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Elvira-Blázquez D, Fernández-Justel JM, Arcas A, Statello L, Goñi E, González J, Ricci B, Zaccara S, Raimondi I, Huarte M. YTHDC1 m 6A-dependent and m 6A-independent functions converge to preserve the DNA damage response. EMBO J 2024:10.1038/s44318-024-00153-x. [PMID: 38951610 DOI: 10.1038/s44318-024-00153-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2023] [Revised: 05/07/2024] [Accepted: 06/05/2024] [Indexed: 07/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Cells have evolved a robust and highly regulated DNA damage response to preserve their genomic integrity. Although increasing evidence highlights the relevance of RNA regulation, our understanding of its impact on a fully efficient DNA damage response remains limited. Here, through a targeted CRISPR-knockout screen, we identify RNA-binding proteins and modifiers that participate in the p53 response. Among the top hits, we find the m6A reader YTHDC1 as a master regulator of p53 expression. YTHDC1 binds to the transcription start sites of TP53 and other genes involved in the DNA damage response, promoting their transcriptional elongation. YTHDC1 deficiency also causes the retention of introns and therefore aberrant protein production of key DNA damage factors. While YTHDC1-mediated intron retention requires m6A, TP53 transcriptional pause-release is promoted by YTHDC1 independently of m6A. Depletion of YTHDC1 causes genomic instability and aberrant cancer cell proliferation mediated by genes regulated by YTHDC1. Our results uncover YTHDC1 as an orchestrator of the DNA damage response through distinct mechanisms of co-transcriptional mRNA regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Elvira-Blázquez
- Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
- Institute of Health Research of Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - José Miguel Fernández-Justel
- Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
- Institute of Health Research of Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Aida Arcas
- Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
- Institute of Health Research of Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain
- Clarivate, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Luisa Statello
- Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
- Institute of Health Research of Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Enrique Goñi
- Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
- Institute of Health Research of Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Jovanna González
- Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
- Institute of Health Research of Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Benedetta Ricci
- Department of Systems Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sara Zaccara
- Department of Systems Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ivan Raimondi
- New York Genome Center, New York, NY, USA.
- Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Maite Huarte
- Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain.
- Institute of Health Research of Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain.
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2
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Pulido-Quetglas C, Johnson R. Designing libraries for pooled CRISPR functional screens of long noncoding RNAs. Mamm Genome 2022; 33:312-327. [PMID: 34533605 PMCID: PMC9114037 DOI: 10.1007/s00335-021-09918-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2021] [Accepted: 09/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Human and other genomes encode tens of thousands of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), the vast majority of which remain uncharacterised. High-throughput functional screening methods, notably those based on pooled CRISPR-Cas perturbations, promise to unlock the biological significance and biomedical potential of lncRNAs. Such screens are based on libraries of single guide RNAs (sgRNAs) whose design is critical for success. Few off-the-shelf libraries are presently available, and lncRNAs tend to have cell-type-specific expression profiles, meaning that library design remains in the hands of researchers. Here we introduce the topic of pooled CRISPR screens for lncRNAs and guide readers through the three key steps of library design: accurate annotation of transcript structures, curation of optimal candidate sets, and design of sgRNAs. This review is a starting point and reference for researchers seeking to design custom CRISPR screening libraries for lncRNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos Pulido-Quetglas
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland
- Graduate School of Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of Bern, 3012, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Rory Johnson
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland.
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008, Bern, Switzerland.
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland.
- Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland.
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3
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Abstract
The past 25 years of genomics research first revealed which genes are encoded by the human genome and then a detailed catalogue of human genome variation associated with many diseases. Despite this, the function of many genes and gene regulatory elements remains poorly characterized, which limits our ability to apply these insights to human disease. The advent of new CRISPR functional genomics tools allows for scalable and multiplexable characterization of genes and gene regulatory elements encoded by the human genome. These approaches promise to reveal mechanisms of gene function and regulation, and to enable exploration of how genes work together to modulate complex phenotypes.
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Vancura A, Lanzós A, Bosch-Guiteras N, Esteban MT, Gutierrez AH, Haefliger S, Johnson R. Cancer LncRNA Census 2 (CLC2): an enhanced resource reveals clinical features of cancer lncRNAs. NAR Cancer 2021; 3:zcab013. [PMID: 34316704 PMCID: PMC8210278 DOI: 10.1093/narcan/zcab013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2020] [Revised: 03/12/2021] [Accepted: 03/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play key roles in cancer and are at the vanguard of precision therapeutic development. These efforts depend on large and high-confidence collections of cancer lncRNAs. Here, we present the Cancer LncRNA Census 2 (CLC2). With 492 cancer lncRNAs, CLC2 is 4-fold greater in size than its predecessor, without compromising on strict criteria of confident functional/genetic roles and inclusion in the GENCODE annotation scheme. This increase was enabled by leveraging high-throughput transposon insertional mutagenesis screening data, yielding 92 novel cancer lncRNAs. CLC2 makes a valuable addition to existing collections: it is amongst the largest, contains numerous unique genes (not found in other databases) and carries functional labels (oncogene/tumour suppressor). Analysis of this dataset reveals that cancer lncRNAs are impacted by germline variants, somatic mutations and changes in expression consistent with inferred disease functions. Furthermore, we show how clinical/genomic features can be used to vet prospective gene sets from high-throughput sources. The combination of size and quality makes CLC2 a foundation for precision medicine, demonstrating cancer lncRNAs’ evolutionary and clinical significance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrienne Vancura
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern 3010, Switzerland
| | - Andrés Lanzós
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern 3010, Switzerland
| | - Núria Bosch-Guiteras
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern 3010, Switzerland
| | - Mònica Torres Esteban
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern 3010, Switzerland
| | - Alejandro H Gutierrez
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern 3010, Switzerland
| | - Simon Haefliger
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern 3010, Switzerland
| | - Rory Johnson
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern 3010, Switzerland
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5
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Functional annotation of lncRNA in high-throughput screening. Essays Biochem 2021; 65:761-773. [PMID: 33835127 PMCID: PMC8564734 DOI: 10.1042/ebc20200061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2021] [Revised: 02/25/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Recent efforts on the characterization of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) revealed their functional roles in modulating diverse cellular processes. These include pluripotency maintenance, lineage commitment, carcinogenesis, and pathogenesis of various diseases. By interacting with DNA, RNA and protein, lncRNAs mediate multifaceted mechanisms to regulate transcription, RNA processing, RNA interference and translation. Of more than 173000 discovered lncRNAs, the majority remain functionally unknown. The cell type-specific expression and localization of the lncRNA also suggest potential distinct functions of lncRNAs across different cell types. This highlights the niche of identifying functional lncRNAs in different biological processes and diseases through high-throughput (HTP) screening. This review summarizes the current work performed and perspectives on HTP screening of functional lncRNAs where different technologies, platforms, cellular responses and the downstream analyses are discussed. We hope to provide a better picture in applying different technologies to facilitate functional annotation of lncRNA efficiently.
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6
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Bosch-Guiteras N, Uroda T, Guillen-Ramirez HA, Riedo R, Gazdhar A, Esposito R, Pulido-Quetglas C, Zimmer Y, Medová M, Johnson R. Enhancing CRISPR deletion via pharmacological delay of DNA-PKcs. Genome Res 2021; 31:461-471. [PMID: 33574136 PMCID: PMC7919447 DOI: 10.1101/gr.265736.120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2020] [Accepted: 01/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas9 deletion (CRISPR-del) is the leading approach for eliminating DNA from mammalian cells and underpins a variety of genome-editing applications. Target DNA, defined by a pair of double-strand breaks (DSBs), is removed during nonhomologous end-joining (NHEJ). However, the low efficiency of CRISPR-del results in laborious experiments and false-negative results. By using an endogenous reporter system, we show that repression of the DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (DNA-PKcs)—an early step in NHEJ—yields substantial increases in DNA deletion. This is observed across diverse cell lines, gene delivery methods, commercial inhibitors, and guide RNAs, including those that otherwise display negligible activity. We further show that DNA-PKcs inhibition can be used to boost the sensitivity of pooled functional screens and detect true-positive hits that would otherwise be overlooked. Thus, delaying the kinetics of NHEJ relative to DSB formation is a simple and effective means of enhancing CRISPR-deletion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Núria Bosch-Guiteras
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland.,Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland.,Graduate School of Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Tina Uroda
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland.,Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Hugo A Guillen-Ramirez
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland.,Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Rahel Riedo
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Amiq Gazdhar
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland.,Department of Pulmonary Medicine, University Hospital Bern, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Roberta Esposito
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland.,Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Carlos Pulido-Quetglas
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland.,Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland.,Graduate School of Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Yitzhak Zimmer
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Michaela Medová
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Rory Johnson
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland.,Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland.,School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin D04 V1W8, Ireland.,Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Dublin D04 V1W8, Ireland
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7
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Functional Screening Techniques to Identify Long Non-Coding RNAs as Therapeutic Targets in Cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:cancers12123695. [PMID: 33317042 PMCID: PMC7763270 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12123695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Revised: 12/06/2020] [Accepted: 12/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a recently discovered class of molecules in the cell, with potential to be utilized as therapeutic targets in cancer. A number of lncRNAs have been described to play important roles in tumor progression and drive molecular processes involved in cell proliferation, apoptosis or invasion. However, the vast majority of lncRNAs have not been studied in the context of cancer thus far. With the advent of CRISPR/Cas genome editing, high-throughput functional screening approaches to identify lncRNAs that impact cancer growth are becoming more accessible. Here, we review currently available methods to study hundreds to thousands of lncRNAs in parallel to elucidate their role in tumorigenesis and cancer progression. Abstract Recent technological advancements such as CRISPR/Cas-based systems enable multiplexed, high-throughput screening for new therapeutic targets in cancer. While numerous functional screens have been performed on protein-coding genes to date, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) represent an emerging class of potential oncogenes and tumor suppressors, with only a handful of large-scale screens performed thus far. Here, we review in detail currently available screening approaches to identify new lncRNA drivers of tumorigenesis and tumor progression. We discuss the various approaches of genomic and transcriptional targeting using CRISPR/Cas9, as well as methods to post-transcriptionally target lncRNAs via RNA interference (RNAi), antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) and CRISPR/Cas13. We discuss potential advantages, caveats and future applications of each method to provide an overview and guide on investigating lncRNAs as new therapeutic targets in cancer.
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