1
|
Hussein R, Abou-Shanab AM, Badr E. A multi-omics approach for biomarker discovery in neuroblastoma: a network-based framework. NPJ Syst Biol Appl 2024; 10:52. [PMID: 38760476 PMCID: PMC11101461 DOI: 10.1038/s41540-024-00371-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2023] [Accepted: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Neuroblastoma (NB) is one of the leading causes of cancer-associated death in children. MYCN amplification is a prominent genetic marker for NB, and its targeting to halt NB progression is difficult to achieve. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of the molecular interactome of NB is needed to improve treatment outcomes. Analysis of NB multi-omics unravels valuable insight into the interplay between MYCN transcriptional and miRNA post-transcriptional modulation. Moreover, it aids in the identification of various miRNAs that participate in NB development and progression. This study proposes an integrated computational framework with three levels of high-throughput NB data (mRNA-seq, miRNA-seq, and methylation array). Similarity Network Fusion (SNF) and ranked SNF methods were utilized to identify essential genes and miRNAs. The specified genes included both miRNA-target genes and transcription factors (TFs). The interactions between TFs and miRNAs and between miRNAs and their target genes were retrieved where a regulatory network was developed. Finally, an interaction network-based analysis was performed to identify candidate biomarkers. The candidate biomarkers were further analyzed for their potential use in prognosis and diagnosis. The candidate biomarkers included three TFs and seven miRNAs. Four biomarkers have been previously studied and tested in NB, while the remaining identified biomarkers have known roles in other types of cancer. Although the specific molecular role is yet to be addressed, most identified biomarkers possess evidence of involvement in NB tumorigenesis. Analyzing cellular interactome to identify potential biomarkers is a promising approach that can contribute to optimizing efficient therapeutic regimens to target NB vulnerabilities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rahma Hussein
- Biomedical Sciences Program, University of Science and Technology, Zewail City of Science and Technology, Giza, 12578, Egypt
| | - Ahmed M Abou-Shanab
- Biomedical Sciences Program, University of Science and Technology, Zewail City of Science and Technology, Giza, 12578, Egypt
| | - Eman Badr
- Biomedical Sciences Program, University of Science and Technology, Zewail City of Science and Technology, Giza, 12578, Egypt.
- Faculty of Computers and Artificial Intelligence, Cairo University, Giza, 12613, Egypt.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Skardžiūtė K, Kvederavičiūtė K, Pečiulienė I, Narmontė M, Gibas P, Ličytė J, Klimašauskas S, Kriukienė E. One-pot trimodal mapping of unmethylated, hydroxymethylated, and open chromatin sites unveils distinctive 5hmC roles at dynamic chromatin loci. Cell Chem Biol 2024; 31:607-621.e9. [PMID: 38154461 PMCID: PMC10962225 DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2023.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 12/30/2023]
Abstract
We present a method, named Mx-TOP, for profiling of three epigenetic regulatory layers-chromatin accessibility, general DNA modification, and DNA hydroxymethylation-from a single library. The approach is based on chemo-enzymatic covalent tagging of unmodified CG sites and hydroxymethylated cytosine (5hmC) along with GC sites in chromatin, which are then mapped using tag-selective base-resolution TOP-seq sequencing. Our in-depth validation of the approach revealed its sensitivity and informativity in evaluating chromatin accessibility and DNA modification interactions that drive transcriptional regulation. We employed the technology in a study of chromatin and DNA demethylation dynamics during in vitro neuronal differentiation. The study highlighted the involvement of gene body 5hmC in modulating an extensive decoupling between promoter accessibility and transcription. The importance of 5hmC in chromatin remodeling was further demonstrated by the observed resistance of the developmentally acquired open loci to the global 5hmC erasure in neuronal progenitors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kotryna Skardžiūtė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Kotryna Kvederavičiūtė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Inga Pečiulienė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Milda Narmontė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Povilas Gibas
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Janina Ličytė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Saulius Klimašauskas
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Edita Kriukienė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Kriukienė E, Tomkuvienė M, Klimašauskas S. 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine: the many faces of the sixth base of mammalian DNA. Chem Soc Rev 2024; 53:2264-2283. [PMID: 38205583 DOI: 10.1039/d3cs00858d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Epigenetic phenomena play a central role in cell regulatory processes and are important factors for understanding complex human disease. One of the best understood epigenetic mechanisms is DNA methylation. In the mammalian genome, cytosines (C) in CpG dinucleotides were long known to undergo methylation at the 5-position of the pyrimidine ring (mC). Later it was found that mC can be oxidized to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (hmC) or even further to 5-formylcytosine (fC) and to 5-carboxylcytosine (caC) by the action of 2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenases of the TET family. These findings unveiled a long elusive mechanism of active DNA demethylation and bolstered a wave of studies in the area of epigenetic regulation in mammals. This review is dedicated to critical assessment of recent data on biochemical and chemical aspects of the formation and conversion of hmC in DNA, analytical techniques used for detection and mapping of this nucleobase in mammalian genomes as well as epigenetic roles of hmC in DNA replication, transcription, cell differentiation and human disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Edita Kriukienė
- Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio al. 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania.
| | - Miglė Tomkuvienė
- Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio al. 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania.
| | - Saulius Klimašauskas
- Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio al. 7, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Vilkaitis G, Masevičius V, Kriukienė E, Klimašauskas S. Chemical Expansion of the Methyltransferase Reaction: Tools for DNA Labeling and Epigenome Analysis. Acc Chem Res 2023; 56:3188-3197. [PMID: 37904501 PMCID: PMC10666283 DOI: 10.1021/acs.accounts.3c00471] [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: 08/09/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 10/19/2023] [Indexed: 11/01/2023]
Abstract
DNA is the genetic matter of life composed of four major nucleotides which can be further furnished with biologically important covalent modifications. Among the variety of enzymes involved in DNA metabolism, AdoMet-dependent methyltransferases (MTases) combine the recognition of specific sequences and covalent methylation of a target nucleotide. The naturally transferred methyl groups play important roles in biological signaling, but they are poor physical reporters and largely resistant to chemical derivatization. Therefore, an obvious strategy to unlock the practical utility of the methyltransferase reactions is to enable the transfer of "prederivatized" (extended) versions of the methyl group.However, previous enzymatic studies of extended AdoMet analogs indicated that the transalkylation reactions are drastically impaired as the size of the carbon chain increases. In collaborative efforts, we proposed that, akin to enhanced SN2 reactivity of allylic and propargylic systems, addition of a π orbital next to the transferable carbon atom might confer the needed activation of the reaction. Indeed, we found that MTase-catalyzed transalkylations of DNA with cofactors containing a double or a triple C-C bond in the β position occurred in a robust and sequence-specific manner. Altogether, this breakthrough approach named mTAG (methyltransferase-directed transfer of activated groups) has proven instrumental for targeted labeling of DNA and other types of biomolecules (using appropriate MTases) including RNA and proteins.Our further work focused on the propargylic cofactors and their reactions with DNA cytosine-5 MTases, a class of MTases common for both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Here, we learned that the 4-X-but-2-yn-1-yl (X = polar group) cofactors suffered from a rapid loss of activity in aqueous buffers due to susceptibility of the triple bond to hydration. This problem was remedied by synthetically increasing the separation between X and the triple bond from one to three carbon units (6-X-hex-2-ynyl cofactors). To further optimize the transfer of the bulkier groups, we performed structure-guided engineering of the MTase cofactor pocket. Alanine replacements of two conserved residues conferred substantial improvements of the transalkylation activity with M.HhaI and three other engineered bacterial C5-MTases. Of particular interest were CpG-specific DNA MTases (M.SssI), which proved valuable tools for studies of mammalian methylomes and chemical probing of DNA function.Inspired by the successful repurposing of bacterial enzymes, we turned to more complex mammalian C5-MTases (Dnmt1, Dnmt3A, and Dnmt3B) and asked if they could ultimately lead to mTAG labeling inside mammalian cells. Our efforts to engineer mouse Dnmt1 produced a variant (Dnmt1*) that enabled efficient Dnmt1-directed deposition of 6-azide-hexynyl groups on DNA in vitro. CRISPR-Cas9 editing of the corresponding codons in the genomic Dnmt1 alleles established endogenous expression of Dnmt1* in mouse embryonic stem cells. To circumvent the poor cellular uptake of AdoMet and its analogs, we elaborated their efficient internalization by electroporation, which has finally enabled selective catalysis-dependent azide tagging of natural Dnmt1 targets in live mammalian cells. The deposited chemical groups were then exploited as "click" handles for reading adjoining sequences and precise genomic mapping of the methylation sites. These findings offer unprecedented inroads into studies of DNA methylation in a wide range of eukaryotic model systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Giedrius Vilkaitis
- Institute
of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Viktoras Masevičius
- Institute
of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
- Institute
of Chemistry, Department of Chemistry and Geosciences, Vilnius University, LT-03225 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Edita Kriukienė
- Institute
of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Saulius Klimašauskas
- Institute
of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, LT-10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Ličytė J, Kvederavičiūtė K, Rukšėnaitė A, Godliauskaitė E, Gibas P, Tomkutė V, Petraitytė G, Masevičius V, Klimašauskas S, Kriukienė E. Distribution and regulatory roles of oxidized 5-methylcytosines in DNA and RNA of the basidiomycete fungi Laccaria bicolor and Coprinopsis cinerea. Open Biol 2022; 12:210302. [PMID: 35232254 PMCID: PMC8889193 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.210302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The formation of three oxidative DNA 5-methylcytosine (5mC) modifications (oxi-mCs)-5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC), 5-formylcytosine (5fC) and 5-carboxylcytosine (5caC)-by the TET/JBP family of dioxygenases prompted intensive studies of their functional roles in mammalian cells. However, the functional interplay of these less abundant modified nucleotides in other eukaryotic lineages remains poorly understood. We carried out a systematic study of the content and distribution of oxi-mCs in the DNA and RNA of the basidiomycetes Laccaria bicolor and Coprinopsis cinerea, which are established models to study DNA methylation and developmental and symbiotic processes. Quantitative liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry revealed persistent but uneven occurrences of 5hmC, 5fC and 5caC in the DNA and RNA of the two organisms, which could be upregulated by vitamin C. 5caC in RNA (5carC) was predominantly found in non-ribosomal RNA, which potentially includes non-coding, messenger and small RNA species. Genome-wide mapping of 5hmC and 5fC using the single CG analysis techniques hmTOP-seq and foTOP-seq pointed at involvement of oxi-mCs in the regulation of gene expression and silencing of transposable elements. The implicated diverse roles of 5mC and oxi-mCs in the two fungi highlight the epigenetic importance of the latter modifications, which are often neglected in standard whole-genome bisulfite analyses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Janina Ličytė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Kotryna Kvederavičiūtė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Audronė Rukšėnaitė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Eglė Godliauskaitė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Povilas Gibas
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Vita Tomkutė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Gražina Petraitytė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Viktoras Masevičius
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Saulius Klimašauskas
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| | - Edita Kriukienė
- Department of Biological DNA Modification, Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio av. 7, Vilnius 10257, Lithuania
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
DNA Labeling Using DNA Methyltransferases. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2022; 1389:535-562. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-11454-0_19] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
|