bone, lung or brain but how these genes might contribute to perturbation of immune function is poorly understood. To gain insight, we adopted a gene co-expression network approach that draws on the functional parallels between naturally occurring bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) and cancer stem cells (CSCs). Our network analyses indicate a key role for metastasis suppressor RARRES3, including potential to regulate the immunoproteasome (IP), a specialized proteasome induced under inflammatory conditions. Knockdown of RARRES3 in near-normal mammary epithelial and breast cancer cell lines increases overall transcript and protein levels of the IP subunits, but not of their constitutively expressed counterparts. RARRES3 mRNA expression is controlled by interferon regulatory factor IRF1, an inducer of the IP, and is sensitive to depletion of the retinoid-related receptor RORA that regulates various physiological processes including immunity through modulation of gene expression. Collectively, these findings identify a novel regulatory role for RARRES3 as an endogenous inhibitor of IP expression, and contribute to our evolving understanding of potential pathways underlying breast cancer driven immune modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison M Anderson
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Murugan Kalimutho
- Signal Transduction Laboratory, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, 300 Herston Road, Herston, Brisbane QLD 4006, Australia
| | - Sarah Harten
- Signal Transduction Laboratory, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, 300 Herston Road, Herston, Brisbane QLD 4006, Australia
| | - Devathri M Nanayakkara
- Signal Transduction Laboratory, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, 300 Herston Road, Herston, Brisbane QLD 4006, Australia
| | - Kum Kum Khanna
- Signal Transduction Laboratory, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, 300 Herston Road, Herston, Brisbane QLD 4006, Australia
| | - Mark A Ragan
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane QLD 4072, Australia
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19
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Moreno-Moral A, Pesce F, Behmoaras J, Petretto E. Systems Genetics as a Tool to Identify Master Genetic Regulators in Complex Disease. Methods Mol Biol 2017; 1488:337-362. [PMID: 27933533 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-6427-7_16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Systems genetics stems from systems biology and similarly employs integrative modeling approaches to describe the perturbations and phenotypic effects observed in a complex system. However, in the case of systems genetics the main source of perturbation is naturally occurring genetic variation, which can be analyzed at the systems-level to explain the observed variation in phenotypic traits. In contrast with conventional single-variant association approaches, the success of systems genetics has been in the identification of gene networks and molecular pathways that underlie complex disease. In addition, systems genetics has proven useful in the discovery of master trans-acting genetic regulators of functional networks and pathways, which in many cases revealed unexpected gene targets for disease. Here we detail the central components of a fully integrated systems genetics approach to complex disease, starting from assessment of genetic and gene expression variation, linking DNA sequence variation to mRNA (expression QTL mapping), gene regulatory network analysis and mapping the genetic control of regulatory networks. By summarizing a few illustrative (and successful) examples, we highlight how different data-modeling strategies can be effectively integrated in a systems genetics study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aida Moreno-Moral
- Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore
| | - Francesco Pesce
- National Heart and Lung Institute, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Campus, Imperial Centre for Translational and Experimental Medicine, London, UK
| | - Jacques Behmoaras
- Centre for Complement and Inflammation Research, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital, Du Cane Road, London, W12 0NN, UK
| | - Enrico Petretto
- Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore, 169857, Singapore.
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20
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Delahaye-Duriez A, Srivastava P, Shkura K, Langley SR, Laaniste L, Moreno-Moral A, Danis B, Mazzuferi M, Foerch P, Gazina EV, Richards K, Petrou S, Kaminski RM, Petretto E, Johnson MR. Rare and common epilepsies converge on a shared gene regulatory network providing opportunities for novel antiepileptic drug discovery. Genome Biol 2016; 17:245. [PMID: 27955713 PMCID: PMC5154105 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-016-1097-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2016] [Accepted: 11/02/2016] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The relationship between monogenic and polygenic forms of epilepsy is poorly understood and the extent to which the genetic and acquired epilepsies share common pathways is unclear. Here, we use an integrated systems-level analysis of brain gene expression data to identify molecular networks disrupted in epilepsy. RESULTS We identified a co-expression network of 320 genes (M30), which is significantly enriched for non-synonymous de novo mutations ascertained from patients with monogenic epilepsy and for common variants associated with polygenic epilepsy. The genes in the M30 network are expressed widely in the human brain under tight developmental control and encode physically interacting proteins involved in synaptic processes. The most highly connected proteins within the M30 network were preferentially disrupted by deleterious de novo mutations for monogenic epilepsy, in line with the centrality-lethality hypothesis. Analysis of M30 expression revealed consistent downregulation in the epileptic brain in heterogeneous forms of epilepsy including human temporal lobe epilepsy, a mouse model of acquired temporal lobe epilepsy, and a mouse model of monogenic Dravet (SCN1A) disease. These results suggest functional disruption of M30 via gene mutation or altered expression as a convergent mechanism regulating susceptibility to epilepsy broadly. Using the large collection of drug-induced gene expression data from Connectivity Map, several drugs were predicted to preferentially restore the downregulation of M30 in epilepsy toward health, most notably valproic acid, whose effect on M30 expression was replicated in neurons. CONCLUSIONS Taken together, our results suggest targeting the expression of M30 as a potential new therapeutic strategy in epilepsy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andree Delahaye-Duriez
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK.
- MRC Clinical Sciences Centre, Imperial College London, London, UK.
- Université Paris 13, Sorbonne Paris Cité, UFR de Santé, Médecine et Biologie Humaine, Paris, France.
- PROTECT, INSERM, Université Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Paris, France.
| | - Prashant Srivastava
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
| | - Kirill Shkura
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
| | - Sarah R Langley
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
- Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, 169857, Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Liisi Laaniste
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK
| | - Aida Moreno-Moral
- MRC Clinical Sciences Centre, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, 169857, Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Bénédicte Danis
- Neuroscience TA, UCB Pharma, S.A, Allée de la Recherche, 60, 1070, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Manuela Mazzuferi
- Neuroscience TA, UCB Pharma, S.A, Allée de la Recherche, 60, 1070, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Patrik Foerch
- Neuroscience TA, UCB Pharma, S.A, Allée de la Recherche, 60, 1070, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Elena V Gazina
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, 3052, Australia
| | - Kay Richards
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, 3052, Australia
| | - Steven Petrou
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, 3052, Australia
- The Centre for Neural Engineering, The Department of Electrical Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, 3052, Australia
- The Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Integrative Brain Function, Parkville, Victoria, 3052, Australia
| | - Rafal M Kaminski
- Neuroscience TA, UCB Pharma, S.A, Allée de la Recherche, 60, 1070, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Enrico Petretto
- MRC Clinical Sciences Centre, Imperial College London, London, UK.
- Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, 169857, Singapore, Republic of Singapore.
| | - Michael R Johnson
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK.
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21
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Moreno-Moral A, Petretto E. From integrative genomics to systems genetics in the rat to link genotypes to phenotypes. Dis Model Mech 2016; 9:1097-1110. [PMID: 27736746 PMCID: PMC5087832 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.026104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Complementary to traditional gene mapping approaches used to identify the hereditary components of complex diseases, integrative genomics and systems genetics have emerged as powerful strategies to decipher the key genetic drivers of molecular pathways that underlie disease. Broadly speaking, integrative genomics aims to link cellular-level traits (such as mRNA expression) to the genome to identify their genetic determinants. With the characterization of several cellular-level traits within the same system, the integrative genomics approach evolved into a more comprehensive study design, called systems genetics, which aims to unravel the complex biological networks and pathways involved in disease, and in turn map their genetic control points. The first fully integrated systems genetics study was carried out in rats, and the results, which revealed conserved trans-acting genetic regulation of a pro-inflammatory network relevant to type 1 diabetes, were translated to humans. Many studies using different organisms subsequently stemmed from this example. The aim of this Review is to describe the most recent advances in the fields of integrative genomics and systems genetics applied in the rat, with a focus on studies of complex diseases ranging from inflammatory to cardiometabolic disorders. We aim to provide the genetics community with a comprehensive insight into how the systems genetics approach came to life, starting from the first integrative genomics strategies [such as expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) mapping] and concluding with the most sophisticated gene network-based analyses in multiple systems and disease states. Although not limited to studies that have been directly translated to humans, we will focus particularly on the successful investigations in the rat that have led to primary discoveries of genes and pathways relevant to human disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aida Moreno-Moral
- Program in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-National University of Singapore (NUS) Medical School, Singapore
| | - Enrico Petretto
- Program in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-National University of Singapore (NUS) Medical School, Singapore
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22
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Szutorisz H, Egervári G, Sperry J, Carter JM, Hurd YL. Cross-generational THC exposure alters the developmental sensitivity of ventral and dorsal striatal gene expression in male and female offspring. Neurotoxicol Teratol 2016; 58:107-114. [PMID: 27221226 DOI: 10.1016/j.ntt.2016.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2015] [Revised: 04/24/2016] [Accepted: 05/19/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Cannabis (Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica) is the illicit drug most frequently abused by young men and women. The growing use of the drug has raised attention not only on the impact of direct exposure on the developing brain and behavior later in life, but also on potential cross-generational consequences. Our previous work demonstrated that adolescent exposure to Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive component of cannabis, affects reward-related behavior and striatal gene expression in male offspring that were unexposed to the drug during their own lifespan. The significant sex differences documented for most addiction and psychiatric disorders suggest that understanding the perturbation of the brain in the two sexes due to cannabis could provide insights about neuronal systems underpinning vulnerability to psychiatric illnesses. In the current study, we expanded our previous observations in males by analyzing the female brain for specific aberrations associated with cross-generational THC exposure. Based on the impact of adolescent development on subsequent adult behavioral pathology, we examined molecular patterns during both adolescence and adulthood. The results revealed a switch from the ventral striatum during adolescence to the dorsal striatum in adulthood in alterations of gene expression related to synaptic plasticity in both sexes. Females, however, exhibited stronger correlation patterns between genes and also showed locomotor disturbances not evident in males. Overall, the findings demonstrate cross-generational consequences of parental THC exposure in both male and female offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henrietta Szutorisz
- Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Gabor Egervári
- Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - James Sperry
- Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jenna M Carter
- Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Yasmin L Hurd
- Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
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23
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Riccadonna S, Jurman G, Visintainer R, Filosi M, Furlanello C. DTW-MIC Coexpression Networks from Time-Course Data. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0152648. [PMID: 27031641 PMCID: PMC4816347 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0152648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2014] [Accepted: 03/17/2016] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
When modeling coexpression networks from high-throughput time course data, Pearson Correlation Coefficient (PCC) is one of the most effective and popular similarity functions. However, its reliability is limited since it cannot capture non-linear interactions and time shifts. Here we propose to overcome these two issues by employing a novel similarity function, Dynamic Time Warping Maximal Information Coefficient (DTW-MIC), combining a measure taking care of functional interactions of signals (MIC) and a measure identifying time lag (DTW). By using the Hamming-Ipsen-Mikhailov (HIM) metric to quantify network differences, the effectiveness of the DTW-MIC approach is demonstrated on a set of four synthetic and one transcriptomic datasets, also in comparison to TimeDelay ARACNE and Transfer Entropy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Giuseppe Jurman
- Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, Italy
| | - Roberto Visintainer
- Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, Italy
| | - Michele Filosi
- Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, Italy
| | - Cesare Furlanello
- Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, Italy
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24
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Lin Y, Yuan X, Shen B. Network-Based Biomedical Data Analysis. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2016; 939:309-332. [DOI: 10.1007/978-981-10-1503-8_13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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25
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Pushing the annotation of cellular activities to a higher resolution: Predicting functions at the isoform level. Methods 2015; 93:110-8. [PMID: 26238263 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2015.07.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2015] [Revised: 07/20/2015] [Accepted: 07/29/2015] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
In past decades, the experimental determination of protein functions was expensive and time-consuming, so numerous computational methods were developed to speed up and guide the process. However, most of these methods predict protein functions at the gene level and do not consider the fact that protein isoforms (translated from alternatively spliced transcripts), not genes, are the actual function carriers. Now, high-throughput RNA-seq technology is providing unprecedented opportunities to unravel protein functions at the isoform level. In this article, we review recent progress in the high-resolution functional annotations of protein isoforms, focusing on two methods developed by the authors. Both methods can integrate multiple RNA-seq datasets for comprehensively characterizing functions of protein isoforms.
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26
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Abstract
Gene coexpression networks inferred by correlation from high-throughput profiling such as microarray data represent simple but effective structures for discovering and interpreting linear gene relationships. In recent years, several approaches have been proposed to tackle the problem of deciding when the resulting correlation values are statistically significant. This is most crucial when the number of samples is small, yielding a non-negligible chance that even high correlation values are due to random effects. Here we introduce a novel hard thresholding solution based on the assumption that a coexpression network inferred by randomly generated data is expected to be empty. The threshold is theoretically derived by means of an analytic approach and, as a deterministic independent null model, it depends only on the dimensions of the starting data matrix, with assumptions on the skewness of the data distribution compatible with the structure of gene expression levels data. We show, on synthetic and array datasets, that the proposed threshold is effective in eliminating all false positive links, with an offsetting cost in terms of false negative detected edges.
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27
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Tomaszewski M, Eales J, Denniff M, Myers S, Chew GS, Nelson CP, Christofidou P, Desai A, Büsst C, Wojnar L, Musialik K, Jozwiak J, Debiec R, Dominiczak AF, Navis G, van Gilst WH, van der Harst P, Samani NJ, Harrap S, Bogdanski P, Zukowska-Szczechowska E, Charchar FJ. Renal Mechanisms of Association between Fibroblast Growth Factor 1 and Blood Pressure. J Am Soc Nephrol 2015; 26:3151-60. [PMID: 25918036 DOI: 10.1681/asn.2014121211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2014] [Accepted: 03/05/2015] [Indexed: 11/03/2022] Open
Abstract
The fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) gene is expressed primarily in the kidney and may contribute to hypertension. However, the biologic mechanisms underlying the association between FGF1 and BP regulation remain unknown. We report that the major allele of FGF1 single nucleotide polymorphism rs152524 was associated in a dose-dependent manner with systolic BP (P = 9.65 × 10(-5)) and diastolic BP (P = 7.61 × 10(-3)) in a meta-analysis of 14,364 individuals and with renal expression of FGF1 mRNA in 126 human kidneys (P=9.0 × 10(-3)). Next-generation RNA sequencing revealed that upregulated renal expression of FGF1 or of each of the three FGF1 mRNA isoforms individually was associated with higher BP. FGF1-stratified coexpression analysis in two separate collections of human kidneys identified 126 FGF1 partner mRNAs, of which 71 and 63 showed at least nominal association with systolic and diastolic BP, respectively. Of those mRNAs, seven mRNAs in five genes (MME, PTPRO, REN, SLC12A3, and WNK1) had strong prior annotation to BP or hypertension. MME, which encodes an enzyme that degrades circulating natriuretic peptides, showed the strongest differential coexpression with FGF1 between hypertensive and normotensive kidneys. Furthermore, higher level of renal FGF1 expression was associated with lower circulating levels of atrial and brain natriuretic peptides. These findings indicate that FGF1 expression in the kidney is at least under partial genetic control and that renal expression of several FGF1 partner genes involved in the natriuretic peptide catabolism pathway, renin-angiotensin cascade, and sodium handling network may explain the association between FGF1 and BP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maciej Tomaszewski
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom; NIHR Biomedical Research Centre in Cardiovascular Disease, Leicester, United Kingdom;
| | - James Eales
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Matthew Denniff
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Stephen Myers
- Faculty of Science and Technology, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Australia
| | - Guat Siew Chew
- Faculty of Science and Technology, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Australia
| | - Christopher P Nelson
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom; NIHR Biomedical Research Centre in Cardiovascular Disease, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Paraskevi Christofidou
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Aishwarya Desai
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Cara Büsst
- Department of Physiology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | | | - Katarzyna Musialik
- Education and Obesity Treatment and Metabolic Disorders, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland
| | - Jacek Jozwiak
- Department of Public Health, Czestochowa University of Technology, Czestochowa, Poland
| | - Radoslaw Debiec
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Anna F Dominiczak
- Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | | | - Wiek H van Gilst
- Cardiology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Pim van der Harst
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom; Cardiology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands; Durrer Center for Cardiogenetic Research, ICIN-Netherlands Heart Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands; and
| | - Nilesh J Samani
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom; NIHR Biomedical Research Centre in Cardiovascular Disease, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Stephen Harrap
- Department of Physiology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Pawel Bogdanski
- Education and Obesity Treatment and Metabolic Disorders, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland
| | - Ewa Zukowska-Szczechowska
- Department of Internal Medicine, Diabetology and Nephrology, Medical University of Silesia, Zabrze, Poland
| | - Fadi J Charchar
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom; Faculty of Science and Technology, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Australia
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28
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Hariharan R, Hoffman JM, Thomas AS, Soltow QA, Jones DP, Promislow DEL. Invariance and plasticity in the Drosophila melanogaster metabolomic network in response to temperature. BMC SYSTEMS BIOLOGY 2014; 8:139. [PMID: 25540032 PMCID: PMC4302152 DOI: 10.1186/s12918-014-0139-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2014] [Accepted: 12/11/2014] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Background Metabolomic responses to extreme thermal stress have recently been investigated in Drosophila melanogaster. However, a network level understanding of metabolomic responses to longer and less drastic temperature changes, which more closely reflect variation in natural ambient temperatures experienced during development and adulthood, is currently lacking. Here we use high-resolution, non-targeted metabolomics to dissect metabolomic changes in D. melanogaster elicited by moderately cool (18°C) or warm (27°C) developmental and adult temperature exposures. Results We find that temperature at which larvae are reared has a dramatic effect on metabolomic network structure measured in adults. Using network analysis, we are able to identify modules that are highly differentially expressed in response to changing developmental temperature, as well as modules whose correlation structure is strongly preserved across temperature. Conclusions Our results suggest that the effect of temperature on the metabolome provides an easily studied and powerful model for understanding the forces that influence invariance and plasticity in biological networks. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12918-014-0139-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ramkumar Hariharan
- Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Box 357705, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA. .,Laboratory for Integrated Bioinformatics, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 230-0045, Japan.
| | - Jessica M Hoffman
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA.
| | - Ariel S Thomas
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA. .,Washington University School of Medicine, 660 S. Euclid Avenue, St. Louis, MO, 63108, USA.
| | - Quinlyn A Soltow
- Division of Pulmonary Allergy & Critical Care Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA. .,Department of Medicine, Clinical Biomarkers Laboratory, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA. .,ClinMet Inc, 3210 Merryfield Row, San Diego, CA, 92121, USA.
| | - Dean P Jones
- Division of Pulmonary Allergy & Critical Care Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA. .,Department of Medicine, Clinical Biomarkers Laboratory, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA.
| | - Daniel E L Promislow
- Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Box 357705, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA. .,Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA.
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29
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Lodder EM, Scicluna BP, Beekman L, Arends D, Moerland PD, Tanck MWT, Adriaens ME, Bezzina CR. Integrative genomic approach identifies multiple genes involved in cardiac collagen deposition. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 7:790-8. [PMID: 25217174 DOI: 10.1161/circgenetics.114.000537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND With aging and in cardiac disease, fibrosis caused by collagen deposition is increased, impairing contractility and providing a substrate for arrhythmia. In this study, we set out to identify genetic modifiers of collagen deposition in the heart by exploiting the genetic variability among F2 progeny of 129P2 and FVBN/J mice carrying the Scn5a(tm1Care/+) mutation. METHODS AND RESULTS Relative amounts of collagen were determined in left ventricular myocardium of 65 F2-mice and combined with genome-wide genotypic and cardiac expression data to identify collagen quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and overlapping expression QTLs (eQTLs). A significant collagen QTL was identified on mouse Chr8; an additional collagen QTL was identified on mouse Chr2 after correction for a genetic covariate uncovered on Chr18 using multiple QTL mapping. Of the 24 eQTLs colocalizing with the Chr8-collagen QTL, 6 transcripts were correlated with relative collagen amount. Similarly, of the 7 eQTLs colocalizing with the Chr2-collagen QTL, 1 transcript, Gpr158, correlated with relative collagen. Of the 12 transcripts with an eQTLs in the Chr18-covariate region, only Fgf1 correlated with relative collagen amount. Furthermore, 2 of the transcripts, Pdlim3 (Chr8) and Itga6 (Chr2), with eQTLs overlapping with collagen QTLs, had a genetic covariate on Chr18 that coincided with the Chr18 collagen covariate locus. Application of recombinant human FGF1 to isolated cardiac fibroblasts in culture affected the level of expression of Pdlim3, Itga6, and Gpr158. CONCLUSIONS We here mapped a possible novel genetic network modulating collagen deposition in mouse left ventricular myocardium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisabeth M Lodder
- From the Department of Experimental Cardiology (E.M.L., B.P.S., L.B., M.E.A., C.R.B.), and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (P.D.M., M.W.T.T.), University of Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands (D.A.)
| | - Brendon P Scicluna
- From the Department of Experimental Cardiology (E.M.L., B.P.S., L.B., M.E.A., C.R.B.), and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (P.D.M., M.W.T.T.), University of Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands (D.A.)
| | - Leander Beekman
- From the Department of Experimental Cardiology (E.M.L., B.P.S., L.B., M.E.A., C.R.B.), and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (P.D.M., M.W.T.T.), University of Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands (D.A.)
| | - Danny Arends
- From the Department of Experimental Cardiology (E.M.L., B.P.S., L.B., M.E.A., C.R.B.), and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (P.D.M., M.W.T.T.), University of Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands (D.A.)
| | - Perry D Moerland
- From the Department of Experimental Cardiology (E.M.L., B.P.S., L.B., M.E.A., C.R.B.), and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (P.D.M., M.W.T.T.), University of Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands (D.A.)
| | - Michael W T Tanck
- From the Department of Experimental Cardiology (E.M.L., B.P.S., L.B., M.E.A., C.R.B.), and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (P.D.M., M.W.T.T.), University of Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands (D.A.)
| | - Michiel E Adriaens
- From the Department of Experimental Cardiology (E.M.L., B.P.S., L.B., M.E.A., C.R.B.), and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (P.D.M., M.W.T.T.), University of Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands (D.A.)
| | - Connie R Bezzina
- From the Department of Experimental Cardiology (E.M.L., B.P.S., L.B., M.E.A., C.R.B.), and Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (P.D.M., M.W.T.T.), University of Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands (D.A.).
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