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Mposhi A, Liang L, Mennega KP, Yildiz D, Kampert C, Hof IH, Jellema PG, de Koning TJ, Faber KN, Ruiters MHJ, Niezen-Koning KE, Rots MG. The Mitochondrial Epigenome: An Unexplored Avenue to Explain Unexplained Myopathies? Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23042197. [PMID: 35216315 PMCID: PMC8879787 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23042197] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Mutations in either mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) or nuclear genes that encode mitochondrial proteins may lead to dysfunctional mitochondria, giving rise to mitochondrial diseases. Some mitochondrial myopathies, however, present without a known underlying cause. Interestingly, methylation of mtDNA has been associated with various clinical pathologies. The present study set out to assess whether mtDNA methylation could explain impaired mitochondrial function in patients diagnosed with myopathy without known underlying genetic mutations. Enhanced mtDNA methylation was indicated by pyrosequencing for muscle biopsies of 14 myopathy patients compared to four healthy controls, at selected cytosines in the Cytochrome B (CYTB) gene, but not within the displacement loop (D-loop) region. The mtDNA methylation patterns of the four healthy muscle biopsies were highly consistent and showed intriguing tissue-specific differences at particular cytosines with control skin fibroblasts cultured in vitro. Within individual myopathy patients, the overall mtDNA methylation pattern correlated well between muscle and skin fibroblasts. Despite this correlation, a pilot analysis of four myopathy and five healthy fibroblast samples did not reveal a disease-associated difference in mtDNA methylation. We did, however, detect increased expression of solute carrier family 25A26 (SLC25A26), encoding the importer of S-adenosylmethionine, together with enhanced mtDNA copy numbers in myopathy fibroblasts compared to healthy controls. To confirm that pyrosequencing indeed reflected DNA methylation and not bisulfite accessibility, mass spectrometry was employed. Although no myopathy-related differences in total amount of methylated cytosines were detected at this stage, a significant contribution of contaminating nuclear DNA (nDNA) was revealed, and steps to improve enrichment for mtDNA are reported. In conclusion, in this explorative study we show that analyzing the mitochondrial genome beyond its sequence opens novel avenues to identify potential molecular biomarkers assisting in the diagnosis of unexplained myopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Archibold Mposhi
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (A.M.); (L.L.); (K.P.M.); (P.G.J.); (M.H.J.R.)
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands;
| | - Lin Liang
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (A.M.); (L.L.); (K.P.M.); (P.G.J.); (M.H.J.R.)
| | - Kevin P. Mennega
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (A.M.); (L.L.); (K.P.M.); (P.G.J.); (M.H.J.R.)
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Laboratory of Metabolic Diseases, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (D.Y.); (C.K.); (I.H.H.); (K.E.N.-K.)
| | - Dilemin Yildiz
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Laboratory of Metabolic Diseases, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (D.Y.); (C.K.); (I.H.H.); (K.E.N.-K.)
| | - Crista Kampert
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Laboratory of Metabolic Diseases, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (D.Y.); (C.K.); (I.H.H.); (K.E.N.-K.)
| | - Ingrid H. Hof
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Laboratory of Metabolic Diseases, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (D.Y.); (C.K.); (I.H.H.); (K.E.N.-K.)
| | - Pytrick G. Jellema
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (A.M.); (L.L.); (K.P.M.); (P.G.J.); (M.H.J.R.)
| | - Tom J. de Koning
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, 9713 AV Groningen, The Netherlands;
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lasarettgatan 40, 221 85 Lund, Sweden
| | - Klaas Nico Faber
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands;
| | - Marcel H. J. Ruiters
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (A.M.); (L.L.); (K.P.M.); (P.G.J.); (M.H.J.R.)
| | - Klary E. Niezen-Koning
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Laboratory of Metabolic Diseases, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (D.Y.); (C.K.); (I.H.H.); (K.E.N.-K.)
| | - Marianne G. Rots
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (A.M.); (L.L.); (K.P.M.); (P.G.J.); (M.H.J.R.)
- Correspondence:
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Gjaltema RAF, Goubert D, Huisman C, del Pilar García Tobilla C, Koncz M, Jellema PG, Wu D, Brouwer U, Kiss A, Verschure PJ, Bank RA, Rots MG. KRAB-Induced Heterochromatin Effectively Silences PLOD2 Gene Expression in Somatic Cells and is Resilient to TGFβ1 Activation. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21103634. [PMID: 32455614 PMCID: PMC7279273 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21103634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2019] [Revised: 05/03/2020] [Accepted: 05/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Epigenetic editing, an emerging technique used for the modulation of gene expression in mammalian cells, is a promising strategy to correct disease-related gene expression. Although epigenetic reprogramming results in sustained transcriptional modulation in several in vivo models, further studies are needed to develop this approach into a straightforward technology for effective and specific interventions. Important goals of current research efforts are understanding the context-dependency of successful epigenetic editing and finding the most effective epigenetic effector(s) for specific tasks. Here we tested whether the fibrosis- and cancer-associated PLOD2 gene can be repressed by the DNA methyltransferase M.SssI, or by the non-catalytic Krüppel associated box (KRAB) repressor directed to the PLOD2 promoter via zinc finger- or CRISPR-dCas9-mediated targeting. M.SssI fusions induced de novo DNA methylation, changed histone modifications in a context-dependent manner, and led to 50%–70% reduction in PLOD2 expression in fibrotic fibroblasts and in MDA-MB-231 cancer cells. Targeting KRAB to PLOD2 resulted in the deposition of repressive histone modifications without DNA methylation and in almost complete PLOD2 silencing. Interestingly, both long-term TGFβ1-induced, as well as unstimulated PLOD2 expression, was completely repressed by KRAB, while M.SssI only prevented the TGFβ1-induced PLOD2 expression. Targeting transiently expressed dCas9-KRAB resulted in sustained PLOD2 repression in HEK293T and MCF-7 cells. Together, these findings point to KRAB outperforming DNA methylation as a small potent targeting epigenetic effector for silencing TGFβ1-induced and uninduced PLOD2 expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rutger A. F. Gjaltema
- Epigenetic Editing Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1 EA11, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (R.A.F.G.); (D.G.); (C.H.); (C.d.P.G.T.); (P.G.J.); (D.W.); (U.B.)
- MATRIX Research Group, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands;
| | - Désirée Goubert
- Epigenetic Editing Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1 EA11, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (R.A.F.G.); (D.G.); (C.H.); (C.d.P.G.T.); (P.G.J.); (D.W.); (U.B.)
| | - Christian Huisman
- Epigenetic Editing Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1 EA11, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (R.A.F.G.); (D.G.); (C.H.); (C.d.P.G.T.); (P.G.J.); (D.W.); (U.B.)
| | - Consuelo del Pilar García Tobilla
- Epigenetic Editing Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1 EA11, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (R.A.F.G.); (D.G.); (C.H.); (C.d.P.G.T.); (P.G.J.); (D.W.); (U.B.)
| | - Mihály Koncz
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biological Research Centre, H-6726 Szeged, Hungary; (M.K.); (A.K.)
- Doctoral School of Biology, Faculty of Science and Informatics, University of Szeged, H-6726 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Pytrick G. Jellema
- Epigenetic Editing Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1 EA11, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (R.A.F.G.); (D.G.); (C.H.); (C.d.P.G.T.); (P.G.J.); (D.W.); (U.B.)
- MATRIX Research Group, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands;
| | - Dandan Wu
- Epigenetic Editing Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1 EA11, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (R.A.F.G.); (D.G.); (C.H.); (C.d.P.G.T.); (P.G.J.); (D.W.); (U.B.)
| | - Uilke Brouwer
- Epigenetic Editing Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1 EA11, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (R.A.F.G.); (D.G.); (C.H.); (C.d.P.G.T.); (P.G.J.); (D.W.); (U.B.)
- MATRIX Research Group, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands;
| | - Antal Kiss
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biological Research Centre, H-6726 Szeged, Hungary; (M.K.); (A.K.)
| | - Pernette J. Verschure
- Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam, The Netherlands;
| | - Ruud A. Bank
- MATRIX Research Group, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands;
| | - Marianne G. Rots
- Epigenetic Editing Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1 EA11, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands; (R.A.F.G.); (D.G.); (C.H.); (C.d.P.G.T.); (P.G.J.); (D.W.); (U.B.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +31-50-3610153
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Dekkema GJ, Bijma T, Jellema PG, Van Den Berg A, Kroesen BJ, Stegeman CA, Heeringa P, Abdulahad WH, Sanders JS. Increased miR-142-3p Expression Might Explain Reduced Regulatory T Cell Function in Granulomatosis With Polyangiitis. Front Immunol 2019; 10:2170. [PMID: 31572380 PMCID: PMC6751284 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.02170] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2019] [Accepted: 08/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives: Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are frequently functionally impaired in patients with granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA). However, the mechanism underlying their impaired function is unknown. Here, we hypothesized that Treg dysfunction in GPA is due to altered microRNA (miRNA) expression. Methods: RNA isolated from FACS-sorted memory (M) Tregs (CD4+CD45RO+CD25+CD127-) of 8 healthy controls (HCs) and 8 GPA patients without treatment was subjected to miRNA microarray analysis. Five differentially expressed miRNAs were validated in a larger cohort by reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). An miRNA target gene database search revealed targets that were tested with RT-qPCR in MTregs from patients and HCs. cAMP levels were measured using flow cytometry. Results: Microarray analysis revealed 19 differentially expressed miRNAs, of which miR-142-3p was confirmed to be significantly upregulated in MTregs from GPA patients compared to those from HCs (1.9-fold, p = 0.03). In vitro overexpression of miR-142-3p lowered the suppressive capacity of MTregs (2.1-fold, p = 0.03), and miR-142-3p expression correlated negatively with the suppressive capacity (rho = -0.446, p = 0.04). Overexpression of miR-142-3p significantly decreased cAMP levels (p = 0.02) and tended to decrease the mRNA levels of a predicted target gene, adenylate cyclase 9 (ADCY9; p = 0.06). In comparison to those from HCs, MTregs from GPA patients had lower ADCY9 mRNA levels (2-fold, p = 0.008) and produced significantly less cAMP after stimulation. Importantly, induction of cAMP production in miR-142-3p overexpressed MTregs by forskolin restored their suppressive function in vitro. Conclusion: Overexpression of miR-142-3p in MTregs from GPA patients might cause functional impairment by targeting ADCY9, which leads to the suppression of cAMP production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerjan J Dekkema
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Theo Bijma
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.,Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Nephrology, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Pytrick G Jellema
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Anke Van Den Berg
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Bart-Jan Kroesen
- Medical Immunology Laboratory, Department of Laboratory Medicine, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Coen A Stegeman
- Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Nephrology, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Peter Heeringa
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Wayel H Abdulahad
- Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.,Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Jan-Stephan Sanders
- Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Nephrology, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
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