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Fernandes M, Mario de Andrade E, Reis da Silva SG, Romagnoli VDS, Ortega JM, Antônio de Oliveira Mendes T. Geneapp: A web application for visualizing alternative splicing for biomedicine. Comput Biol Med 2024; 178:108789. [PMID: 38936077 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2024.108789] [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: 10/02/2023] [Revised: 06/17/2024] [Accepted: 06/18/2024] [Indexed: 06/29/2024]
Abstract
Alternative Splicing (AS) is an essential mechanism for eukaryotes. However, the consequences of deleting a single exon can be dramatic for the organism and can lead to cancer in humans. Additionally, alternative 5' and 3' splice sites, which define the boundaries of exons, also play key roles to human disorders. Therefore, Investigating AS events is crucial for understanding the molecular basis of human diseases and developing therapeutic strategies. Workflow for AS event analysis can be sampling followed by data analysis with bioinformatics to identify the different AS events in the control and case samples, data visualization for curation, and selection of relevant targets for experimental validation. The raw output of the analysis software does not favor the inspection of events by bioinformaticians requiring custom scripts for data visualization. In this work, we propose the Geneapp application with three modules: GeneappScript, GeneappServer, and GeneappExplorer. GeneappScript is a wrapper that assists in identifying AS in samples compared in two different approaches, while GeneappServer integrates data from AS analysis already performed by the user. In GeneappExplorer, the user visualizes the previous dataset by exploring AS events in genes with functional annotation. This targeted screens that Geneapp allows to perform helps in the identification of targets for experimental validation to confirm the hypotheses under study. The Geneapp is freely available for non-commercial use at https://geneapp.net to advance research on AS for bioinformatics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miquéias Fernandes
- Postgraduation Program in Bioinformatics, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Institute of Applied Biotechnology to Agriculture (BIOAGRO), Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
| | - Edson Mario de Andrade
- Postgraduation Program in Bioinformatics, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Institute of Applied Biotechnology to Agriculture (BIOAGRO), Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Saymon Gazolla Reis da Silva
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Institute of Applied Biotechnology to Agriculture (BIOAGRO), Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Vinícius Dos Santos Romagnoli
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Institute of Applied Biotechnology to Agriculture (BIOAGRO), Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - José Miguel Ortega
- Postgraduation Program in Bioinformatics, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Tiago Antônio de Oliveira Mendes
- Postgraduation Program in Bioinformatics, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Institute of Applied Biotechnology to Agriculture (BIOAGRO), Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
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EL-Seedy A, Pellerin L, Page G, Ladeveze V. Identification of Intron Retention in the Slc16a3 Gene Transcript Encoding the Transporter MCT4 in the Brain of Aged and Alzheimer-Disease Model (APPswePS1dE9) Mice. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:1949. [PMID: 37895298 PMCID: PMC10606527 DOI: 10.3390/genes14101949] [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: 09/21/2023] [Revised: 10/12/2023] [Accepted: 10/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The monocarboxylate transporter 4 (MCT4; Slc16a3) is expressed in the central nervous system, notably by astrocytes. It is implicated in lactate release and the regulation of glycolytic flux. Whether its expression varies during normal and/or pathological aging is unclear. As the presence of its mature transcript in the brain of young and old mice was determined, an unexpectedly longer RT-PCR fragment was detected in the mouse frontal cortex and hippocampus at 12 vs. 3 months of age. Cultured astrocytes expressed the expected 516 base pair (bp) fragment but treatment with IL-1β to mimic inflammation as can occur during aging led to the additional expression of a 928 bp fragment like that seen in aged mice. In contrast, cultured pericytes (a component of the blood-brain barrier) only exhibited the 516 bp fragment. Intriguingly, cultured endothelial cells constitutively expressed both fragments. When RT-PCR was performed on brain subregions of an Alzheimer mouse model (APPswePS1dE9), no fragment was detected at 3 months, while only the 928 bp fragment was present at 12 months. Sequencing of MCT4 RT-PCR products revealed the presence of a remaining intron between exon 2 and 3, giving rise to the longer fragment detected by RT-PCR. These results unravel the existence of intron retention for the MCT4 gene in the central nervous system. Such alternative splicing appears to increase with age in the brain and might be prominent in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. Hence, further studies in vitro and in vivo of intron 2 retention in the Slc16a3 gene transcript are required for adequate characterization concerning the biological roles of Slc16a3 isoforms in the context of aging and Alzheimer's disease pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayman EL-Seedy
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Genetics, Department of Genetics, Alexandria University, Aflaton Street, El-Shatby, Alexandria 21545, Egypt;
- Neurovascular Unit and Cognitive Disorders (NEUVACOD), Faculty of Pharmacy (GP), Faculty of Fundamental and Applied Science (VL), University of Poitiers, Pôle Biologie Santé, 86073 Poitiers, France;
| | - Luc Pellerin
- IRMETIST, INSERM, Faculty of Medicine, University of Poitiers (U1313), CHU de Poitiers, 86021 Poitiers, France;
| | - Guylène Page
- Neurovascular Unit and Cognitive Disorders (NEUVACOD), Faculty of Pharmacy (GP), Faculty of Fundamental and Applied Science (VL), University of Poitiers, Pôle Biologie Santé, 86073 Poitiers, France;
| | - Veronique Ladeveze
- Neurovascular Unit and Cognitive Disorders (NEUVACOD), Faculty of Pharmacy (GP), Faculty of Fundamental and Applied Science (VL), University of Poitiers, Pôle Biologie Santé, 86073 Poitiers, France;
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Shah JS, Milevskiy MJG, Petrova V, Au AYM, Wong JJL, Visvader JE, Schmitz U, Rasko JEJ. Towards resolution of the intron retention paradox in breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res 2022; 24:100. [PMID: 36581993 PMCID: PMC9798573 DOI: 10.1186/s13058-022-01593-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND After many years of neglect in the field of alternative splicing, the importance of intron retention (IR) in cancer has come into focus following landmark discoveries of aberrant IR patterns in cancer. Many solid and liquid tumours are associated with drastic increases in IR, and such patterns have been pursued as both biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Paradoxically, breast cancer (BrCa) is the only tumour type in which IR is reduced compared to adjacent normal breast tissue. METHODS In this study, we have conducted a pan-cancer analysis of IR with emphasis on BrCa and its subtypes. We explored mechanisms that could cause aberrant and pathological IR and clarified why normal breast tissue has unusually high IR. RESULTS Strikingly, we found that aberrantly decreasing IR in BrCa can be largely attributed to normal breast tissue having the highest occurrence of IR events compared to other healthy tissues. Our analyses suggest that low numbers of IR events in breast tumours are associated with poor prognosis, particularly in the luminal B subtype. Interestingly, we found that IR frequencies negatively correlate with cell proliferation in BrCa cells, i.e. rapidly dividing tumour cells have the lowest number of IR events. Aberrant RNA-binding protein expression and changes in tissue composition are among the causes of aberrantly decreasing IR in BrCa. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that IR should be considered for therapeutic manipulation in BrCa patients with aberrantly low IR levels and that further work is needed to understand the cause and impact of high IR in other tumour types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaynish S. Shah
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XComputational BioMedicine Laboratory Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XGene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Locked Bag No. 6, Newtown, NSW 2042 Australia ,grid.1002.30000 0004 1936 7857Australian Centre for Blood Diseases, Central Clinical School, Monash University and Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC Australia
| | - Michael J. G. Milevskiy
- grid.1042.70000 0004 0432 4889ACRF Cancer Biology and Stem Cells Division, The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Parkville, VIC 3052 Australia ,grid.1008.90000 0001 2179 088XDepartment of Medical Biology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010 Australia
| | - Veronika Petrova
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XComputational BioMedicine Laboratory Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XGene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Locked Bag No. 6, Newtown, NSW 2042 Australia
| | - Amy Y. M. Au
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XGene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Locked Bag No. 6, Newtown, NSW 2042 Australia
| | - Justin J. L. Wong
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XEpigenetics and RNA Biology Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, 2050 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XFaculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia
| | - Jane E. Visvader
- grid.1042.70000 0004 0432 4889ACRF Cancer Biology and Stem Cells Division, The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Parkville, VIC 3052 Australia ,grid.1008.90000 0001 2179 088XDepartment of Medical Biology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010 Australia
| | - Ulf Schmitz
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XComputational BioMedicine Laboratory Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia ,grid.1011.10000 0004 0474 1797Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, 1 James Cook Drive, Townsville, QLD 4811 Australia ,grid.1011.10000 0004 0474 1797Centre for Tropical Bioinformatics and Molecular Biology, Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Cairns, 4878 Australia
| | - John E. J. Rasko
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XGene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Locked Bag No. 6, Newtown, NSW 2042 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XFaculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia ,grid.413249.90000 0004 0385 0051Cell and Molecular Therapies, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, Australia
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Georgakopoulos A, Kalampaliki AD, Gioti K, Hamdoun S, Giannopoulou AF, Efferth T, Stravopodis DJ, Tenta R, Marakos P, Pouli N, Kostakis IK. Synthesis of novel xanthone and acridone carboxamides with potent antiproliferative activities. ARAB J CHEM 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.arabjc.2020.09.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
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Monteuuis G, Schmitz U, Petrova V, Kearney PS, Rasko JEJ. Holding on to Junk Bonds: Intron Retention in Cancer and Therapy. Cancer Res 2020; 81:779-789. [PMID: 33046441 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-20-1943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2020] [Revised: 09/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Intron retention (IR) in cancer was for a long time overlooked by the scientific community, as it was previously considered to be an artifact of a dysfunctional spliceosome. Technological advancements made in the last decade offer unique opportunities to explore the role of IR as a widespread phenomenon that contributes to the transcriptional diversity of many cancers. Numerous studies in cancer have shed light on dysregulation of cellular mechanisms that lead to aberrant and pathologic IR. IR is not merely a mechanism of gene regulation, but rather it can mediate cancer pathogenesis and therapeutic resistance in various human diseases. The burden of IR in cancer is governed by perturbations to mechanisms known to regulate this phenomenon and include epigenetic variation, mutations within the gene body, and splicing factor dysregulation. This review summarizes possible causes for aberrant IR and discusses the role of IR in therapy or as a consequence of disease treatment. As neoepitopes originating from retained introns can be presented on the cancer cell surface, the development of personalized cancer vaccines based on IR-derived neoepitopes should be considered. Ultimately, a deeper comprehension about the origins and consequences of aberrant IR may aid in the development of such personalized cancer vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Geoffray Monteuuis
- Gene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Ulf Schmitz
- Gene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Computational BioMedicine Laboratory Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Veronika Petrova
- Gene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Computational BioMedicine Laboratory Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Padraic S Kearney
- Gene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - John E J Rasko
- Gene and Stem Cell Therapy Program Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia. .,Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Cell and Molecular Therapies, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, Australia
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Böhme I, Schönherr R, Eberle J, Bosserhoff AK. Membrane Transporters and Channels in Melanoma. Rev Physiol Biochem Pharmacol 2020; 181:269-374. [PMID: 32737752 DOI: 10.1007/112_2020_17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Recent research has revealed that ion channels and transporters can be important players in tumor development, progression, and therapy resistance in melanoma. For example, members of the ABC family were shown to support cancer stemness-like features in melanoma cells, while several members of the TRP channel family were reported to act as tumor suppressors.Also, many transporter proteins support tumor cell viability and thus suppress apoptosis induction by anticancer therapy. Due to the high number of ion channels and transporters and the resulting high complexity of the field, progress in understanding is often focused on single molecules and is in total rather slow. In this review, we aim at giving an overview about a broad subset of ion transporters, also illustrating some aspects of the field, which have not been addressed in detail in melanoma. In context with the other chapters in this special issue on "Transportome Malfunctions in the Cancer Spectrum," a comparison between melanoma and these tumors will be possible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ines Böhme
- Institute of Biochemistry, Emil Fischer Center, Friedrich-Alexander-University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Roland Schönherr
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Friedrich Schiller University Jena and Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
| | - Jürgen Eberle
- Department of Dermatology, Venerology and Allergology, Skin Cancer Center Charité, University Medical Center Charité, Berlin, Germany
| | - Anja Katrin Bosserhoff
- Institute of Biochemistry, Emil Fischer Center, Friedrich-Alexander-University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany. .,Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC) Erlangen-EMN, Erlangen, Germany.
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Neagu M, Constantin C, Cretoiu SM, Zurac S. miRNAs in the Diagnosis and Prognosis of Skin Cancer. Front Cell Dev Biol 2020; 8:71. [PMID: 32185171 PMCID: PMC7058916 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2020.00071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2019] [Accepted: 01/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Skin cancer is, at present, the most common type of malignancy in the Caucasian population. Its incidence has increased rapidly in the last decade for both melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer. Differential expression profiles of microRNAs (miRNAs) have been reported for a variety of different cancers, including skin cancers. Since miRNAs’ discovery as regulators of gene expression, their importance grew in the field of oncology. miRNAs can post-transcriptionally regulate gene expression, tumor initiation, development progression, and aggressiveness. Nowadays, these short regulatory RNAs are perceived as one of the epigenetic markers for the identification of new diagnostic and/or prognostic molecular markers. Moreover, as miRNAs can drive tumorigenesis, they might eventually represent new therapy targets. Some miRNAs are pleiotropic, such as miR-214, which was found deregulated in several other tumors besides skin cancers. Some others are specific for one or more skin cancer types, like miR-21 and miR-221 for cutaneous melanoma and cutaneous squamous carcinoma or miR-155 for melanoma and cutaneous lymphoma. The goal of this review was to summarize some of the main miRNA detection technologies that are used to evaluate miRNAs in tissues and body fluids. Furthermore, their quantification limits, conformity, and robustness are discussed. Aberrant miRNA expression is analyzed for cutaneous melanoma, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC), skin lymphomas, cutaneous lymphoma, and Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC). In this type of disease, miRNAs are described as potential biomarkers to diagnose early lesion and/or early metastatic disease. In the future, whether in tissue or circulating in body fluids, miRNAs will gain their place in skin cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and future therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monica Neagu
- Immunology Laboratory, "Victor Babeş" National Institute of Pathology, Bucharest, Romania.,Doctoral School, Faculty of Biology, University of Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania.,Department of Pathology, Colentina Clinical Hospital, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Carolina Constantin
- Immunology Laboratory, "Victor Babeş" National Institute of Pathology, Bucharest, Romania.,Department of Pathology, Colentina Clinical Hospital, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Sanda Maria Cretoiu
- Division of Cell and Molecular Biology and Histology, "Carol Davila" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Sabina Zurac
- Department of Pathology, Colentina Clinical Hospital, Bucharest, Romania.,Department of Pathology, Faculty of Dental Medicine, "Carol Davila" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania
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Broseus L, Ritchie W. Challenges in detecting and quantifying intron retention from next generation sequencing data. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2020; 18:501-508. [PMID: 32206209 PMCID: PMC7078297 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2020.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Revised: 11/29/2019] [Accepted: 02/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Intron retention (IR) occurs when an intron is transcribed into pre-mRNA and remains in the final mRNA. An increasing body of literature has demonstrated a major role for IR in numerous biological functions and in disease. Here we give an overview of the different computational approaches for detecting IR events from sequencing data. We show that these are based on different biological and computational assumptions that may lead to dramatically different results. We describe the various approaches for mitigating errors in detecting intron retention and for discovering IR signatures between different conditions.
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