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Lashkevich KA, Dmitriev SE. mRNA Targeting, Transport and Local Translation in Eukaryotic Cells: From the Classical View to a Diversity of New Concepts. Mol Biol 2021; 55:507-537. [PMID: 34092811 PMCID: PMC8164833 DOI: 10.1134/s0026893321030080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2021] [Revised: 02/26/2021] [Accepted: 03/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Spatial organization of protein biosynthesis in the eukaryotic cell has been studied for more than fifty years, thus many facts have already been included in textbooks. According to the classical view, mRNA transcripts encoding secreted and transmembrane proteins are translated by ribosomes associated with endoplasmic reticulum membranes, while soluble cytoplasmic proteins are synthesized on free polysomes. However, in the last few years, new data has emerged, revealing selective translation of mRNA on mitochondria and plastids, in proximity to peroxisomes and endosomes, in various granules and at the cytoskeleton (actin network, vimentin intermediate filaments, microtubules and centrosomes). There are also long-standing debates about the possibility of protein synthesis in the nucleus. Localized translation can be determined by targeting signals in the synthesized protein, nucleotide sequences in the mRNA itself, or both. With RNA-binding proteins, many transcripts can be assembled into specific RNA condensates and form RNP particles, which may be transported by molecular motors to the sites of active translation, form granules and provoke liquid-liquid phase separation in the cytoplasm, both under normal conditions and during cell stress. The translation of some mRNAs occurs in specialized "translation factories," assemblysomes, transperons and other structures necessary for the correct folding of proteins, interaction with functional partners and formation of oligomeric complexes. Intracellular localization of mRNA has a significant impact on the efficiency of its translation and presumably determines its response to cellular stress. Compartmentalization of mRNAs and the translation machinery also plays an important role in viral infections. Many viruses provoke the formation of specific intracellular structures, virus factories, for the production of their proteins. Here we review the current concepts of the molecular mechanisms of transport, selective localization and local translation of cellular and viral mRNAs, their effects on protein targeting and topogenesis, and on the regulation of protein biosynthesis in different compartments of the eukaryotic cell. Special attention is paid to new systems biology approaches, providing new cues to the study of localized translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kseniya A Lashkevich
- Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, 119234 Moscow, Russia.,Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, 119234 Moscow, Russia
| | - Sergey E Dmitriev
- Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, 119234 Moscow, Russia.,Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, 119234 Moscow, Russia.,Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
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2
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Kwasnieski JC, Orr-Weaver TL, Bartel DP. Early genome activation in Drosophila is extensive with an initial tendency for aborted transcripts and retained introns. Genome Res 2019; 29:1188-1197. [PMID: 31235656 PMCID: PMC6633261 DOI: 10.1101/gr.242164.118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2018] [Accepted: 05/08/2019] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Control of metazoan embryogenesis shifts from maternal to zygotic gene products as the zygotic genome becomes transcriptionally activated. In Drosophila, zygotic genome activation (ZGA) has been thought to occur in two phases, starting with a minor wave, in which a small number of genes become expressed, and progressing to the major wave, in which many more genes are activated. However, technical challenges have hampered the identification of early transcripts or obscured the onset of their transcription. Here, we develop an approach to isolate transcribed mRNAs and apply it over the course of Drosophila early genome activation. Our results increase by 10-fold the genes reported to be activated during what has been thought of as the minor wave and show that early genome activation is continuous and gradual. Transposable-element mRNAs are also produced, but discontinuously. Genes transcribed in the early and middle part of ZGA are short with few if any introns, and their transcripts are frequently aborted and tend to have retained introns, suggesting that inefficient splicing as well as rapid cell divisions constrain the lengths of early transcripts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie C Kwasnieski
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA.,Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.,Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA
| | - Terry L Orr-Weaver
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.,Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA
| | - David P Bartel
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA.,Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.,Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA
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3
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Voelzmann A, Hahn I, Pearce SP, Sánchez-Soriano N, Prokop A. A conceptual view at microtubule plus end dynamics in neuronal axons. Brain Res Bull 2016; 126:226-237. [PMID: 27530065 PMCID: PMC5090033 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2016.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2016] [Revised: 08/08/2016] [Accepted: 08/11/2016] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Abstract
Axons are the cable-like protrusions of neurons which wire up the nervous system. Polar bundles of microtubules (MTs) constitute their structural backbones and are highways for life-sustaining transport between proximal cell bodies and distal synapses. Any morphogenetic changes of axons during development, plastic rearrangement, regeneration or degeneration depend on dynamic changes of these MT bundles. A key mechanism for implementing such changes is the coordinated polymerisation and depolymerisation at the plus ends of MTs within these bundles. To gain an understanding of how such regulation can be achieved at the cellular level, we provide here an integrated overview of the extensive knowledge we have about the molecular mechanisms regulating MT de/polymerisation. We first summarise insights gained from work in vitro, then describe the machinery which supplies the essential tubulin building blocks, the protein complexes associating with MT plus ends, and MT shaft-based mechanisms that influence plus end dynamics. We briefly summarise the contribution of MT plus end dynamics to important cellular functions in axons, and conclude by discussing the challenges and potential strategies of integrating the existing molecular knowledge into conceptual understanding at the level of axons.
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Affiliation(s)
- André Voelzmann
- The University of Manchester, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK
| | - Ines Hahn
- The University of Manchester, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK
| | - Simon P Pearce
- The University of Manchester, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK; The University of Manchester, School of Mathematics, Alan Turing Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Natalia Sánchez-Soriano
- University of Liverpool, Institute of Translational Medicine, Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Crown Street, Liverpool, L69 3BX, UK
| | - Andreas Prokop
- The University of Manchester, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK.
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4
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Sandler JE, Stathopoulos A. Stepwise Progression of Embryonic Patterning. Trends Genet 2016; 32:432-443. [PMID: 27230753 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2016.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2016] [Revised: 04/20/2016] [Accepted: 04/21/2016] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
It is long established that the graded distribution of Dorsal transcription factor influences spatial domains of gene expression along the dorsoventral (DV) axis of Drosophila melanogaster embryos. However, the more recent realization that Dorsal levels also change with time raises the question of whether these dynamics are instructive. An overview of DV axis patterning is provided, focusing on new insights identified through quantitative analysis of temporal changes in Dorsal target gene expression from one nuclear cycle to the next ('steps'). Possible roles for the stepwise progression of this patterning program are discussed including (i) tight temporal regulation of signaling pathway activation, (ii) control of gene expression cohorts, and (iii) ensuring the irreversibility of the patterning and cell fate specification process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy E Sandler
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - Angelike Stathopoulos
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
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5
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Pires CV, Freitas FCDP, Cristino AS, Dearden PK, Simões ZLP. Transcriptome Analysis of Honeybee (Apis Mellifera) Haploid and Diploid Embryos Reveals Early Zygotic Transcription during Cleavage. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0146447. [PMID: 26751956 PMCID: PMC4713447 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0146447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2015] [Accepted: 12/17/2015] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
In honeybees, the haplodiploid sex determination system promotes a unique embryogenesis process wherein females develop from fertilized eggs and males develop from unfertilized eggs. However, the developmental strategies of honeybees during early embryogenesis are virtually unknown. Similar to most animals, the honeybee oocytes are supplied with proteins and regulatory elements that support early embryogenesis. As the embryo develops, the zygotic genome is activated and zygotic products gradually replace the preloaded maternal material. The analysis of small RNA and mRNA libraries of mature oocytes and embryos originated from fertilized and unfertilized eggs has allowed us to explore the gene expression dynamics in the first steps of development and during the maternal-to-zygotic transition (MZT). We localized a short sequence motif identified as TAGteam motif and hypothesized to play a similar role in honeybees as in fruit flies, which includes the timing of early zygotic expression (MZT), a function sustained by the presence of the zelda ortholog, which is the main regulator of genome activation. Predicted microRNA (miRNA)-target interactions indicated that there were specific regulators of haploid and diploid embryonic development and an overlap of maternal and zygotic gene expression during the early steps of embryogenesis. Although a number of functions are highly conserved during the early steps of honeybee embryogenesis, the results showed that zygotic genome activation occurs earlier in honeybees than in Drosophila based on the presence of three primary miRNAs (pri-miRNAs) (ame-mir-375, ame-mir-34 and ame-mir-263b) during the cleavage stage in haploid and diploid embryonic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla Valente Pires
- Departamento de Genética, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | | | - Alexandre S. Cristino
- The University of Queensland, Diamantina Institute, Translational Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Peter K. Dearden
- Genetics Otago and Gravida, the National Centre for Growth and Development, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - Zilá Luz Paulino Simões
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
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6
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Liao G, Mingle L, Van De Water L, Liu G. Control of cell migration through mRNA localization and local translation. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS-RNA 2014; 6:1-15. [PMID: 25264217 DOI: 10.1002/wrna.1265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2014] [Revised: 06/13/2014] [Accepted: 07/31/2014] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Cell migration plays an important role in many normal and pathological functions such as development, wound healing, immune defense, and tumor metastasis. Polarized migrating cells exhibit asymmetric distribution of many cytoskeletal proteins, which is believed to be critical for establishing and maintaining cell polarity and directional cell migration. To target these proteins to the site of function, cells use a variety of mechanisms such as protein transport and messenger RNA (mRNA) localization-mediated local protein synthesis. In contrast to the former which is intensively investigated and relatively well understood, the latter has been understudied and relatively poorly understood. However, recent advances in the study of mRNA localization and local translation have demonstrated that mRNA localization and local translation are specific and effective ways for protein localization and are crucial for embryo development, neuronal function, and many other cellular processes. There are excellent reviews on mRNA localization, transport, and translation during development and other cellular processes. This review will focus on mRNA localization-mediated local protein biogenesis and its impact on somatic cell migration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guoning Liao
- Center for Cell Biology and Cancer Research, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, USA
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7
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Chen L, Dumelie JG, Li X, Cheng MH, Yang Z, Laver JD, Siddiqui NU, Westwood JT, Morris Q, Lipshitz HD, Smibert CA. Global regulation of mRNA translation and stability in the early Drosophila embryo by the Smaug RNA-binding protein. Genome Biol 2014; 15:R4. [PMID: 24393533 PMCID: PMC4053848 DOI: 10.1186/gb-2014-15-1-r4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2013] [Accepted: 01/07/2014] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Smaug is an RNA-binding protein that induces the degradation and represses the translation of mRNAs in the early Drosophila embryo. Smaug has two identified direct target mRNAs that it differentially regulates: nanos and Hsp83. Smaug represses the translation of nanos mRNA but has only a modest effect on its stability, whereas it destabilizes Hsp83 mRNA but has no detectable effect on Hsp83 translation. Smaug is required to destabilize more than one thousand mRNAs in the early embryo, but whether these transcripts represent direct targets of Smaug is unclear and the extent of Smaug-mediated translational repression is unknown. Results To gain a panoramic view of Smaug function in the early embryo, we identified mRNAs that are bound to Smaug using RNA co-immunoprecipitation followed by hybridization to DNA microarrays. We also identified mRNAs that are translationally repressed by Smaug using polysome gradients and microarrays. Comparison of the bound mRNAs to those that are translationally repressed by Smaug and those that require Smaug for their degradation suggests that a large fraction of Smaug’s target mRNAs are both translationally repressed and degraded by Smaug. Smaug directly regulates components of the TRiC/CCT chaperonin, the proteasome regulatory particle and lipid droplets, as well as many metabolic enzymes, including several glycolytic enzymes. Conclusions Smaug plays a direct and global role in regulating the translation and stability of a large fraction of the mRNAs in the early Drosophila embryo, and has unanticipated functions in control of protein folding and degradation, lipid droplet function and metabolism.
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8
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Pinder BD, Smibert CA. Smaug: an unexpected journey into the mechanisms of post-transcriptional regulation. Fly (Austin) 2013; 7:142-5. [PMID: 23519205 DOI: 10.4161/fly.24336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Drosophila Smaug is a sequence-specific RNA-binding protein that can repress the translation and induce the degradation of target mRNAs in the early Drosophila embryo. Our recent work has uncovered a new mechanism of Smaug-mediated translational repression whereby it interacts with and recruits the Argonaute 1 (Ago1) protein to an mRNA. Argonaute proteins are typically recruited to mRNAs through an associated small RNA, such as a microRNA (miRNA). Surprisingly, we found that Smaug is able to recruit Ago1 to an mRNA in a miRNA-independent manner. This work suggests that other RNA-binding proteins are likely to employ a similar mechanism of miRNA-independent Ago recruitment to control mRNA expression. Our work also adds yet another mechanism to the list that Smaug can use to regulate its targets and here we discuss some of the issues that are raised by Smaug's multi-functional nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin D Pinder
- Department of Biochemistry; University of Toronto; Toronto, ON Canada
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9
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microRNA-independent recruitment of Argonaute 1 to nanos mRNA through the Smaug RNA-binding protein. EMBO Rep 2012. [PMID: 23184089 DOI: 10.1038/embor.2012.192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Argonaute (Ago) proteins are typically recruited to target messenger RNAs via an associated small RNA such as a microRNA (miRNA). Here, we describe a new mechanism of Ago recruitment through the Drosophila Smaug RNA-binding protein. We show that Smaug interacts with the Ago1 protein, and that Ago1 interacts with and is required for the translational repression of the Smaug target, nanos mRNA. The Ago1/nanos mRNA interaction does not require a miRNA, but it does require Smaug. Taken together, our data suggest a model whereby Smaug directly recruits Ago1 to nanos mRNA in a miRNA-independent manner, thereby repressing translation.
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10
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Hou D, Ruiz M, Andrulis ED. The ribonuclease Dis3 is an essential regulator of the developmental transcriptome. BMC Genomics 2012; 13:359. [PMID: 22853036 PMCID: PMC3434026 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-13-359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2012] [Accepted: 07/11/2012] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Dis3 is ribonuclease that acts directly in the processing, turnover, and surveillance of a large number of distinct RNA species. Evolutionarily conserved from eubacteria to eukaryotes and a crucial component of the RNA processing exosome, Dis3 has been shown to be essential in yeast and fly S2 cells. However, it is not known whether Dis3 has essential functions in a metazoan. This study inquires whether Dis3 is required for Drosophila development and viability and how Dis3 regulates the transcriptome in the developing fly. Results Using transgenic flies, we show that Dis3 knock down (Dis3KD) retards growth, induces melanotic tumor formation, and ultimately results in 2nd instar larval lethality. In order to determine whether Dis3KD fly phenotypes were a consequence of disrupting developmentally regulated RNA turnover, we performed RNA deep sequencing analysis on total RNA isolated from developmentally staged animals. Bioinformatic analysis of transcripts from Dis3KD flies reveals substantial transcriptomic changes, most notably down-regulation in early expressed RNAs. Finally, gene ontology analysis of this early stage shows that Dis3 regulates transcripts related to extracellular structure and remodelling, neurogenesis, and nucleotide metabolism. Conclusions We conclude that Dis3 is essential for early Drosophila melanogaster development and has specific and important stage-specific roles in regulating RNA metabolism. In showing for the first time that Dis3 is required for the development of a multicellular organism, our work provides mechanistic insight into how Dis3—either independent of or associated with the RNA processing exosome—participates in cell type-specific RNA turnover in metazoan development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dezhi Hou
- Department of Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.
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11
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Laver JD, Ancevicius K, Sollazzo P, Westwood JT, Sidhu SS, Lipshitz HD, Smibert CA. Synthetic antibodies as tools to probe RNA-binding protein function. MOLECULAR BIOSYSTEMS 2012; 8:1650-7. [PMID: 22481296 DOI: 10.1039/c2mb00007e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) have essential roles in post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. They bind sequence elements in specific mRNAs and control their splicing, transport, localization, translation, and stability. A complete understanding of RBP function requires identification of the target RNAs that an RBP regulates, the mechanisms by which the RBP regulates these targets, and the biological consequences for the cell in which these transactions occur. Antibodies are key tools in such studies: first, mRNA targets of RBPs can be identified by co-immunoprecipitation of RBPs with their associated RNAs followed by microarray analysis or sequencing; second, partner proteins can be identified by immunoprecipitation of the RBP followed by mass spectrometry; third, the mechanisms and functions of RBPs can be inferred from loss-of-function studies employing antibodies that block RBP-RNA interactions. One potentially powerful approach to making antibodies for such studies is the generation of synthetic antibodies using phage display, which involves in vitro selection using a human-designed antibody library to generate antibodies that recognize a target protein. Using two well-characterized Drosophila RNA-binding proteins, Staufen and Smaug, for proof-of-principle, we demonstrate that synthetic antibodies can be generated and used either to perform RNA-coimmunoprecipitations (RIPs) to identify RBP-bound mRNAs, or to block RBP-RNA interactions. Given that synthetic antibody selection protocols are amenable to high-throughput antibody production, these results demonstrate that synthetic antibodies can be powerful tools for genome-wide studies of RBP function.
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Affiliation(s)
- John D Laver
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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12
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Walser CB, Lipshitz HD. Transcript clearance during the maternal-to-zygotic transition. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2011; 21:431-43. [PMID: 21497081 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2011.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2011] [Accepted: 03/21/2011] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
In all animals, a key event in the transition from maternal control of development to control by products of the zygotic genome is the elimination of a significant fraction of the mRNAs loaded into the egg by the mother. Clearance of these maternal mRNAs is accomplished by two activities: the first is maternally encoded while the second requires zygotic transcription. Recent advances include identification of RNA-binding proteins that function as specificity factors to direct the maternal degradation machinery to its target mRNAs; small RNAs-most notably microRNAs-that function as components of the zygotically encoded activity; signaling pathways that trigger production and/or activation of the clearance mechanism in early embryos; and mechanisms for spatial control of transcript clearance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia B Walser
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, 1 King's College Circle, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 1A8
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13
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Genome-wide analysis of mRNA decay patterns during early Drosophila development. Genome Biol 2010; 11:R93. [PMID: 20858238 PMCID: PMC2965385 DOI: 10.1186/gb-2010-11-9-r93] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2010] [Revised: 09/08/2010] [Accepted: 09/21/2010] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The modulation of mRNA levels across tissues and time is key for the establishment and operation of the developmental programs that transform the fertilized egg into a fully formed embryo. Although the developmental mechanisms leading to differential mRNA synthesis are heavily investigated, comparatively little attention is given to the processes of mRNA degradation and how these relate to the molecular programs controlling development. RESULTS Here we combine timed collection of Drosophila embryos and unfertilized eggs with genome-wide microarray technology to determine the degradation patterns of all mRNAs present during early fruit fly development. Our work studies the kinetics of mRNA decay, the contributions of maternally and zygotically encoded factors to mRNA degradation, and the ways in which mRNA decay profiles relate to gene function, mRNA localization patterns, translation rates and protein turnover. We also detect cis-regulatory sequences enriched in transcripts with common degradation patterns and propose several proteins and microRNAs as developmental regulators of mRNA decay during early fruit fly development. Finally, we experimentally validate the effects of a subset of cis-regulatory sequences and trans-regulators in vivo. CONCLUSIONS Our work advances the current understanding of the processes controlling mRNA degradation during early Drosophila development, taking us one step closer to the understanding of mRNA decay processes in all animals. Our data also provide a valuable resource for further experimental and computational studies investigating the process of mRNA decay.
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14
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Lu X, Li JM, Elemento O, Tavazoie S, Wieschaus EF. Coupling of zygotic transcription to mitotic control at the Drosophila mid-blastula transition. Development 2009; 136:2101-10. [PMID: 19465600 DOI: 10.1242/dev.034421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
One of the most prominent features at the mid-blastula transition (MBT) observed in most embryos is a pause in cell cycle regulated by the nucleocytoplasmic (N/C) ratio. By using chromosome rearrangements to manipulate the DNA content of embryos, we determined that the threshold for this cell cycle pause in Drosophila is about 70% of the DNA content normally present at cycle 14. Embryos with DNA contents around this value show intermediate cell cycle behaviors. Some pause at cycle 14, some at cycle 15, and some form patches arrested in different mitotic cycles. A second feature at MBT is a massive increase in zygotic transcription and a parallel degradation of maternally supplied RNAs. To determine whether these changes in gene expression are governed by the same N/C ratio that controls cell cycle pause, we compared gene expression in haploid and diploid Drosophila embryos. We find that most maternal RNA degradation and most new transcription correlate with absolute time or developmental stage, and are timed independently of the N/C ratio. We identify a class of zygotically active genes whose expression depends on the N/C ratio and which are only expressed at cycle 15 in haploids. In embryos with patchy cell cycle behavior due to threshold DNA contents, the expression of these genes correlates tightly with the boundaries of the mitotic patches, suggesting either that the mechanism that pauses the mitotic cycle is the same as the one that measures the N/C ratio, or that it is tightly coupled to the mechanism controlling zygotic transcription of N/C ratio genes at the MBT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuemin Lu
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
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15
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Villaescusa JC, Buratti C, Penkov D, Mathiasen L, Planagumà J, Ferretti E, Blasi F. Cytoplasmic Prep1 interacts with 4EHP inhibiting Hoxb4 translation. PLoS One 2009; 4:e5213. [PMID: 19365557 PMCID: PMC2664923 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0005213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2009] [Accepted: 03/19/2009] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Homeobox genes are essential for embryonic patterning and cell fate determination. They are regulated mostly at the transcriptional level. In particular, Prep1 regulates Hox transcription in association with Pbx proteins. Despite its nuclear role as a transcription factor, Prep1 is located in the cytosol of mouse oocytes from primary to antral follicles. The homeodomain factor Bicoid (Bcd) has been shown to interact with 4EHP (eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E homolog protein) to repress translation of Caudal mRNA and to drive Drosophila embryo development. Interestingly, Prep1 contains a putative binding motif for 4EHP, which may reflect a novel unknown function. Methodology/Principal Findings In this paper we show by confocal microscopy and deconvolution analysis that Prep1 and 4EHP co-localize in the cytosol of growing mouse oocytes, demonstrating their interaction by co-immunoprecipitation and pull-down experiments. A functional 4EHP-binding motif present in Prep1 has been also identified by mutagenesis analysis. Moreover, Prep1 inhibits (>95%) the in vitro translation of a luciferase reporter mRNA fused to the Hoxb4 3′UTR, in the presence of 4EHP. RNA electrophoretic mobility shift assay was used to demonstrate that Prep1 binds the Hoxb4 3′UTR. Furthermore, conventional histology and immunohistochemistry has shown a dramatic oocyte growth failure in hypomorphic mouse Prep1i/i females, accompanied by an increased production of Hoxb4. Finally, Hoxb4 overexpression in mouse zygotes showed a slow in vitro development effect. Conclusions Prep1 has a novel cytoplasmic, 4EHP-dependent, function in the regulation of translation. Mechanistically, the Prep1-4EHP interaction might bridge the 3′UTR of Hoxb4 mRNA to the 5′ cap structure. This is the first demonstration that a mammalian homeodomain transcription factor regulates translation, and that this function can be possibly essential for the development of female germ cells and involved in mammalian zygote development.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Dmitry Penkov
- IFOM, FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology, Milano, Italy
| | - Lisa Mathiasen
- IFOM, FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology, Milano, Italy
| | - Jesús Planagumà
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Elisabetta Ferretti
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, San Raffaele Scientific Institute and Università Vita Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
| | - Francesco Blasi
- IFOM, FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology, Milano, Italy
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, San Raffaele Scientific Institute and Università Vita Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
- * E-mail:
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16
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Drosophila maternal Hsp83 mRNA destabilization is directed by multiple SMAUG recognition elements in the open reading frame. Mol Cell Biol 2008; 28:6757-72. [PMID: 18794360 DOI: 10.1128/mcb.00037-08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
SMAUG (SMG) is an RNA-binding protein that functions as a key component of a transcript degradation pathway that eliminates maternal mRNAs in the bulk cytoplasm of activated Drosophila melanogaster eggs. We previously showed that SMG destabilizes maternal Hsp83 mRNA by recruiting the CCR4-NOT deadenylase to trigger decay; however, the cis-acting elements through which this was accomplished were unknown. Here we show that Hsp83 transcript degradation is regulated by a major element, the Hsp83 mRNA instability element (HIE), which maps to a 615-nucleotide region of the open reading frame (ORF). The HIE is sufficient for association of a transgenic mRNA with SMG protein as well as for SMG-dependent destabilization. Although the Hsp83 mRNA is translated in the early embryo, we show that translation of the mRNA is not necessary for destabilization; indeed, the HIE functions even when located in an mRNA's 3' untranslated region. The Hsp83 mRNA contains eight predicted SMG recognition elements (SREs); all map to the ORF, and six reside within the HIE. Mutation of a single amino acid residue that is essential for SMG's interaction with SREs stabilizes endogenous Hsp83 transcripts. Furthermore, simultaneous mutation of all eight predicted SREs also results in transcript stabilization. A plausible model is that the multiple, widely distributed SREs in the ORF enable some SMG molecules to remain bound to the mRNA despite ribosome transit through any individual SRE. Thus, SMG can recruit the CCR4-NOT deadenylase to trigger Hsp83 mRNA degradation despite the fact that it is being translated.
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