1
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Yu HJ, Byun YH, Park CK. Techniques for assessing telomere length: A methodological review. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2024; 23:1489-1498. [PMID: 38633384 PMCID: PMC11021795 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2024.04.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Telomeres are located at the ends of chromosomes and have specific sequences with a distinctive structure that safeguards genes. They possess capping structures that protect chromosome ends from fusion events and ensure chromosome stability. Telomeres shorten in length during each cycle of cell division. When this length reaches a certain threshold, it can lead to genomic instability, thus being implicated in various diseases, including cancer and neurodegenerative disorders. The possibility of telomeres serving as a biomarker for aging and age-related disease is being explored, and their significance is still under study. This is because post-mitotic cells, which are mature cells that do not undergo mitosis, do not experience telomere shortening due to age. Instead, other causes, for example, exposure to oxidative stress, can directly damage the telomeres, causing genomic instability. Nonetheless, a general agreement has been established that measuring telomere length offers valuable insights and forms a crucial foundation for analyzing gene expression and epigenetic data. Numerous approaches have been developed to accurately measure telomere lengths. In this review, we summarize various methods and their advantages and limitations for assessing telomere length.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyeon Jong Yu
- Department of Neurosurgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Yoon Hwan Byun
- Department of Neurosurgery, SMG-SNU Boramae Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Chul-Kee Park
- Department of Neurosurgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
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2
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de Oliveira BCD, Shiburah ME, Assis LHC, Fontes VS, Bisetegn H, de Oliveira Passos A, de Oliveira LS, de Santis Alves C, Ernst E, Martienssen R, Gallo-Francisco PH, Giorgio S, Batista MM, de Nazaré Correia Soeiro M, Menna-Barreto RFS, Aoki JI, Coelho AC, Cano MIN. Leishmania major telomerase RNA knockout: From altered cell proliferation to decreased parasite infectivity. Int J Biol Macromol 2024:135150. [PMID: 39218181 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.135150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2024] [Revised: 08/14/2024] [Accepted: 08/27/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
This study focuses on the biological impacts of deleting the telomerase RNA from Leishmania major (LeishTER), a parasite responsible for causing leishmaniases, for which no effective treatment or prevention is available. TER is a critical player in the telomerase ribonucleoprotein complex, containing the template sequence copied by the reverse transcriptase component during telomere elongation. The success of knocking out both LeishTER alleles was confirmed, and no off-targets were detected. LmTER-/- cells share similar characteristics with other TER-depleted eukaryotes, such as altered growth patterns and partial G0/G1 cell cycle arrest in early passages, telomere shortening, and elevated TERRA expression. They also exhibit increased γH2A phosphorylation, suggesting that the loss of LeishTER induces DNA damage signaling. Moreover, pro-survival autophagic signals and mitochondrion alterations were shown without any detectable plasma membrane modifications. LmTER-/- retained the ability to transform into metacyclics, but their infectivity capacity was compromised. Furthermore, the overexpression of LeishTER was also deleterious, inducing a dominant negative effect that led to telomere shortening and growth impairments. These findings highlight TER's vital role in parasite homeostasis, opening discussions about its potential as a drug target candidate against Leishmania.
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Affiliation(s)
- Beatriz Cristina Dias de Oliveira
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Mark Ewusi Shiburah
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Animal Research Institute, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR-ARI), Accra, Ghana
| | - Luiz Henrique Castro Assis
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Veronica Silva Fontes
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Habtye Bisetegn
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Wollo University, Dessie, Ethiopia
| | - Arthur de Oliveira Passos
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Leilane S de Oliveira
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Evan Ernst
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute/Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Rob Martienssen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute/Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | | | - Selma Giorgio
- Department of Animal Biology, Biology Institute, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Marcos Meuser Batista
- Cellular Biology Laboratory, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | | | - Juliana Ide Aoki
- Department of Animal Biology, Biology Institute, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Adriano Cappellazzo Coelho
- Department of Animal Biology, Biology Institute, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Maria Isabel Nogueira Cano
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
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3
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Estrem B, Davis R, Wang J. End resection and telomere healing of DNA double-strand breaks during nematode programmed DNA elimination. Nucleic Acids Res 2024; 52:8913-8929. [PMID: 38953168 PMCID: PMC11347171 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkae579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2024] [Revised: 05/24/2024] [Accepted: 06/24/2024] [Indexed: 07/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Most DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) are harmful to genome integrity. However, some forms of DSBs are essential to biological processes, such as meiotic recombination and V(D)J recombination. DSBs are also required for programmed DNA elimination (PDE) in ciliates and nematodes. In nematodes, the DSBs are healed with telomere addition. While telomere addition sites have been well characterized, little is known regarding the DSBs that fragment nematode chromosomes. Here, we used embryos from the human and pig parasitic nematode Ascaris to characterize the DSBs. Using END-seq, we demonstrate that DSBs are introduced before mitosis, followed by extensive end resection. The resection profile is unique for each break site, and the resection generates 3'-overhangs before the addition of neotelomeres. Interestingly, telomere healing occurs much more frequently on retained DSB ends than on eliminated ends. This biased repair of the DSB ends may be due to the sequestration of the eliminated DNA into micronuclei, preventing neotelomere formation at their ends. Additional DNA breaks occur within the eliminated DNA in both Ascaris and Parascaris, ensuring chromosomal breakage and providing a fail-safe mechanism for PDE. Overall, our data indicate that telomere healing of DSBs is specific to the break sites responsible for nematode PDE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brandon Estrem
- Department of Biochemistry & Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Richard E Davis
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Jianbin Wang
- Department of Biochemistry & Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
- UT-ORNL Graduate School of Genome Science and Technology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
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4
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Amiard S, Feit L, Vanrobays E, Simon L, Le Goff S, Loizeau L, Wolff L, Butter F, Bourbousse C, Barneche F, Tatout C, Probst AV. The TELOMERE REPEAT BINDING proteins TRB4 and TRB5 function as transcriptional activators of PRC2-controlled genes to regulate plant development. PLANT COMMUNICATIONS 2024; 5:100890. [PMID: 38566416 PMCID: PMC11287191 DOI: 10.1016/j.xplc.2024.100890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2023] [Revised: 02/07/2024] [Accepted: 03/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Plant-specific transcriptional regulators called TELOMERE REPEAT BINDING proteins (TRBs) combine two DNA-binding domains, the GH1 domain, which binds to linker DNA and is shared with H1 histones, and the Myb/SANT domain, which specifically recognizes the telobox DNA-binding site motif. TRB1, TRB2, and TRB3 proteins recruit Polycomb group complex 2 (PRC2) to deposit H3K27me3 and JMJ14 to remove H3K4me3 at gene promoters containing telobox motifs to repress transcription. Here, we demonstrate that TRB4 and TRB5, two related paralogs belonging to a separate TRB clade conserved in spermatophytes, regulate the transcription of several hundred genes involved in developmental responses to environmental cues. TRB4 binds to several thousand sites in the genome, mainly at transcription start sites and promoter regions of transcriptionally active and H3K4me3-marked genes, but, unlike TRB1, it is not enriched at H3K27me3-marked gene bodies. However, TRB4 can physically interact with the catalytic components of PRC2, SWINGER, and CURLY LEAF (CLF). Unexpectedly, we show that TRB4 and TRB5 are required for distinctive phenotypic traits observed in clf mutant plants and thus function as transcriptional activators of several hundred CLF-controlled genes, including key flowering genes. We further demonstrate that TRB4 shares multiple target genes with TRB1 and physically and genetically interacts with members of both TRB clades. Collectively, these results reveal that TRB proteins engage in both positive and negative interactions with other members of the family to regulate plant development through both PRC2-dependent and -independent mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Amiard
- iGReD, CNRS, Inserm, Université Clermont Auvergne, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France.
| | - Léa Feit
- iGReD, CNRS, Inserm, Université Clermont Auvergne, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Emmanuel Vanrobays
- iGReD, CNRS, Inserm, Université Clermont Auvergne, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Lauriane Simon
- iGReD, CNRS, Inserm, Université Clermont Auvergne, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Samuel Le Goff
- iGReD, CNRS, Inserm, Université Clermont Auvergne, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Loriane Loizeau
- iGReD, CNRS, Inserm, Université Clermont Auvergne, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Léa Wolff
- Institut de biologie de l'Ecole normale supérieure (IBENS), Ecole normale supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université PSL, Paris, France
| | - Falk Butter
- Institute of Molecular Biology, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Clara Bourbousse
- Institut de biologie de l'Ecole normale supérieure (IBENS), Ecole normale supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université PSL, Paris, France
| | - Fredy Barneche
- Institut de biologie de l'Ecole normale supérieure (IBENS), Ecole normale supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université PSL, Paris, France
| | - Christophe Tatout
- iGReD, CNRS, Inserm, Université Clermont Auvergne, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Aline V Probst
- iGReD, CNRS, Inserm, Université Clermont Auvergne, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France.
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5
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Ng GYQ, Hande MP. Use of peptide nucleic acid probe to determine telomere dynamics in improving chromosome analysis in genetic toxicology studies. MUTATION RESEARCH. GENETIC TOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MUTAGENESIS 2024; 897:503773. [PMID: 39054004 DOI: 10.1016/j.mrgentox.2024.503773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2024] [Revised: 05/01/2024] [Accepted: 05/22/2024] [Indexed: 07/27/2024]
Abstract
Genetic toxicology, strategically located at the intersection of genetics and toxicology, aims to demystify the complex interplay between exogenous agents and our genetic blueprint. Telomeres, the protective termini of chromosomes, play instrumental roles in cellular longevity and genetic stability. Traditionally karyotyping and fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH), have been indispensable tools for chromosomal analysis following exposure to genotoxic agents. However, their scope in discerning nuanced molecular dynamics is limited. Peptide Nucleic Acids (PNAs) are synthetic entities that embody characteristics of both proteins and nucleic acids and have emerged as potential game-changers. This perspective report comprehensively examines the vast potential of PNAs in genetic toxicology, with a specific emphasis on telomere research. PNAs' superior resolution and precision make them a favourable choice for genetic toxicological assessments. The integration of PNAs in contemporary analytical workflows heralds a promising evolution in genetic toxicology, potentially revolutionizing diagnostics, prognostics, and therapeutic avenues. In this timely review, we attempted to assess the limitations of current PNA-FISH methodology and recommend refinements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gavin Yong Quan Ng
- Department of Physiology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Manoor Prakash Hande
- Department of Physiology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
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6
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Schmidt TT, Tyer C, Rughani P, Haggblom C, Jones JR, Dai X, Frazer KA, Gage FH, Juul S, Hickey S, Karlseder J. High resolution long-read telomere sequencing reveals dynamic mechanisms in aging and cancer. Nat Commun 2024; 15:5149. [PMID: 38890299 PMCID: PMC11189484 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48917-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2024] [Indexed: 06/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Telomeres are the protective nucleoprotein structures at the end of linear eukaryotic chromosomes. Telomeres' repetitive nature and length have traditionally challenged the precise assessment of the composition and length of individual human telomeres. Here, we present Telo-seq to resolve bulk, chromosome arm-specific and allele-specific human telomere lengths using Oxford Nanopore Technologies' native long-read sequencing. Telo-seq resolves telomere shortening in five population doubling increments and reveals intrasample, chromosome arm-specific, allele-specific telomere length heterogeneity. Telo-seq can reliably discriminate between telomerase- and ALT-positive cancer cell lines. Thus, Telo-seq is a tool to study telomere biology during development, aging, and cancer at unprecedented resolution.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Carly Tyer
- Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Inc., New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Candy Haggblom
- Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Jeffrey R Jones
- Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Xiaoguang Dai
- Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Inc., New York, NY, USA
| | - Kelly A Frazer
- Institute of Genomic Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0761, USA
| | - Fred H Gage
- Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Sissel Juul
- Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Inc., New York, NY, USA
| | - Scott Hickey
- Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Inc., New York, NY, USA.
| | - Jan Karlseder
- Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA.
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7
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Závodník M, Pavlištová V, Machelová A, Lyčka M, Mozgová I, Caklová K, Dvořáčková M, Fajkus J. KU70 and CAF-1 in Arabidopsis: Divergent roles in rDNA stability and telomere homeostasis. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2024; 118:1922-1936. [PMID: 38493352 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.16718] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2023] [Revised: 02/07/2024] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 03/18/2024]
Abstract
Deficiency in chromatin assembly factor-1 (CAF-1) in plants through dysfunction of its components, FASCIATA1 and 2 (FAS1, FAS2), leads to the specific and progressive loss of rDNA and telomere repeats in plants. This loss is attributed to defective repair mechanisms for the increased DNA breaks encountered during replication, a consequence of impaired replication-dependent chromatin assembly. In this study, we explore the role of KU70 in these processes. Our findings reveal that, although the rDNA copy number is reduced in ku70 mutants when compared with wild-type plants, it is not markedly affected by diverse KU70 status in fas1 mutants. This is consistent with our previous characterisation of rDNA loss in fas mutants as a consequence part of the single-strand annealing pathway of homology-dependent repair. In stark contrast to rDNA, KU70 dysfunction fully suppresses the loss of telomeres in fas1 plants and converts telomeres to their elongated and heterogeneous state typical for ku70 plants. We conclude that the alternative telomere lengthening pathway, known to be activated in the absence of KU70, overrides progressive telomere loss due to CAF-1 dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Závodník
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, v.v.i., Brno, CZ-61265, Czech Republic
| | - Veronika Pavlištová
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | - Adéla Machelová
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Lyčka
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | - Iva Mozgová
- Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Plant Molecular Biology, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
- University of South Bohemia, Faculty of Science, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Karolína Caklová
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | - Martina Dvořáčková
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Fajkus
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, v.v.i., Brno, CZ-61265, Czech Republic
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
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8
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Hinchie AM, Sanford SL, Loughridge KE, Sutton RM, Parikh AH, Gil Silva AA, Sullivan DI, Chun-On P, Morrell MR, McDyer JF, Opresko PL, Alder JK. A persistent variant telomere sequence in a human pedigree. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4681. [PMID: 38824190 PMCID: PMC11144197 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49072-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2024] [Accepted: 05/22/2024] [Indexed: 06/03/2024] Open
Abstract
The telomere sequence, TTAGGG, is conserved across all vertebrates and plays an essential role in suppressing the DNA damage response by binding a set of proteins termed shelterin. Changes in the telomere sequence impair shelterin binding, initiate a DNA damage response, and are toxic to cells. Here we identify a family with a variant in the telomere template sequence of telomerase, the enzyme responsible for telomere elongation, that led to a non-canonical telomere sequence. The variant is inherited across at least one generation and one family member reports no significant medical concerns despite ~9% of their telomeres converting to the novel sequence. The variant template disrupts telomerase repeat addition processivity and decreased the binding of the telomere-binding protein POT1. Despite these disruptions, the sequence is readily incorporated into cellular chromosomes. Incorporation of a variant sequence prevents POT1-mediated inhibition of telomerase suggesting that incorporation of a variant sequence may influence telomere addition. These findings demonstrate that telomeres can tolerate substantial degeneracy while remaining functional and provide insights as to how incorporation of a non-canonical telomere sequence might alter telomere length dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela M Hinchie
- Dorothy P. and Richard P. Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Samantha L Sanford
- Environmental and Occupational Health Department, School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Kelly E Loughridge
- Dorothy P. and Richard P. Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Rachel M Sutton
- Dorothy P. and Richard P. Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Anishka H Parikh
- Dorothy P. and Richard P. Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Agustin A Gil Silva
- Dorothy P. and Richard P. Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Daniel I Sullivan
- Dorothy P. and Richard P. Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Pattra Chun-On
- Dorothy P. and Richard P. Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Matthew R Morrell
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - John F McDyer
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Patricia L Opresko
- Environmental and Occupational Health Department, School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Pharmacology and Chemical Biology Department, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Jonathan K Alder
- Dorothy P. and Richard P. Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
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9
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Frydrychová RČ, Konopová B, Peska V, Brejcha M, Sábová M. Telomeres and telomerase: active but complex players in life-history decisions. Biogerontology 2024; 25:205-226. [PMID: 37610666 DOI: 10.1007/s10522-023-10060-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 08/01/2023] [Indexed: 08/24/2023]
Abstract
Studies on human telomeres have established that telomeres exert a significant influence on lifespan and health of organisms. However, recent research has indicated that the original idea that telomeres affect lifespan in a universal and central manner across all eukaryotic species is an oversimplification. Indeed, findings from a variety of animal species revealed that the role of telomere biology in aging is more subtle and intricate than previously recognized. Here, we show how telomere biology varies depending on the taxon. We also show how telomere biology corresponds to basic life history traits and affects the life table of a species and investments in growth, body size, reproduction, and lifespan; telomeres are hypothesized to shape evolutionary perspectives for species in an active but complex manner. Our evaluation is based on telomere biology data from many examples from throughout the animal kingdom that vary according to the degree of organismal complexity and life history strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Radmila Čapková Frydrychová
- Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Branišovská 31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 1760, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.
| | - Barbora Konopová
- Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Branišovská 31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Vratislav Peska
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, 612 00, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Miloslav Brejcha
- Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Branišovská 31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 1760, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Michala Sábová
- Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Branišovská 31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
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10
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Barcenilla BB, Kundel I, Hall E, Hilty N, Ulianich P, Cook J, Turley J, Yerram M, Min JH, Castillo-González C, Shippen DE. Telomere dynamics and oxidative stress in Arabidopsis grown in lunar regolith simulant. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2024; 15:1351613. [PMID: 38434436 PMCID: PMC10908177 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1351613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
NASA envisions a future where humans establish a thriving colony on the Moon by 2050. Plants will be essential for this endeavor, but little is known about their adaptation to extraterrestrial bodies. The capacity to grow plants in lunar regolith would represent a major step towards this goal by minimizing the reliance on resources transported from Earth. Recent studies reveal that Arabidopsis thaliana can germinate and grow on genuine lunar regolith as well as on lunar regolith simulant. However, plants arrest in vegetative development and activate a variety of stress response pathways, most notably the oxidative stress response. Telomeres are hotspots for oxidative damage in the genome and a marker of fitness in many organisms. Here we examine A. thaliana growth on a lunar regolith simulant and the impact of this resource on plant physiology and on telomere dynamics, telomerase enzyme activity and genome oxidation. We report that plants successfully set seed and generate a viable second plant generation if the lunar regolith simulant is pre-washed with an antioxidant cocktail. However, plants sustain a higher degree of genome oxidation and decreased biomass relative to conventional Earth soil cultivation. Moreover, telomerase activity substantially declines and telomeres shorten in plants grown in lunar regolith simulant, implying that genome integrity may not be sustainable over the long-term. Overcoming these challenges will be an important goal in ensuring success on the lunar frontier.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Dorothy E. Shippen
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
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11
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Valeeva LR, Sannikova AV, Shafigullina NR, Abdulkina LR, Sharipova MR, Shakirov EV. Telomere Length Variation in Model Bryophytes. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2024; 13:387. [PMID: 38337920 PMCID: PMC10856949 DOI: 10.3390/plants13030387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2023] [Revised: 01/18/2024] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
The ends of linear chromosomes of most eukaryotes consist of protein-bound DNA arrays called telomeres, which play essential roles in protecting genome integrity. Despite general evolutionary conservation in function, telomeric DNA is known to drastically vary in length and sequence between different eukaryotic lineages. Bryophytes are a group of early diverging land plants that include mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. This group of ancient land plants recently emerged as a new model for important discoveries in genomics and evolutionary biology, as well as for understanding plant adaptations to a terrestrial lifestyle. We measured telomere length in different ecotypes of model bryophyte species, including Physcomitrium patens, Marchantia polymorpha, Ceratodon purpureus, and in Sphagnum isolates. Our data indicate that all analyzed moss and liverwort genotypes have relatively short telomeres. Furthermore, all analyzed ecotypes and isolates of model mosses and liverworts display evidence of substantial natural variation in telomere length. Interestingly, telomere length also differs between male and female strains of the dioecious liverwort M. polymorpha and dioecious moss C. purpureus. Given that bryophytes are extraordinarily well adapted to different ecological niches from polar to tropical environments, our data will contribute to understanding the impact of natural telomere length variation on evolutionary adaptations in this ancient land plant lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liia R. Valeeva
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (A.V.S.); (L.R.A.)
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25701, USA
| | - Anastasia V. Sannikova
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (A.V.S.); (L.R.A.)
| | - Nadiya R. Shafigullina
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Department of General Ecology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia
| | - Liliia R. Abdulkina
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (A.V.S.); (L.R.A.)
| | - Margarita R. Sharipova
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (A.V.S.); (L.R.A.)
| | - Eugene V. Shakirov
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25701, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25755, USA
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12
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Braun H, Xu Z, Chang F, Viceconte N, Rane G, Levin M, Lototska L, Roth F, Hillairet A, Fradera-Sola A, Khanchandani V, Sin ZW, Yong WK, Dreesen O, Yang Y, Shi Y, Li F, Butter F, Kappei D. ZNF524 directly interacts with telomeric DNA and supports telomere integrity. Nat Commun 2023; 14:8252. [PMID: 38086788 PMCID: PMC10716145 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43397-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Telomeres are nucleoprotein structures at the ends of linear chromosomes. In humans, they consist of TTAGGG repeats, which are bound by dedicated proteins such as the shelterin complex. This complex blocks unwanted DNA damage repair at telomeres, e.g. by suppressing nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ) through its subunit TRF2. Here, we describe ZNF524, a zinc finger protein that directly binds telomeric repeats with nanomolar affinity, and reveal base-specific sequence recognition by cocrystallization with telomeric DNA. ZNF524 localizes to telomeres and specifically maintains the presence of the TRF2/RAP1 subcomplex at telomeres without affecting other shelterin members. Loss of ZNF524 concomitantly results in an increase in DNA damage signaling and recombination events. Overall, ZNF524 is a direct telomere-binding protein involved in the maintenance of telomere integrity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanna Braun
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore
- Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), Mainz, 55128, Germany
| | - Ziyan Xu
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics, School of Life Sciences, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Fiona Chang
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore
| | | | - Grishma Rane
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore
| | - Michal Levin
- Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), Mainz, 55128, Germany
| | | | - Franziska Roth
- Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), Mainz, 55128, Germany
| | - Alexia Hillairet
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore
| | | | - Vartika Khanchandani
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore
| | - Zi Wayne Sin
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore
| | - Wai Khang Yong
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore
- Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117596, Singapore
| | - Oliver Dreesen
- Cell Aging Laboratory, A*STAR Skin Research Labs, Singapore, 138648, Singapore
| | - Yang Yang
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics, School of Life Sciences, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Yunyu Shi
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics, School of Life Sciences, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Fudong Li
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics, School of Life Sciences, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China.
| | - Falk Butter
- Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), Mainz, 55128, Germany.
- Institute of Molecular Virology and Cell Biology (IMVZ), Friedrich Loeffler Institute, Greifswald, 17493, Germany.
| | - Dennis Kappei
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore.
- Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117596, Singapore.
- NUS Center for Cancer Research, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore.
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13
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Abdulkina LR, Agabekian IA, Valeeva LR, Kozlova OS, Sharipova MR, Shakirov EV. Comparative Application of Terminal Restriction Fragment Analysis Tools to Large-Scale Genomic Assays. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:17194. [PMID: 38139024 PMCID: PMC10742804 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242417194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2023] [Revised: 12/02/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The analysis of telomere length is an important component of many studies aiming to characterize the role of telomere maintenance mechanisms in cellular lifespan, disease, or in general chromosome protection and DNA replication pathways. Several powerful methods to accurately measure the telomere length from Southern blots have been developed, but their utility for large-scale genomic studies has not been previously evaluated. Here, we performed a comparative analysis of two recently developed programs, TeloTool and WALTER, for the extraction of mean telomere length values from Southern blots. Using both software packages, we measured the telomere length in two extensive experimental datasets for the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, consisting of 537 natural accessions and 65 T-DNA (transfer DNA for insertion mutagenesis) mutant lines in the reference Columbia (Col-0) genotype background. We report that TeloTool substantially overestimates the telomere length in comparison to WALTER, especially for values over 4500 bp. Importantly, the TeloTool- and WALTER-calculated telomere length values correlate the most in the 2100-3500 bp range, suggesting that telomeres in this size interval can be estimated by both programs equally well. We further show that genome-wide association studies using datasets from both telomere length analysis tools can detect the most significant SNP candidates equally well. However, GWAS analysis with the WALTER dataset consistently detects fewer significant SNPs than analysis with the TeloTool dataset, regardless of the GWAS method used. These results imply that the telomere length data generated by WALTER may represent a more stringent approach to GWAS and SNP selection for the downstream molecular screening of candidate genes. Overall, our work reveals the unanticipated impact of the telomere length analysis method on the outcomes of large-scale genomic screens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liliia R. Abdulkina
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (L.R.A.); (I.A.A.); (L.R.V.); (O.S.K.); (M.R.S.)
| | - Inna A. Agabekian
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (L.R.A.); (I.A.A.); (L.R.V.); (O.S.K.); (M.R.S.)
| | - Liia R. Valeeva
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (L.R.A.); (I.A.A.); (L.R.V.); (O.S.K.); (M.R.S.)
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25701, USA
| | - Olga S. Kozlova
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (L.R.A.); (I.A.A.); (L.R.V.); (O.S.K.); (M.R.S.)
| | - Margarita R. Sharipova
- Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia; (L.R.A.); (I.A.A.); (L.R.V.); (O.S.K.); (M.R.S.)
| | - Eugene V. Shakirov
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25701, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25755, USA
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14
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Barcenilla BB, Meyers AD, Castillo-González C, Young P, Min JH, Song J, Phadke C, Land E, Canaday E, Perera IY, Bailey SM, Aquilano R, Wyatt SE, Shippen DE. Arabidopsis telomerase takes off by uncoupling enzyme activity from telomere length maintenance in space. Nat Commun 2023; 14:7854. [PMID: 38030615 PMCID: PMC10686995 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41510-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Spaceflight-induced changes in astronaut telomeres have garnered significant attention in recent years. While plants represent an essential component of future long-duration space travel, the impacts of spaceflight on plant telomeres and telomerase have not been examined. Here we report on the telomere dynamics of Arabidopsis thaliana grown aboard the International Space Station. We observe no changes in telomere length in space-flown Arabidopsis seedlings, despite a dramatic increase in telomerase activity (up to 150-fold in roots), as well as elevated genome oxidation. Ground-based follow up studies provide further evidence that telomerase is induced by different environmental stressors, but its activity is uncoupled from telomere length. Supporting this conclusion, genetically engineered super-telomerase lines with enhanced telomerase activity maintain wildtype telomere length. Finally, genome oxidation is inversely correlated with telomerase activity levels. We propose a redox protective capacity for Arabidopsis telomerase that may promote survivability in harsh environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Borja Barbero Barcenilla
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, 2128 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843, USA
| | - Alexander D Meyers
- Department of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, OH, 45701, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, Ohio University, Athens, OH, 45701, USA
- NASA Postdoctoral Program, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Kennedy Space Center FL, Merritt Island, FL, 32899, USA
| | - Claudia Castillo-González
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, 2128 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843, USA
| | - Pierce Young
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, 2128 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843, USA
| | - Ji-Hee Min
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, 2128 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843, USA
| | - Jiarui Song
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, 2128 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843, USA
| | - Chinmay Phadke
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, 2128 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843, USA
| | - Eric Land
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA
| | - Emma Canaday
- Department of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, OH, 45701, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, Ohio University, Athens, OH, 45701, USA
| | - Imara Y Perera
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA
| | - Susan M Bailey
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Roberto Aquilano
- National Technological University, Rosario Regional Faculty, Zeballos 1341, S2000, Rosario, Argentina
| | - Sarah E Wyatt
- Department of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, OH, 45701, USA.
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, Ohio University, Athens, OH, 45701, USA.
| | - Dorothy E Shippen
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, 2128 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843, USA.
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15
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Závodník M, Fajkus P, Franek M, Kopecký D, Garcia S, Dodsworth S, Orejuela A, Kilar A, Ptáček J, Mátl M, Hýsková A, Fajkus J, Peška V. Telomerase RNA gene paralogs in plants - the usual pathway to unusual telomeres. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2023; 239:2353-2366. [PMID: 37391893 DOI: 10.1111/nph.19110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/02/2023]
Abstract
Telomerase, telomeric DNA and associated proteins together represent a complex, finely tuned and functionally conserved mechanism that ensures genome integrity by protecting and maintaining chromosome ends. Changes in its components can threaten an organism's viability. Nevertheless, molecular innovation in telomere maintenance has occurred multiple times during eukaryote evolution, giving rise to species/taxa with unusual telomeric DNA sequences, telomerase components or telomerase-independent telomere maintenance. The central component of telomere maintenance machinery is telomerase RNA (TR) as it templates telomere DNA synthesis, its mutation can change telomere DNA and disrupt its recognition by telomere proteins, thereby leading to collapse of their end-protective and telomerase recruitment functions. Using a combination of bioinformatic and experimental approaches, we examine a plausible scenario of evolutionary changes in TR underlying telomere transitions. We identified plants harbouring multiple TR paralogs whose template regions could support the synthesis of diverse telomeres. In our hypothesis, formation of unusual telomeres is associated with the occurrence of TR paralogs that can accumulate mutations, and through their functional redundancy, allow for the adaptive evolution of the other telomere components. Experimental analyses of telomeres in the examined plants demonstrate evolutionary telomere transitions corresponding to TR paralogs with diverse template regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Závodník
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Fajkus
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, CZ-61265, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Franek
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
| | - David Kopecký
- Centre of Plant Structural and Functional Genomics, Institute of Experimental Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Olomouc, CZ-779 00, Czech Republic
| | - Sònia Garcia
- Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB-CSIC), Passeig del Migdia S/N, Barcelona, 08038, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Steven Dodsworth
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Portsmouth, King Henry Building, King Henry I St., Portsmouth, PO1 2DY, UK
| | - Andrés Orejuela
- Grupo de Investigación en Recursos Naturales Amazónicos - GRAM, Facultad de Ingenierías y Ciencias Básicas and Herbario Etnobotánico del Piedemonte Andino Amazónico (HEAA), Instituto Tecnológico del Putumayo - ITP, Mocoa, Putumayo, Colombia
| | - Agata Kilar
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Ptáček
- Potato Research Institute Havlíčkův Brod Ltd, Havlíčkův Brod, CZ-58001, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Mátl
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, CZ-61265, Czech Republic
| | - Anna Hýsková
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Fajkus
- Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-61137, Czech Republic
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno, CZ-62500, Czech Republic
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, CZ-61265, Czech Republic
| | - Vratislav Peška
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, CZ-61265, Czech Republic
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16
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Schreglmann SR, Goncalves T, Grant-Peters M, Kia DA, Soreq L, Ryten M, Wood NW, Bhatia KP, Tomita K. Age-related telomere attrition in the human putamen. Aging Cell 2023:e13861. [PMID: 37129365 PMCID: PMC10352551 DOI: 10.1111/acel.13861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 04/10/2023] [Accepted: 04/18/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Age is a major risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases. Shortening of leucocyte telomeres with advancing age, arguably a measure of "biological" age, is a known phenomenon and epidemiologically correlated with age-related disease. The main mechanism of telomere shortening is cell division, rendering telomere length in post-mitotic cells presumably stable. Longitudinal measurement of human brain telomere length is not feasible, and cross-sectional cortical brain samples so far indicated no attrition with age. Hence, age-related changes in telomere length in the brain and the association between telomere length and neurodegenerative diseases remain unknown. Here, we demonstrate that mean telomere length in the putamen, a part of the basal ganglia, physiologically shortens with age, like leukocyte telomeres. This was achieved by using matched brain and leukocyte-rich spleen samples from 98 post-mortem healthy human donors. Using spleen telomeres as a reference, we further found that mean telomere length was brain region-specific, as telomeres in the putamen were significantly shorter than in the cerebellum. Expression analyses of genes involved in telomere length regulation and oxidative phosphorylation revealed that both region- and age-dependent expression pattern corresponded with region-dependent telomere length dynamics. Collectively, our results indicate that mean telomere length in the human putamen physiologically shortens with advancing age and that both local and temporal gene expression dynamics correlate with this, pointing at a potential mechanism for the selective, age-related vulnerability of the nigro-striatal network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian R Schreglmann
- Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Tomas Goncalves
- Chromosome Maintenance Group, UCL Cancer Institute, University College London, London, UK
- Centre for Genome Engineering and Maintenance, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, London, UK
| | - Melissa Grant-Peters
- Genetics and Genomic Medicine, Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK
| | - Demis A Kia
- Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Lilach Soreq
- Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Mina Ryten
- Genetics and Genomic Medicine, Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK
- NIHR Great Ormond Street Hospital Biomedical Research Centre, University College London, London, UK
| | - Nicholas W Wood
- Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Kailash P Bhatia
- Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Kazunori Tomita
- Chromosome Maintenance Group, UCL Cancer Institute, University College London, London, UK
- Centre for Genome Engineering and Maintenance, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, London, UK
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17
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Mannherz W, Agarwal S. Thymidine nucleotide metabolism controls human telomere length. Nat Genet 2023; 55:568-580. [PMID: 36959362 PMCID: PMC11000509 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-023-01339-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2022] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/25/2023]
Abstract
Telomere length in humans is associated with lifespan and severe diseases, yet the genetic determinants of telomere length remain incompletely defined. Here we performed genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 functional telomere length screening and identified thymidine (dT) nucleotide metabolism as a limiting factor in human telomere maintenance. Targeted genetic disruption using CRISPR-Cas9 revealed multiple telomere length control points across the thymidine nucleotide metabolism pathway: decreasing dT nucleotide salvage via deletion of the gene encoding nuclear thymidine kinase (TK1) or de novo production by knockout of the thymidylate synthase gene (TYMS) decreased telomere length, whereas inactivation of the deoxynucleoside triphosphohydrolase-encoding gene SAMHD1 lengthened telomeres. Remarkably, supplementation with dT alone drove robust telomere elongation by telomerase in cells, and thymidine triphosphate stimulated telomerase activity in a substrate-independent manner in vitro. In induced pluripotent stem cells derived from patients with genetic telomere biology disorders, dT supplementation or inhibition of SAMHD1 promoted telomere restoration. Our results demonstrate a critical role of thymidine metabolism in controlling human telomerase and telomere length, which may be therapeutically actionable in patients with fatal degenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- William Mannherz
- Division of Hematology/Oncology and Stem Cell Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
- Biological and Biomedical Sciences Program, Harvard/MIT MD-PhD Program, Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard Initiative for RNA Medicine, and Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Suneet Agarwal
- Division of Hematology/Oncology and Stem Cell Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA.
- Biological and Biomedical Sciences Program, Harvard/MIT MD-PhD Program, Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard Initiative for RNA Medicine, and Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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18
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Gutiérrez ML, Rodríguez-González R, Pascual-Díaz JP, Fuentes I, Garcia S. Online Resources Useful for Plant Cytogenetics and Cytogenomics Research. Methods Mol Biol 2023; 2672:549-560. [PMID: 37335499 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3226-0_33] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/21/2023]
Abstract
The advancements in research in the field of plant cytogenetics and genomics in recent decades have led to a significant increase in publications. To simplify access to the widely dispersed data, there has been a rise in the number of online databases, repositories, and analytical tools. This chapter presents a comprehensive overview of these resources, which can be beneficial to researchers in these areas. It includes, among others, databases on chromosome numbers, special chromosomes (such as B chromosomes or sex chromosomes), some of which are taxon-specific; genome sizes, cytogenetics; and online applications and tools for genomic analysis and visualization.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Inés Fuentes
- Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB-CSIC), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Sònia Garcia
- Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB-CSIC), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
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19
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Lyčka M, Fajkus P, Jenner LP, Sýkorová E, Fojtová M, Peska V. Identification of the Sequence and the Length of Telomere DNA. Methods Mol Biol 2023; 2672:285-302. [PMID: 37335484 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3226-0_18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/21/2023]
Abstract
Telomeres are essential nucleoprotein structures at the very ends of linear eukaryote chromosomes. They shelter the terminal genome territories against degradation and prevent the natural chromosome ends from being recognized by repair mechanisms as double-strand DNA breaks.There are two basic characteristics of telomeric DNA, its sequence and its length. The telomere sequence is important as a "landing area" for specific telomere-binding proteins, which function as signals and moderate the interactions required for correct telomere function. While the sequence forms the proper "landing surface" of telomeric DNA, its length is similarly important. Too short or exceptionally long telomere DNA cannot perform its function properly. In this chapter, methods for the investigation of these two basic telomere DNA characteristics are described, namely, telomere motif identification and telomere length measurement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Lyčka
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Fajkus
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Leon P Jenner
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Eva Sýkorová
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Miloslava Fojtová
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic.
- National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic.
| | - Vratislav Peska
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic.
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Konečná KP, Kilar A, Kováčiková P, Fajkus J, Sýkorová E, Fojtová M. Compromised function of ARM, the interactor of Arabidopsis telomerase, suggests its role in stress responses. PLANT SCIENCE : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL PLANT BIOLOGY 2022; 325:111453. [PMID: 36087885 DOI: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2022.111453] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2022] [Revised: 08/02/2022] [Accepted: 09/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
ARM was identified previously as an interaction partner of the telomerase protein subunit (TERT) in Arabidopsis thaliana. To investigate the interconnection between ARM and telomerase and to identify ARM cellular functions, we analyzed a set of arm mutant lines and arm/tert double mutants. Telomere length was not affected in arm single mutant plants, in contrast to double mutants. In the second generation of homozygous arm-1/tert double mutants following the heterozygous state during the double mutant construction, telomeres shortened dramatically, even below levels in tert plants displaying severe morphological defects. Intriguingly, homozygous arm-1/tert double mutants with short telomeres grew without obvious phenotypic changes for next two generations. Then, in agreement with the onset of phenotypic changes in tert, morphological defects were timed to the 5th arm-1/tert homozygous generation. RNAseq analyses of arm-1/tert and respective single mutants displayed markedly overlapping sets of differentially expressed genes in arm-1/tert double mutant and arm-1 single mutant lines, indicating a dominant effect of the ARM mutation. RNAseq data further implied ARM involvement in circadian rhythms, responses to drugs and to biotic and abiotic stimuli. In agreement with it, we observed sensitivity of arm-1 single mutant to the heat stress during germination. Altogether, our results suggest ARM involvement in crucial cellular processes without evidencing its role in the telomerase canonical function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Klára Přikrylová Konečná
- Institute of Biophysics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic; Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic; National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Agata Kilar
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic; National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Petra Kováčiková
- National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Fajkus
- Institute of Biophysics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic; Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic; National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Eva Sýkorová
- Institute of Biophysics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Miloslava Fojtová
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic; National Centre for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic.
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21
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Telomeres and Their Neighbors. Genes (Basel) 2022; 13:genes13091663. [PMID: 36140830 PMCID: PMC9498494 DOI: 10.3390/genes13091663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2022] [Revised: 09/08/2022] [Accepted: 09/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Telomeres are essential structures formed from satellite DNA repeats at the ends of chromosomes in most eukaryotes. Satellite DNA repeat sequences are useful markers for karyotyping, but have a more enigmatic role in the eukaryotic cell. Much work has been done to investigate the structure and arrangement of repetitive DNA elements in classical models with implications for species evolution. Still more is needed until there is a complete picture of the biological function of DNA satellite sequences, particularly when considering non-model organisms. Celebrating Gregor Mendel’s anniversary by going to the roots, this review is designed to inspire and aid new research into telomeres and satellites with a particular focus on non-model organisms and accessible experimental and in silico methods that do not require specialized equipment or expensive materials. We describe how to identify telomere (and satellite) repeats giving many examples of published (and some unpublished) data from these techniques to illustrate the principles behind the experiments. We also present advice on how to perform and analyse such experiments, including details of common pitfalls. Our examples are a selection of recent developments and underexplored areas of research from the past. As a nod to Mendel’s early work, we use many examples from plants and insects, especially as much recent work has expanded beyond the human and yeast models traditional in telomere research. We give a general introduction to the accepted knowledge of telomere and satellite systems and include references to specialized reviews for the interested reader.
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Castillo-González C, Barbero Barcenilla B, Young PG, Hall E, Shippen DE. Quantification of 8-oxoG in Plant Telomeres. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23094990. [PMID: 35563379 PMCID: PMC9102096 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23094990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2022] [Revised: 04/19/2022] [Accepted: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Chemical modifications in DNA impact gene regulation and chromatin structure. DNA oxidation, for example, alters gene expression, DNA synthesis and cell cycle progression. Modification of telomeric DNA by oxidation is emerging as a marker of genotoxic damage and is associated with reduced genome integrity and changes in telomere length and telomerase activity. 8-oxoguanine (8-oxoG) is the most studied and common outcome of oxidative damage in DNA. The G-rich nature of telomeric DNA is proposed to make it a hotspot for oxidation, but because telomeres make up only a tiny fraction of the genome, it has been difficult to directly test this hypothesis by studying dynamic DNA modifications specific to this region in vivo. Here, we present a new, robust method to differentially enrich telomeric DNA in solution, coupled with downstream methods for determination of chemical modification. Specifically, we measure 8-oxoG in Arabidopsis thaliana telomeres under normal and oxidative stress conditions. We show that telomere length is unchanged in response to oxidative stress in three different wild-type accessions. Furthermore, we report that while telomeric DNA comprises only 0.02–0.07% of the total genome, telomeres contribute between 0.2 and 15% of the total 8-oxoG. That is, plant telomeres accumulate 8-oxoG at levels approximately 100-fold higher than the rest of the genome under standard growth conditions. Moreover, they are the primary targets of further damage upon oxidative stress. Interestingly, the accumulation of 8-oxoG in the chromosome body seems to be inversely proportional to telomere length. These findings support the hypothesis that telomeres are hotspots of 8-oxoG and may function as sentinels of oxidative stress in plants.
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23
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Telomerase Interaction Partners-Insight from Plants. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 23:ijms23010368. [PMID: 35008793 PMCID: PMC8745574 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23010368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2021] [Revised: 12/26/2021] [Accepted: 12/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Telomerase, an essential enzyme that maintains chromosome ends, is important for genome integrity and organism development. Various hypotheses have been proposed in human, ciliate and yeast systems to explain the coordination of telomerase holoenzyme assembly and the timing of telomerase performance at telomeres during DNA replication or repair. However, a general model is still unclear, especially pathways connecting telomerase with proposed non-telomeric functions. To strengthen our understanding of telomerase function during its intracellular life, we report on interactions of several groups of proteins with the Arabidopsis telomerase protein subunit (AtTERT) and/or a component of telomerase holoenzyme, POT1a protein. Among these are the nucleosome assembly proteins (NAP) and the minichromosome maintenance (MCM) system, which reveal new insights into the telomerase interaction network with links to telomere chromatin assembly and replication. A targeted investigation of 176 candidate proteins demonstrated numerous interactions with nucleolar, transport and ribosomal proteins, as well as molecular chaperones, shedding light on interactions during telomerase biogenesis. We further identified protein domains responsible for binding and analyzed the subcellular localization of these interactions. Moreover, additional interaction networks of NAP proteins and the DOMINO1 protein were identified. Our data support an image of functional telomerase contacts with multiprotein complexes including chromatin remodeling and cell differentiation pathways.
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Poláková E, Albanaz ATS, Zakharova A, Novozhilova TS, Gerasimov ES, Yurchenko V. Ku80 is involved in telomere maintenance but dispensable for genomic stability in Leishmania mexicana. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2021; 15:e0010041. [PMID: 34965251 PMCID: PMC8716037 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0010041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 11/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Telomeres are indispensable for genome stability maintenance. They are maintained by the telomere-associated protein complex, which include Ku proteins and a telomerase among others. Here, we investigated a role of Ku80 in Leishmania mexicana. Leishmania is a genus of parasitic protists of the family Trypanosomatidae causing a vector-born disease called leishmaniasis. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We used the previously established CRISPR/Cas9 system to mediate ablation of Ku80- and Ku70-encoding genes in L. mexicana. Complete knock-outs of both genes were confirmed by Southern blotting, whole-genome Illumina sequencing, and RT-qPCR. Resulting telomeric phenotypes were subsequently investigated using Southern blotting detection of terminal restriction fragments. The genome integrity in the Ku80- deficient cells was further investigated by whole-genome sequencing. Our work revealed that telomeres in the ΔKu80 L. mexicana are elongated compared to those of the wild type. This is a surprising finding considering that in another model trypanosomatid, Trypanosoma brucei, they are shortened upon ablation of the same gene. A telomere elongation phenotype has been documented in other species and associated with a presence of telomerase-independent alternative telomere lengthening pathway. Our results also showed that Ku80 appears to be not involved in genome stability maintenance in L. mexicana. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE Ablation of the Ku proteins in L. mexicana triggers telomere elongation, but does not have an adverse impact on genome integrity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ester Poláková
- Life Science Research Centre, Faculty of Science, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
| | - Amanda T. S. Albanaz
- Life Science Research Centre, Faculty of Science, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
| | - Alexandra Zakharova
- Life Science Research Centre, Faculty of Science, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
| | | | - Evgeny S. Gerasimov
- Faculty of Biology, M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
- Institute for Information Transmission Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
| | - Vyacheslav Yurchenko
- Life Science Research Centre, Faculty of Science, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
- Martsinovsky Institute of Medical Parasitology, Tropical and Vector Borne Diseases, Sechenov University, Moscow, Russia
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25
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Sholes SL, Karimian K, Gershman A, Kelly TJ, Timp W, Greider CW. Chromosome-specific telomere lengths and the minimal functional telomere revealed by nanopore sequencing. Genome Res 2021; 32:616-628. [PMID: 34702734 PMCID: PMC8997346 DOI: 10.1101/gr.275868.121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
We developed a method to tag telomeres and measure telomere length by nanopore sequencing in the yeast S. cerevisiae. Nanopore allows long-read sequencing through the telomere, through the subtelomere, and into unique chromosomal sequence, enabling assignment of telomere length to a specific chromosome end. We observed chromosome end–specific telomere lengths that were stable over 120 cell divisions. These stable chromosome-specific telomere lengths may be explained by slow clonal variation or may represent a new biological mechanism that maintains equilibrium unique to each chromosome end. We examined the role of RIF1 and TEL1 in telomere length regulation and found that TEL1 is epistatic to RIF1 at most telomeres, consistent with the literature. However, at telomeres that lack subtelomeric Y′ sequences, tel1Δ rif1Δ double mutants had a very small, but significant, increase in telomere length compared with the tel1Δ single mutant, suggesting an influence of Y′ elements on telomere length regulation. We sequenced telomeres in a telomerase-null mutant (est2Δ) and found the minimal telomere length to be ∼75 bp. In these est2Δ mutants, there were apparent telomere recombination events at individual telomeres before the generation of survivors, and these events were significantly reduced in est2Δ rad52Δ double mutants. The rate of telomere shortening in the absence of telomerase was similar across all chromosome ends at ∼5 bp per generation. This new method gives quantitative, high-resolution telomere length measurement at each individual chromosome end and suggests possible new biological mechanisms regulating telomere length.
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Kato K, Kawaguchi A, Nagata K. Template activating factor-I epigenetically regulates the TERT transcription in human cancer cells. Sci Rep 2021; 11:17726. [PMID: 34489496 PMCID: PMC8421516 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-97009-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Telomere, the terminus of linear chromosome in eukaryotes, is composed of specific repeat DNA which is mainly synthesized by a protein complex called telomerase. The maintenance of telomere DNA is important for unlimited proliferative capacity of cancer cells. The telomerase activity is controlled by the expression level of telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT), a catalytic unit of telomerase, in some species including human. Therefore, to reveal the regulatory mechanisms of the transcription of TERT gene is important for understanding the tumor development. We found that template activating factor-I (TAF-I), a multifunctional nuclear protein, is involved in the transcriptional activation of TERT for the maintenance of telomere DNA in HeLa cells. TAF-I maintains the histone H3 modifications involved in transcriptional activation and hypomethylated cytosines in CpG dinucleotides around the transcription start site (TSS) in the TERT gene locus. Collectively, TAF-I is involved in the maintenance of telomere DNA through the regulation of TERT transcription, then consequently the occurrence and/or recurrence of cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kohsuke Kato
- Department of Infection Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, 305-8575, Japan.
| | - Atsushi Kawaguchi
- Department of Infection Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, 305-8575, Japan.,Transborder Medical Research Center, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.,Microbiology Research Center for Sustainability, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Kyosuke Nagata
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.
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Fajkus P, Kilar A, Nelson ADL, Holá M, Peška V, Goffová I, Fojtová M, Zachová D, Fulnečková J, Fajkus J. Evolution of plant telomerase RNAs: farther to the past, deeper to the roots. Nucleic Acids Res 2021; 49:7680-7694. [PMID: 34181710 PMCID: PMC8287931 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkab545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2021] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The enormous sequence heterogeneity of telomerase RNA (TR) subunits has thus far complicated their characterization in a wider phylogenetic range. Our recent finding that land plant TRs are, similarly to known ciliate TRs, transcribed by RNA polymerase III and under the control of the type-3 promoter, allowed us to design a novel strategy to characterize TRs in early diverging Viridiplantae taxa, as well as in ciliates and other Diaphoretickes lineages. Starting with the characterization of the upstream sequence element of the type 3 promoter that is conserved in a number of small nuclear RNAs, and the expected minimum TR template region as search features, we identified candidate TRs in selected Diaphoretickes genomes. Homologous TRs were then used to build covariance models to identify TRs in more distant species. Transcripts of the identified TRs were confirmed by transcriptomic data, RT-PCR and Northern hybridization. A templating role for one of our candidates was validated in Physcomitrium patens. Analysis of secondary structure demonstrated a deep conservation of motifs (pseudoknot and template boundary element) observed in all published TRs. These results elucidate the evolution of the earliest eukaryotic TRs, linking the common origin of TRs across Diaphoretickes, and underlying evolutionary transitions in telomere repeats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petr Fajkus
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno CZ-61265, Czech Republic.,Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno CZ-62500, Czech Republic
| | - Agata Kilar
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno CZ-62500, Czech Republic.,Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | | | - Marcela Holá
- Institute of Experimental Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague CZ-16000, Czech Republic
| | - Vratislav Peška
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno CZ-61265, Czech Republic
| | - Ivana Goffová
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno CZ-62500, Czech Republic.,Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | - Miloslava Fojtová
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno CZ-62500, Czech Republic.,Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno CZ-61137, Czech Republic
| | - Dagmar Zachová
- Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno CZ-62500, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Fulnečková
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno CZ-61265, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Fajkus
- Department of Cell Biology and Radiobiology, Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno CZ-61265, Czech Republic.,Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, CEITEC Masaryk University, Brno CZ-62500, Czech Republic.,Laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, NCBR, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno CZ-61137, Czech Republic
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Abstract
Telomeres are the ends of linear eukaryotic chromosomes facilitating the resolution of the ‘end replication and protection’ problems, associated with linearity. At the nucleotide level, telomeres typically represent stretches of tandemly arranged telomeric repeats, which vary in length and sequence among different groups of organisms. Recently, a composition of the telomere-associated protein complex has been scrutinized in Trypanosoma brucei. In this work, we subjected proteins from that list to a more detailed bioinformatic analysis and delineated a core set of 20 conserved proteins putatively associated with telomeres in trypanosomatids. Out of these, two proteins (Ku70 and Ku80) are conspicuously missing in representatives of the genus Blastocrithidia, yet telomeres in these species do not appear to be affected. In this work, based on the analysis of a large set of trypanosomatids widely different in their phylogenetic position and life strategies, we demonstrated that telomeres of trypanosomatids are diverse in length, even within groups of closely related species. Our analysis showed that the expression of two proteins predicted to be associated with telomeres (those encoding telomerase and telomere-associated hypothetical protein orthologous to Tb927.6.4330) may directly affect and account for the differences in telomere length within the species of the Leishmania mexicana complex.
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