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Whitmore LS, Tisoncik-Go J, Gale M. scPathoQuant: a tool for efficient alignment and quantification of pathogen sequence reads from 10× single cell sequencing datasets. Bioinformatics 2024; 40:btae145. [PMID: 38478395 PMCID: PMC10990681 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btae145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2023] [Revised: 02/26/2024] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024] Open
Abstract
MOTIVATION Currently there is a lack of efficient computational pipelines/tools for conducting simultaneous genome mapping of pathogen-derived and host reads from single cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq) output from pathogen-infected cells. Contemporary options include processes involving multiple steps and/or running multiple computational tools, increasing user operations time. RESULTS To address the need for new tools to directly map and quantify pathogen and host sequence reads from within an infected cell from scRNAseq datasets in a single operation, we have built a python package, called scPathoQuant. scPathoQuant extracts sequences that were not aligned to the primary host genome, maps them to a pathogen genome of interest (here as demonstrated for viral pathogens), quantifies total reads mapping to the entire pathogen, quantifies reads mapping to individual pathogen genes, and finally integrates pathogen sequence counts into matrix files that are used by standard single cell pipelines for downstream analyses with only one command. We demonstrate that scPathoQuant provides a scRNAseq viral and host genome-wide sequence read abundance analysis that can differentiate and define multiple viruses in a single sample scRNAseq output. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION The SPQ package is available software accessible at https://github.com/galelab/scPathoQuant (DOI 10.5281/zenodo.10463670) with test codes and datasets available https://github.com/galelab/Whitmore_scPathoQuant_testSets (DOI 10.5281/zenodo.10463677) to serve as a resource for the community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leanne S Whitmore
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, United States
- Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, United States
| | - Jennifer Tisoncik-Go
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, United States
- Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, United States
| | - Michael Gale
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, United States
- Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, United States
- Washington National Primate Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, United States
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2
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Tisoncik-Go J, Stokes C, Whitmore LS, Newhouse DJ, Voss K, Gustin A, Sung CJ, Smith E, Stencel-Baerenwald J, Parker E, Snyder JM, Shaw DW, Rajagopal L, Kapur RP, Waldorf KA, Gale M. Disruption of myelin structure and oligodendrocyte maturation in a pigtail macaque model of congenital Zika infection. bioRxiv 2023:2023.10.11.561759. [PMID: 37873381 PMCID: PMC10592731 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.11.561759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
Zika virus (ZikV) infection during pregnancy can cause congenital Zika syndrome (CZS) and neurodevelopmental delay in non-microcephalic infants, of which the pathogenesis remains poorly understood. We utilized an established pigtail macaque maternal-to-fetal ZikV infection/exposure model to study fetal brain pathophysiology of CZS manifesting from ZikV exposure in utero. We found prenatal ZikV exposure led to profound disruption of fetal myelin, with extensive downregulation in gene expression for key components of oligodendrocyte maturation and myelin production. Immunohistochemical analyses revealed marked decreases in myelin basic protein intensity and myelinated fiber density in ZikV-exposed animals. At the ultrastructural level, the myelin sheath in ZikV-exposed animals showed multi-focal decompaction consistent with perturbation or remodeling of previously formed myelin, occurring concomitant with dysregulation of oligodendrocyte gene expression and maturation. These findings define fetal neuropathological profiles of ZikV-linked brain injury underlying CZS resulting from ZikV exposure in utero. Because myelin is critical for cortical development, ZikV-related perturbations in oligodendrocyte function may have long-term consequences on childhood neurodevelopment, even in the absence of overt microcephaly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Tisoncik-Go
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Caleb Stokes
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Leanne S Whitmore
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Daniel J Newhouse
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Kathleen Voss
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Andrew Gustin
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Cheng-Jung Sung
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Elise Smith
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Jennifer Stencel-Baerenwald
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Edward Parker
- Department of Ophthalmology, NEI Core for Vision Research, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Jessica M Snyder
- Department of Comparative Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Dennis W Shaw
- Department of Radiology, University of Washington, Seattle Washington, USA
| | - Lakshmi Rajagopal
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Center for Global Infectious Disease Research, Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Raj P Kapur
- Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Pathology, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Kristina Adams Waldorf
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Sahlgrenska Academy, Gothenburg University, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Michael Gale
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
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3
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Viox EG, Hoang TN, Upadhyay AA, Nchioua R, Hirschenberger M, Strongin Z, Tharp GK, Pino M, Nguyen K, Harper JL, Gagne M, Marciano S, Boddapati AK, Pellegrini KL, Pradhan A, Tisoncik-Go J, Whitmore LS, Karunakaran KA, Roy M, Kirejczyk S, Curran EH, Wallace C, Wood JS, Connor-Stroud F, Voigt EA, Monaco CM, Gordon DE, Kasturi SP, Levit RD, Gale M, Vanderford TH, Silvestri G, Busman-Sahay K, Estes JD, Vaccari M, Douek DC, Sparrer KMJ, Johnson RP, Kirchhoff F, Schreiber G, Bosinger SE, Paiardini M. Modulation of type I interferon responses potently inhibits SARS-CoV-2 replication and inflammation in rhesus macaques. Sci Immunol 2023; 8:eadg0033. [PMID: 37506197 DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.adg0033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023]
Abstract
Type I interferons (IFN-I) are critical mediators of innate control of viral infections but also drive the recruitment of inflammatory cells to sites of infection, a key feature of severe coronavirus disease 2019. Here, IFN-I signaling was modulated in rhesus macaques (RMs) before and during acute SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) infection using a mutated IFN-α2 (IFN-modulator; IFNmod), which has previously been shown to reduce the binding and signaling of endogenous IFN-I. IFNmod treatment in uninfected RMs was observed to induce a modest up-regulation of only antiviral IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs); however, in SARS-CoV-2-infected RMs, IFNmod reduced both antiviral and inflammatory ISGs. IFNmod treatment resulted in a potent reduction in SARS-CoV-2 viral loads both in vitro in Calu-3 cells and in vivo in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), upper airways, lung, and hilar lymph nodes of RMs. Furthermore, in SARS-CoV-2-infected RMs, IFNmod treatment potently reduced inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and CD163+ MRC1- inflammatory macrophages in BAL and expression of Siglec-1 on circulating monocytes. In the lung, IFNmod also reduced pathogenesis and attenuated pathways of inflammasome activation and stress response during acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. Using an intervention targeting both IFN-α and IFN-β pathways, this study shows that, whereas early IFN-I restrains SARS-CoV-2 replication, uncontrolled IFN-I signaling critically contributes to SARS-CoV-2 inflammation and pathogenesis in the moderate disease model of RMs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elise G Viox
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Timothy N Hoang
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Amit A Upadhyay
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Rayhane Nchioua
- Institute of Molecular Virology, Ulm University Medical Center, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | | | - Zachary Strongin
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Gregory K Tharp
- Emory NPRC Genomics Core Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Maria Pino
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Kevin Nguyen
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Justin L Harper
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Matthew Gagne
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Shir Marciano
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Arun K Boddapati
- Emory NPRC Genomics Core Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Kathryn L Pellegrini
- Emory NPRC Genomics Core Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Arpan Pradhan
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Jennifer Tisoncik-Go
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Leanne S Whitmore
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Kirti A Karunakaran
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Melissa Roy
- Division of Pathology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | | | - Elizabeth H Curran
- Division of Pathology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Chelsea Wallace
- Division of Animal Resources, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Jennifer S Wood
- Division of Animal Resources, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Fawn Connor-Stroud
- Division of Animal Resources, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Emily A Voigt
- RNA Vaccines Group, Access to Advanced Health Institute, Seattle, WA 98102, USA
| | - Christopher M Monaco
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - David E Gordon
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Sudhir P Kasturi
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Rebecca D Levit
- Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Michael Gale
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Thomas H Vanderford
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Guido Silvestri
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Kathleen Busman-Sahay
- Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Beaverton, OR 97006, USA
| | - Jacob D Estes
- Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Beaverton, OR 97006, USA
- Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Beaverton, OR 97006, USA
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus 8000, Denmark
- School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, College of Science, Engineering and Health, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
| | - Monica Vaccari
- Division of Immunology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Covington, LA 70433, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Tulane School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Daniel C Douek
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | | | - R Paul Johnson
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Infectious Disease Division, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Frank Kirchhoff
- Institute of Molecular Virology, Ulm University Medical Center, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Gideon Schreiber
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Steven E Bosinger
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Emory NPRC Genomics Core Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Mirko Paiardini
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
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4
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Laine A, Wang X, Ni K, Smith SEB, Najjar R, Whitmore LS, Yacoub M, Bays A, Gale M, Mustelin T. Expression of Envelope Protein Encoded by Endogenous Retrovirus K102 in Rheumatoid Arthritis Neutrophils. Microorganisms 2023; 11:1310. [PMID: 37317284 PMCID: PMC10223813 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11051310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2023] [Revised: 05/13/2023] [Accepted: 05/14/2023] [Indexed: 06/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Many patients suffering from autoimmune diseases have autoantibodies against proteins encoded by genomic retroelements, suggesting that normal epigenetic silencing is insufficient to prevent the production of the encoded proteins for which immune tolerance appears to be limited. One such protein is the transmembrane envelope (Env) protein encoded by human endogenous retrovirus K (HERV-K). We reported recently that patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have IgG autoantibodies that recognize Env. Here, we use RNA sequencing of RA neutrophils to analyze HERV-K expression and find that only two loci with an intact open-reading frame for Env, HERV-K102, and K108 are expressed, but only the former is increased in RA. In contrast, other immune cells express more K108 than K102. Patient autoantibodies recognized endogenously expressed Env in breast cancer cells and in RA neutrophils but not healthy controls. A monoclonal anti-Env antibody also detected Env on the surface of RA neutrophils but very little on the surface of other immune cells. We conclude that HERV-K102 is the locus that produces Env detectable on the surface of neutrophils in RA. The low levels of HERV-K108 transcripts may contribute only marginally to cell surface Env on neutrophils or other immune cells in some patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Laine
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Xiaoxing Wang
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Kathryn Ni
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Sarah E. B. Smith
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Rayan Najjar
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Leanne S. Whitmore
- Center for Innate Immunity and Infectious Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Michael Yacoub
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Alison Bays
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Michael Gale
- Center for Innate Immunity and Infectious Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Tomas Mustelin
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Center for Innate Immunity and Infectious Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
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5
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Hoang TN, Viox EG, Upadhyay AA, Strongin Z, Tharp GK, Pino M, Nchioua R, Hirschenberger M, Gagne M, Nguyen K, Harper JL, Marciano S, Boddapati AK, Pellegrini KL, Tisoncik-Go J, Whitmore LS, Karunakaran KA, Roy M, Kirejczyk S, Curran EH, Wallace C, Wood JS, Connor-Stroud F, Kasturi SP, Levit RD, Gale M, Vanderford TH, Silvestri G, Busman-Sahay K, Estes JD, Vaccari M, Douek DC, Sparrer KM, Kirchhoff F, Johnson RP, Schreiber G, Bosinger SE, Paiardini M. Modulation of type I interferon responses potently inhibits SARS-CoV-2 replication and inflammation in rhesus macaques. bioRxiv 2022:2022.10.21.512606. [PMID: 36324810 PMCID: PMC9628196 DOI: 10.1101/2022.10.21.512606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Type-I interferons (IFN-I) are critical mediators of innate control of viral infections, but also drive recruitment of inflammatory cells to sites of infection, a key feature of severe COVID-19. Here, and for the first time, IFN-I signaling was modulated in rhesus macaques (RMs) prior to and during acute SARS-CoV-2 infection using a mutated IFNα2 (IFN-modulator; IFNmod), which has previously been shown to reduce the binding and signaling of endogenous IFN-I. In SARS-CoV-2-infected RMs, IFNmod reduced both antiviral and inflammatory ISGs. Notably, IFNmod treatment resulted in a potent reduction in (i) SARS-CoV-2 viral load in Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), upper airways, lung, and hilar lymph nodes; (ii) inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and CD163+MRC1-inflammatory macrophages in BAL; and (iii) expression of Siglec-1, which enhances SARS-CoV-2 infection and predicts disease severity, on circulating monocytes. In the lung, IFNmod also reduced pathogenesis and attenuated pathways of inflammasome activation and stress response during acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. This study, using an intervention targeting both IFN-α and IFN-β pathways, shows that excessive inflammation driven by type 1 IFN critically contributes to SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis in RMs, and demonstrates the potential of IFNmod to limit viral replication, SARS-CoV-2 induced inflammation, and COVID-19 severity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy N. Hoang
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,These authors contributed equally
| | - Elise G. Viox
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,These authors contributed equally
| | - Amit A. Upadhyay
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,These authors contributed equally
| | - Zachary Strongin
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Gregory K. Tharp
- Emory NPRC Genomics Core Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Maria Pino
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Rayhane Nchioua
- Institute of Molecular Virology, Ulm University Medical Center, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | | | - Matthew Gagne
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Kevin Nguyen
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Justin L. Harper
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Shir Marciano
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100 Israel
| | - Arun K. Boddapati
- Emory NPRC Genomics Core Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Kathryn L. Pellegrini
- Emory NPRC Genomics Core Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Jennifer Tisoncik-Go
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, and the Washington National Primate Research Center, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA
| | - Leanne S. Whitmore
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, and the Washington National Primate Research Center, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA
| | - Kirti A. Karunakaran
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Melissa Roy
- Division of Pathology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Shannon Kirejczyk
- Division of Pathology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Elizabeth H. Curran
- Division of Pathology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Chelsea Wallace
- Division of Animal Resources, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Jennifer S. Wood
- Division of Animal Resources, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Fawn Connor-Stroud
- Division of Animal Resources, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Sudhir P. Kasturi
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Rebecca D. Levit
- Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Michael Gale
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, and the Washington National Primate Research Center, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA
| | - Thomas H. Vanderford
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Guido Silvestri
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,Division of Pathology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Kathleen Busman-Sahay
- Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Beaverton, OR 97006, USA
| | - Jacob D. Estes
- Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Beaverton, OR 97006, USA,Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Beaverton, OR 97006, USA
| | - Monica Vaccari
- Division of Immunology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Covington, LA 70433, USA,Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Tulane School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Daniel C. Douek
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | | | - Frank Kirchhoff
- Institute of Molecular Virology, Ulm University Medical Center, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - R. Paul Johnson
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,Infectious Disease Division, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
| | - Gideon Schreiber
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100 Israel
| | - Steven E. Bosinger
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,Emory NPRC Genomics Core Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA,Correspondence to: (M.P; Lead Contact); (S.E.B.)
| | - Mirko Paiardini
- Division of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,Division of Pathology, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA,Correspondence to: (M.P; Lead Contact); (S.E.B.)
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6
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Olson RM, Gornalusse G, Whitmore LS, Newhouse D, Tisoncik-Go J, Smith E, Ochsenbauer C, Hladik F, Gale M. Innate immune regulation in HIV latency models. Retrovirology 2022; 19:15. [PMID: 35804422 PMCID: PMC9270781 DOI: 10.1186/s12977-022-00599-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Innate immunity and type 1 interferon (IFN) defenses are critical for early control of HIV infection within CD4 + T cells. Despite these defenses, some acutely infected cells silence viral transcription to become latently infected and form the HIV reservoir in vivo. Latently infected cells persist through antiretroviral therapy (ART) and are a major barrier to HIV cure. Here, we evaluated innate immunity and IFN responses in multiple T cell models of HIV latency, including established latent cell lines, Jurkat cells latently infected with a reporter virus, and a primary CD4 + T cell model of virologic suppression. RESULTS We found that while latently infected T cell lines have functional RNA sensing and IFN signaling pathways, they fail to induce specific interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) in response to innate immune activation or type 1 IFN treatment. Jurkat cells latently infected with a fluorescent reporter HIV similarly demonstrate attenuated responses to type 1 IFN. Using bulk and single-cell RNA sequencing we applied a functional genomics approach and define ISG expression dynamics in latent HIV infection, including HIV-infected ART-suppressed primary CD4 + T cells. CONCLUSIONS Our observations indicate that HIV latency and viral suppression each link with cell-intrinsic defects in specific ISG induction. We identify a set of ISGs for consideration as latency restriction factors whose expression and function could possibly mitigate establishing latent HIV infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca M. Olson
- grid.34477.330000000122986657Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Germán Gornalusse
- grid.270240.30000 0001 2180 1622Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA USA ,grid.34477.330000000122986657Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Leanne S. Whitmore
- grid.34477.330000000122986657Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Dan Newhouse
- grid.34477.330000000122986657Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Jennifer Tisoncik-Go
- grid.34477.330000000122986657Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Elise Smith
- grid.34477.330000000122986657Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Christina Ochsenbauer
- grid.270240.30000 0001 2180 1622Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Florian Hladik
- grid.270240.30000 0001 2180 1622Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA USA ,grid.34477.330000000122986657Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA USA ,grid.34477.330000000122986657Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Michael Gale
- grid.34477.330000000122986657Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA USA
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7
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Kong L, Saha K, Hu Y, Tschetter JN, Habben CE, Whitmore LS, Yao C, Ge X, Ye P, Newkirk SJ, An W. Subfamily-specific differential contribution of individual monomers and the tether sequence to mouse L1 promoter activity. Mob DNA 2022; 13:13. [PMID: 35443687 PMCID: PMC9022269 DOI: 10.1186/s13100-022-00269-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The internal promoter in L1 5'UTR is critical for autonomous L1 transcription and initiating retrotransposition. Unlike the human genome, which features one contemporarily active subfamily, four subfamilies (A_I, Gf_I and Tf_I/II) have been amplifying in the mouse genome in the last one million years. Moreover, mouse L1 5'UTRs are organized into tandem repeats called monomers, which are separated from ORF1 by a tether domain. In this study, we aim to compare promoter activities across young mouse L1 subfamilies and investigate the contribution of individual monomers and the tether sequence. RESULTS We observed an inverse relationship between subfamily age and the average number of monomers among evolutionarily young mouse L1 subfamilies. The youngest subgroup (A_I and Tf_I/II) on average carry 3-4 monomers in the 5'UTR. Using a single-vector dual-luciferase reporter assay, we compared promoter activities across six L1 subfamilies (A_I/II, Gf_I and Tf_I/II/III) and established their antisense promoter activities in a mouse embryonic fibroblast cell line and a mouse embryonal carcinoma cell line. Using consensus promoter sequences for three subfamilies (A_I, Gf_I and Tf_I), we dissected the differential roles of individual monomers and the tether domain in L1 promoter activity. We validated that, across multiple subfamilies, the second monomer consistently enhances the overall promoter activity. For individual promoter components, monomer 2 is consistently more active than the corresponding monomer 1 and/or the tether for each subfamily. Importantly, we revealed intricate interactions between monomer 2, monomer 1 and tether domains in a subfamily-specific manner. Furthermore, using three-monomer 5'UTRs, we established a complex nonlinear relationship between the length of the outmost monomer and the overall promoter activity. CONCLUSIONS The laboratory mouse is an important mammalian model system for human diseases as well as L1 biology. Our study extends previous findings and represents an important step toward a better understanding of the molecular mechanism controlling mouse L1 transcription as well as L1's impact on development and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lingqi Kong
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA
| | - Karabi Saha
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA
| | - Yuchi Hu
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA
| | - Jada N Tschetter
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA
| | - Chase E Habben
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA
| | - Leanne S Whitmore
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA
| | - Changfeng Yao
- Anhui University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Hefei, 230012, Anhui, China
| | - Xijin Ge
- Department of Mathematics & Statistics, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA
| | - Ping Ye
- Department of Pharmacy Practice, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA
| | - Simon J Newkirk
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA
| | - Wenfeng An
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, 57007, USA.
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8
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Nguyen B, Whitmore LS, George A, Hudson CM. Evaluating causal‐based feature selection for fuel property prediction models. Stat Anal Data Min 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/sam.11511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Leanne S. Whitmore
- Sandia National Laboratories Livermore California USA
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington Seattle Washington USA
| | - Anthe George
- Sandia National Laboratories Livermore California USA
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Marchiano S, Hsiang TY, Khanna A, Higashi T, Whitmore LS, Bargehr J, Davaapil H, Chang J, Smith E, Ong LP, Colzani M, Reinecke H, Yang X, Pabon L, Sinha S, Najafian B, Sniadecki NJ, Bertero A, Gale M, Murry CE. SARS-CoV-2 Infects Human Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes, Impairing Electrical and Mechanical Function. Stem Cell Reports 2021; 16:478-492. [PMID: 33657418 PMCID: PMC7881699 DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2021.02.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2021] [Revised: 02/08/2021] [Accepted: 02/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
COVID-19 patients often develop severe cardiovascular complications, but it remains unclear if these are caused directly by viral infection or are secondary to a systemic response. Here, we examine the cardiac tropism of SARS-CoV-2 in human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) and smooth muscle cells (hPSC-SMCs). We find that that SARS-CoV-2 selectively infects hPSC-CMs through the viral receptor ACE2, whereas in hPSC-SMCs there is minimal viral entry or replication. After entry into cardiomyocytes, SARS-CoV-2 is assembled in lysosome-like vesicles and egresses via bulk exocytosis. The viral transcripts become a large fraction of cellular mRNA while host gene expression shifts from oxidative to glycolytic metabolism and upregulates chromatin modification and RNA splicing pathways. Most importantly, viral infection of hPSC-CMs progressively impairs both their electrophysiological and contractile function, and causes widespread cell death. These data support the hypothesis that COVID-19-related cardiac symptoms can result from a direct cardiotoxic effect of SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Marchiano
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Tien-Ying Hsiang
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Akshita Khanna
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Ty Higashi
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Washington, 3720 15th Avenue NE, Seattle, WA 98105, USA
| | - Leanne S Whitmore
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Johannes Bargehr
- Wellcome - MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, Jeffrey Cheah Biomedical Centre, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, University of Cambridge, Puddicombe Way, CB2 0AW Cambridge, UK; Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Cambridge, Addenbrooke's Hospital, ACCI Level 6, Box 110, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Hongorzul Davaapil
- Wellcome - MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, Jeffrey Cheah Biomedical Centre, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, University of Cambridge, Puddicombe Way, CB2 0AW Cambridge, UK; Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Cambridge, Addenbrooke's Hospital, ACCI Level 6, Box 110, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Jean Chang
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Elise Smith
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Lay Ping Ong
- Wellcome - MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, Jeffrey Cheah Biomedical Centre, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, University of Cambridge, Puddicombe Way, CB2 0AW Cambridge, UK; Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Cambridge, Addenbrooke's Hospital, ACCI Level 6, Box 110, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Maria Colzani
- Wellcome - MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, Jeffrey Cheah Biomedical Centre, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, University of Cambridge, Puddicombe Way, CB2 0AW Cambridge, UK; Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Cambridge, Addenbrooke's Hospital, ACCI Level 6, Box 110, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Hans Reinecke
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Xiulan Yang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Lil Pabon
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Sana Biotechnology, 188 E Blaine Street, Seattle, WA 98102, USA
| | - Sanjay Sinha
- Wellcome - MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, Jeffrey Cheah Biomedical Centre, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, University of Cambridge, Puddicombe Way, CB2 0AW Cambridge, UK; Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Cambridge, Addenbrooke's Hospital, ACCI Level 6, Box 110, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Behzad Najafian
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Nathan J Sniadecki
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Washington, 3720 15th Avenue NE, Seattle, WA 98105, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, 3720 15th Avenue NE, Seattle, WA 98105, USA
| | - Alessandro Bertero
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Michael Gale
- Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, Department of Immunology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
| | - Charles E Murry
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Brotman Building, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, 850 Republican Street, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Sana Biotechnology, 188 E Blaine Street, Seattle, WA 98102, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, 3720 15th Avenue NE, Seattle, WA 98105, USA; Department of Medicine/Cardiology, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
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Whitmore LS, Nguyen B, Pinar A, George A, Hudson CM. RetSynth: determining all optimal and sub-optimal synthetic pathways that facilitate synthesis of target compounds in chassis organisms. BMC Bioinformatics 2019; 20:461. [PMID: 31500573 PMCID: PMC6734243 DOI: 10.1186/s12859-019-3025-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2019] [Accepted: 08/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The efficient biological production of industrially and economically important compounds is a challenging problem. Brute-force determination of the optimal pathways to efficient production of a target chemical in a chassis organism is computationally intractable. Many current methods provide a single solution to this problem, but fail to provide all optimal pathways, optional sub-optimal solutions or hybrid biological/non-biological solutions. Results Here we present RetSynth, software with a novel algorithm for determining all optimal biological pathways given a starting biological chassis and target chemical. By dynamically selecting constraints, the number of potential pathways scales by the number of fully independent pathways and not by the number of overall reactions or size of the metabolic network. This feature allows all optimal pathways to be determined for a large number of chemicals and for a large corpus of potential chassis organisms. Additionally, this software contains other features including the ability to collect data from metabolic repositories, perform flux balance analysis, and to view optimal pathways identified by our algorithm using a built-in visualization module. This software also identifies sub-optimal pathways and allows incorporation of non-biological chemical reactions, which may be performed after metabolic production of precursor molecules. Conclusions The novel algorithm designed for RetSynth streamlines an arduous and complex process in metabolic engineering. Our stand-alone software allows the identification of candidate optimal and additional sub-optimal pathways, and provides the user with necessary ranking criteria such as target yield to decide which route to select for target production. Furthermore, the ability to incorporate non-biological reactions into the final steps allows determination of pathways to production for targets that cannot be solely produced biologically. With this comprehensive suite of features RetSynth exceeds any open-source software or webservice currently available for identifying optimal pathways for target production. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12859-019-3025-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Bernard Nguyen
- Sandia National Laboratories, East Avenue, Livermore, 94550, USA
| | - Ali Pinar
- Sandia National Laboratories, East Avenue, Livermore, 94550, USA
| | - Anthe George
- Sandia National Laboratories, East Avenue, Livermore, 94550, USA
| | - Corey M Hudson
- Sandia National Laboratories, East Avenue, Livermore, 94550, USA.
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11
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Abstract
Metabolic pathways are increasingly postulated to be vital in programming cell fate, including stemness, differentiation, proliferation, and apoptosis. The commitment to meiosis is a critical fate decision for mammalian germ cells, and requires a metabolic derivative of vitamin A, retinoic acid (RA). Recent evidence showed that a pulse of RA is generated in the testis of male mice thereby triggering meiotic commitment. However, enzymes and reactions that regulate this RA pulse have yet to be identified. We developed a mouse germ cell-specific metabolic network with a curated vitamin A pathway. Using this network, we implemented flux balance analysis throughout the initial wave of spermatogenesis to elucidate important reactions and enzymes for the generation and degradation of RA. Our results indicate that primary RA sources in the germ cell include RA import from the extracellular region, release of RA from binding proteins, and metabolism of retinal to RA. Further, in silico knockouts of genes and reactions in the vitamin A pathway predict that deletion of Lipe, hormone-sensitive lipase, disrupts the RA pulse thereby causing spermatogenic defects. Examination of other metabolic pathways reveals that the citric acid cycle is the most active pathway. In addition, we discover that fatty acid synthesis/oxidation are the primary energy sources in the germ cell. In summary, this study predicts enzymes, reactions, and pathways important for germ cell commitment to meiosis. These findings enhance our understanding of the metabolic control of germ cell differentiation and will help guide future experiments to improve reproductive health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leanne S. Whitmore
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, PO Box 647520, Pullman, Washington, 99164, United States of America
| | - Ping Ye
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, PO Box 647520, Pullman, Washington, 99164, United States of America
- Department of Molecular and Experimental Medicine, Avera Cancer Institute, 1000 E 23rd Street, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, 57105, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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12
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Abstract
The spermatogenic cycle describes the periodic development of germ cells in the testicular tissue. The temporal-spatial dynamics of the cycle highlight the unique, complex, and interdependent interaction between germ and somatic cells, and are the key to continual sperm production. Although understanding the spermatogenic cycle has important clinical relevance for male fertility and contraception, there are a number of experimental obstacles. For example, the lengthy process cannot be visualized through dynamic imaging, and the precise action of germ cells that leads to the emergence of testicular morphology remains uncharacterized. Here, we report an agent-based model that simulates the mouse spermatogenic cycle on a cross-section of the seminiferous tubule over a time scale of hours to years, while considering feedback regulation, mitotic and meiotic division, differentiation, apoptosis, and movement. The computer model is able to elaborate the germ cell dynamics in a time-lapse movie format, allowing us to trace individual cells as they change state and location. More importantly, the model provides mechanistic understanding of the fundamentals of male fertility, namely how testicular morphology and sperm production are achieved. By manipulating cellular behaviors either individually or collectively in silico, the model predicts causal events for the altered arrangement of germ cells upon genetic or environmental perturbations. This in silico platform can serve as an interactive tool to perform long-term simulation and to identify optimal approaches for infertility treatment and contraceptive development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debjit Ray
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, PO Box 647520, Pullman, WA 99164, USA Biological Systems Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164, USA
| | - Philip B Pitts
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, PO Box 647520, Pullman, WA 99164, USA School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164, USA
| | - Cathryn A Hogarth
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, PO Box 647520, Pullman, WA 99164, USA
| | - Leanne S Whitmore
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, PO Box 647520, Pullman, WA 99164, USA
| | - Michael D Griswold
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, PO Box 647520, Pullman, WA 99164, USA
| | - Ping Ye
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, PO Box 647520, Pullman, WA 99164, USA
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