Misactivation of multiple starvation responses in yeast by loss of tRNA modifications

Neuronal and glial cell alterations involved in the retinal degeneration of the familial dysautonomia optic neuropathy

Familial dysautonomia (FD) is a rare genetic neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorder. In addition to the autonomic and peripheral sensory neuropathies that challenge patient survival, one of the most debilitating symptoms affecting patients' quality of life is progressive blindness resulting from the steady loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Within the FD community, there is a concerted effort to develop treatments to prevent the loss of RGCs. However, the mechanisms underlying the death of RGCs are not well understood. To study the mechanisms underlying RGC death, Pax6-cre;Elp1loxp/loxp male and female mice and postmortem retinal tissue from an FD patient were used to explore the neuronal and non-neuronal cellular pathology associated with the FD optic neuropathy. Neurons, astrocytes, microglia, Müller glia, and endothelial cells were investigated using a combination of histological analyses. We identified a novel disruption of cellular homeostasis and gliosis in the FD retina. Beginning shortly after birth and progressing with age, the FD retina is marked by astrogliosis and perturbations in microglia, which coincide with vascular remodeling. These changes begin before the onset of RGC death, suggesting alterations in the retinal neurovascular unit may contribute to and exacerbate RGC death. We reveal for the first time that the FD retina pathology includes reactive gliosis, increased microglial recruitment to the ganglion cell layer (GCL), disruptions in the deep and superficial vascular plexuses, and alterations in signaling pathways. These studies implicate the neurovascular unit as a disease-modifying target for therapeutic interventions in FD.

Dysregulation of tRNA methylation in cancer: Mechanisms and targeting therapeutic strategies

tRNA is the RNA type that undergoes the most modifications among known RNA, and in recent years, tRNA methylation has emerged as a crucial process in regulating gene translation. Dysregulation of tRNA abundance occurs in cancer cells, along with increased expression and activity of tRNA methyltransferases to raise the level of tRNA modification and stability. This leads to hijacking of translation and synthesis of multiple proteins associated with tumor proliferation, metastasis, invasion, autophagy, chemotherapy resistance, and metabolic reprogramming. In this review, we provide an overview of current research on tRNA methylation in cancer to clarify its involvement in human malignancies and establish a theoretical framework for future therapeutic interventions targeting tRNA methylation processes.

Cryo-EM structures of the human Elongator complex at work

tRNA modifications affect ribosomal elongation speed and co-translational folding dynamics. The Elongator complex is responsible for introducing 5-carboxymethyl at wobble uridine bases (cm5U34) in eukaryotic tRNAs. However, the structure and function of human Elongator remain poorly understood. In this study, we present a series of cryo-EM structures of human ELP123 in complex with tRNA and cofactors at four different stages of the reaction. The structures at resolutions of up to 2.9 Å together with complementary functional analyses reveal the molecular mechanism of the modification reaction. Our results show that tRNA binding exposes a universally conserved uridine at position 33 (U33), which triggers acetyl-CoA hydrolysis. We identify a series of conserved residues that are crucial for the radical-based acetylation of U34 and profile the molecular effects of patient-derived mutations. Together, we provide the high-resolution view of human Elongator and reveal its detailed mechanism of action.

Experience with German Research Consortia in the Field of Chemical Biology of Native Nucleic Acid Modifications

The chemical biology of native nucleic acid modifications has seen an intense upswing, first concerning DNA modifications in the field of epigenetics and then concerning RNA modifications in a field that was correspondingly rebaptized epitranscriptomics by analogy. The German Research Foundation (DFG) has funded several consortia with a scientific focus in these fields, strengthening the traditionally well-developed nucleic acid chemistry community and inciting it to team up with colleagues from the life sciences and data science to tackle interdisciplinary challenges. This Perspective focuses on the genesis, scientific outcome, and downstream impact of the DFG priority program SPP1784 and offers insight into how it fecundated further consortia in the field. Pertinent research was funded from mid-2015 to 2022, including an extension related to the coronavirus pandemic. Despite being a detriment to research activity in general, the pandemic has resulted in tremendously boosted interest in the field of RNA and RNA modifications as a consequence of their widespread and successful use in vaccination campaigns against SARS-CoV-2. Funded principal investigators published over 250 pertinent papers with a very substantial impact on the field. The program also helped to redirect numerous laboratories toward this dynamic field. Finally, SPP1784 spawned initiatives for several funded consortia that continue to drive the fields of nucleic acid modification.

Lipidome remodeling in response to nutrient replenishment requires the tRNA modifier Deg1/Pus3 in yeast

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the absence of the pseudouridine synthase Pus3/Deg1, which modifies tRNA positions 38 and 39, results in increased lipid droplet (LD) content and translational defects. In addition, starvation-like transcriptome alterations and induced protein aggregation were observed. In this study, we show that the deg1 mutant increases specific misreading errors. This could lead to altered expression of the main regulators of neutral lipid synthesis which are the acetyl-CoA carboxylase (Acc1), an enzyme that catalyzes a key step in fatty acid synthesis, and its regulator, the Snf1/AMPK kinase. We demonstrate that upregulation of the neutral lipid content of LD in the deg1 mutant is achieved by a mechanism operating in parallel to the known Snf1/AMPK kinase-dependent phosphoregulation of Acc1. While in wild-type cells removal of the regulatory phosphorylation site (Ser-1157) in Acc1 results in strong upregulation of triacylglycerol (TG), but not steryl esters (SE), the deg1 mutation more specifically upregulates SE levels. In order to elucidate if other lipid species are affected, we compared the lipidomes of wild type and deg1 mutants, revealing multiple altered lipid species. In particular, in the exponential phase of growth, the deg1 mutant shows a reduction in the pool of phospholipids, indicating a compromised capacity to mobilize acyl-CoA from storage lipids. We conclude that Deg1 plays a key role in the coordination of lipid storage and mobilization, which in turn influences lipid homeostasis. The lipidomic effects in the deg1 mutant may be indirect outcomes of the activation of various stress responses resulting from protein aggregation.

Translational fidelity and growth of Arabidopsis require stress-sensitive diphthamide biosynthesis

Diphthamide, a post-translationally modified histidine residue of eukaryotic TRANSLATION ELONGATION FACTOR2 (eEF2), is the human host cell-sensitizing target of diphtheria toxin. Diphthamide biosynthesis depends on the 4Fe-4S-cluster protein Dph1 catalyzing the first committed step, as well as Dph2 to Dph7, in yeast and mammals. Here we show that diphthamide modification of eEF2 is conserved in Arabidopsis thaliana and requires AtDPH1. Ribosomal -1 frameshifting-error rates are increased in Arabidopsis dph1 mutants, similar to yeast and mice. Compared to the wild type, shorter roots and smaller rosettes of dph1 mutants result from fewer formed cells. TARGET OF RAPAMYCIN (TOR) kinase activity is attenuated, and autophagy is activated, in dph1 mutants. Under abiotic stress diphthamide-unmodified eEF2 accumulates in wild-type seedlings, most strongly upon heavy metal excess, which is conserved in human cells. In summary, our results suggest that diphthamide contributes to the functionality of the translational machinery monitored by plants to regulate growth.

Making Sense of "Nonsense" and More: Challenges and Opportunities in the Genetic Code Expansion, in the World of tRNA Modifications

The evolutional development of the RNA translation process that leads to protein synthesis based on naturally occurring amino acids has its continuation via synthetic biology, the so-called rational bioengineering. Genetic code expansion (GCE) explores beyond the natural translational processes to further enhance the structural properties and augment the functionality of a wide range of proteins. Prokaryotic and eukaryotic ribosomal machinery have been proven to accept engineered tRNAs from orthogonal organisms to efficiently incorporate noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) with rationally designed side chains. These side chains can be reactive or functional groups, which can be extensively utilized in biochemical, biophysical, and cellular studies. Genetic code extension offers the contingency of introducing more than one ncAA into protein through frameshift suppression, multi-site-specific incorporation of ncAAs, thereby increasing the vast number of possible applications. However, different mediating factors reduce the yield and efficiency of ncAA incorporation into synthetic proteins. In this review, we comment on the recent advancements in genetic code expansion to signify the relevance of systems biology in improving ncAA incorporation efficiency. We discuss the emerging impact of tRNA modifications and metabolism in protein design. We also provide examples of the latest successful accomplishments in synthetic protein therapeutics and show how codon expansion has been employed in various scientific and biotechnological applications.

Role of SSD1 in Phenotypic Variation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Strains Lacking DEG1-Dependent Pseudouridylation

Yeast phenotypes associated with the lack of wobble uridine (U₃₄) modifications in tRNA were shown to be modulated by an allelic variation of SSD1, a gene encoding an mRNA-binding protein. We demonstrate that phenotypes caused by the loss of Deg1-dependent tRNA pseudouridylation are similarly affected by SSD1 allelic status. Temperature sensitivity and protein aggregation are elevated in deg1 mutants and further increased in the presence of the ssd1-d allele, which encodes a truncated form of Ssd1. In addition, chronological lifespan is reduced in a deg1 ssd1-d mutant, and the negative genetic interactions of the U₃₄ modifier genes ELP3 and URM1 with DEG1 are aggravated by ssd1-d. A loss of function mutation in SSD1, ELP3, and DEG1 induces pleiotropic and overlapping phenotypes, including sensitivity against target of rapamycin (TOR) inhibitor drug and cell wall stress by calcofluor white. Additivity in ssd1 deg1 double mutant phenotypes suggests independent roles of Ssd1 and tRNA modifications in TOR signaling and cell wall integrity. However, other tRNA modification defects cause growth and drug sensitivity phenotypes, which are not further intensified in tandem with ssd1-d. Thus, we observed a modification-specific rather than general effect of SSD1 status on phenotypic variation in tRNA modification mutants. Our results highlight how the cellular consequences of tRNA modification loss can be influenced by protein targeting specific mRNAs.

The leucine-NH4+ uptake regulator Any1 limits growth as part of a general amino acid control response to loss of La protein by fission yeast

The sla1⁺ gene of Schizosachharoymces pombe encodes La protein which promotes proper processing of precursor-tRNAs. Deletion of sla1 (sla1Δ) leads to disrupted tRNA processing and sensitivity to target of rapamycin (TOR) inhibition. Consistent with this, media containing NH4⁺ inhibits leucine uptake and growth of sla1Δ cells. Here, transcriptome analysis reveals that genes upregulated in sla1Δ cells exhibit highly significant overalp with general amino acid control (GAAC) genes in relevant transcriptomes from other studies. Growth in NH4⁺ media leads to additional induced genes that are part of a core environmental stress response (CESR). The sla1Δ GAAC response adds to evidence linking tRNA homeostasis and broad signaling in S. pombe. We provide evidence that deletion of the Rrp6 subunit of the nuclear exosome selectively dampens a subset of GAAC genes in sla1Δ cells suggesting that nuclear surveillance-mediated signaling occurs in S. pombe. To study the NH4⁺-effects, we isolated sla1Δ spontaneous revertants (SSR) of the slow growth phenotype and found that GAAC gene expression and rapamycin hypersensitivity were also reversed. Genome sequencing identified a F32V substitution in Any1, a known negative regulator of NH4⁺-sensitive leucine uptake linked to TOR. We show that ³H-leucine uptake by SSR-any1-F32V cells in NH4⁺-media is more robust than by sla1Δ cells. Moreover, F32V may alter any1⁺ function in sla1Δ vs. sla1⁺ cells in a distinctive way. Thus deletion of La, a tRNA processing factor leads to a GAAC response involving reprogramming of amino acid metabolism, and isolation of the any1-F32V rescuing mutant provides an additional specific link.

Induction of protein aggregation and starvation response by tRNA modification defects

Posttranscriptional modifications of anticodon loops contribute to the decoding efficiency of tRNAs by supporting codon recognition and loop stability. Consistently, strong synthetic growth defects are observed in yeast strains simultaneously lacking distinct anticodon loop modifications. These phenotypes are accompanied by translational inefficiency of certain mRNAs and disturbed protein homeostasis resulting in accumulation of protein aggregates. Different combinations of anticodon loop modification defects were shown to affect distinct tRNAs but provoke common transcriptional changes that are reminiscent of the cellular response to nutrient starvation. Multiple mechanisms may be involved in mediating inadequate starvation response upon loss of critical tRNA modifications. Recent evidence suggests protein aggregate induction to represent one such trigger.

Novel Links between TORC1 and Traditional Non-Coding RNA, tRNA

Target of rapamycin (TOR) is a serine/threonine kinase that modulates cell growth and metabolism in response to environmental changes. Transfer RNA (tRNA) is an abundant and ubiquitous small non-coding RNA that is essential in the translation of mRNAs. Beyond its canonical role, it has been revealed that tRNAs have more diverse functions. TOR complex 1 (TORC1), which is one of the two TOR complexes, regulates tRNA synthesis by controlling RNA polymerase III. In addition to tRNA synthesis regulation, recent studies have revealed hidden connections between TORC1 and tRNA, which are both essential players in eukaryotic cellular activities. Here, we review the accumulating findings on the regulatory links between TORC1 and tRNA-particularly those links in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe.