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N6-methyladenosine RNA base modification regulates NKG2D-dependent and cytotoxic genes expression in natural killer cells.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer (BC) is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most prevalent internal modification in mammalian mRNAs and plays a crucial role in various biological processes. However, its function in Natural killer (NK) cells in BC remains unclear. NK cells are essential for cancer immunosurveillance. This study aims to assess m6A levels in transcripts involved in the NKG2D cytotoxicity signaling pathway in NK cells of BC patients compared to controls and find out its impact on mRNA levels. Additionally, it evaluates how deliberately altering m6A levels in NK cells affects mRNA and protein expression of NKG2D pathway genes and NK cell functionality. METHODS: m6A methylation in transcripts of NKG2D-pathway-related genes in BC patients and controls was determined using methylated RNA immunoprecipitation-reverse transcription-PCR (MERIP-RT-PCR). To deliberately alter m6A levels in primary cultured human NK cells, the m6A demethylases, FTO and ALKBH5, were knocked out using the CRISPR-CAS9 system, and FTO was inhibited using Meclofenamic acid (MA). The impact of m6A alteration on corresponding mRNA and protein levels was assessed using RT-qPCR and Western blot analysis or flow cytometry, respectively. Additionally, NK cell functionality was evaluated through degranulation and 51Cr release cytotoxicity assays. RESULTS: Transcripts of NKG2D, an activating receptor that detects stressed non-self tumour cells, had significantly higher m6A levels in the 3' untranslated region (3'UTR) accompanied by a marked reduction in their corresponding mRNA levels in BC patients compared to controls. Conversely, transcripts of ERK2 and PRF1 exhibited significantly lower m6A levels escorted with higher mRNA expression in BC patients relative to controls. The mRNA levels of PI3K, PAK1 and GZMH were also significantly elevated in BC patients. Furthermore, artificially increasing transcripts' m6A levels via MA in cultured primary NK cells reduced mRNA levels of NKG2D pathway genes and death receptor ligands but did not affect protein expression or NK cell functionality. CONCLUSION: Transcripts with higher m6A levels in the 3'UTR region were less abundant, and vice versa. However, changes in mRNA levels of the target genes didn't impact their corresponding protein levels or NK cell functionality.

Humans↗

IRP1 Ser-711 is a phosphorylation site, critical for regulation of RNA-binding and aconitase activities.

In iron-starved cells, IRP1 (iron regulatory protein 1) binds to mRNA iron-responsive elements and controls their translation or stability. In response to increased iron levels, RNA-binding is inhibited on assembly of a cubane [4Fe-4S] cluster, which renders IRP1 to a cytosolic aconitase. Phosphorylation at conserved serine residues may also regulate the activities of IRP1. We demonstrate that Ser-711 is a phosphorylation site in HEK-293 cells (human embryonic kidney 293 cells) treated with PMA, and we study the effects of the S711E (Ser-711-->Glu) mutation on IRP1 functions. A highly purified preparation of recombinant IRP1(S711E) displays negligible IRE-binding and aconitase activities. It appears that the first step in the aconitase reaction (conversion of citrate into the intermediate cis-aconitate) is more severely affected, as recombinant IRP1(S711E) retains approx. 45% of its capacity to catalyse the conversion of cis-aconitate into the end-product isocitrate. When expressed in mammalian cells, IRP1(S711E) completely fails to bind to RNA and to generate isocitrate from citrate. We demonstrate that the apparent inactivation of IRP1(S711E) is not related to mutation-associated protein misfolding or to alterations in its stability. Sequence analysis of IRP1 from all species currently deposited in protein databases shows that Ser-711 and flanking sequences are highly conserved in the evolutionary scale. Our results suggest that Ser-711 is a critical residue for the control of IRP1 activities.

Aconitate Hydratase↗

Crystal structure of ERA: a GTPase-dependent cell cycle regulator containing an RNA binding motif.

ERA forms a unique family of GTPase. It is widely conserved and essential in bacteria. ERA functions in cell cycle control by coupling cell division with growth rate. ERA homologues also are found in eukaryotes. Here we report the crystal structure of ERA from Escherichia coli. The structure has been determined at 2.4-A resolution. It reveals a two-domain arrangement of the molecule: an N-terminal domain that resembles p21 Ras and a C-terminal domain that is unique. Structure-based topological search of the C domain fails to reveal any meaningful match, although sequence analysis suggests that it contains a KH domain. KH domains are RNA binding motifs that usually occur in tandem repeats and exhibit low sequence similarity except for the well-conserved segment VIGxxGxxIK. We have identified a betaalphaalphabeta fold that contains the VIGxxGxxIK sequence and is shared by the C domain of ERA and the KH domain. We propose that this betaalphaalphabeta fold is the RNA binding motif, the minimum structural requirement for RNA binding. ERA dimerizes in crystal. The dimer formation involves a significantly distorted switch II region, which may shed light on how ERA protein regulates downstream events.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Gene disruption by regulated short interfering RNA expression, using a two-adenovirus system.

Specific gene ablation by RNA inference (RNAi) involves the binding of short interfering RNA (siRNA), 21 to 22 nucleotides long, to complementary mRNA sequences, leading to sequence-specific posttranslational gene silencing, thus providing a powerful tool for studying gene function with potential therapeutic applications. Here we describe the development of a two-vector adenovirus system for efficient, tightly controlled hairpin siRNA expression (shRNA). Regulated expression of the shRNA is conferred within an adenoviral vector by a modified RNA polymerase III promoter containing a Tet operator element adjacent to the transcription start site. In the presence of the tetracycline repressor protein (TetR), encoded in a second adenovirus, shRNA expression is repressed. Addition of tetracycline abolishes TetR binding, allowing shRNA transcription to proceed, and leading to reduced mRNA and protein expression. Here we establish the efficacy of this system by delivering siRNA targeted against the transcriptional coactivator p300. Our results show tetracycline-mediated inhibition of p300 mRNA and protein accumulation in the presence of both viruses, but no effect in the absence of antibiotic. Regulated adenoviral shRNA vectors offer the advantages of being able to infect a wide array of replicating and nonreplicating cells and of allowing temporal control of gene silencing.

Adenoviridae↗

Requirement for a functional interaction between mediator components Med6 and Srb4 in RNA polymerase II transcription.

Regulated transcription of class II genes of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae requires the diverse functions of mediator complex. In particular, MED6 is essential for activated transcription from many class II promoters, suggesting that it functions as a key player in the relay of activator signals to the basal transcription machinery. To identify the functional relationship between MED6 and other transcriptional regulators, we conducted a genetic screen to isolate a suppressor of a temperature-sensitive (ts) med6 mutation. We identified an SRB4 allele as a dominant and allele-specific suppressor of med6-ts. A single missense mutation in SRB4 can specifically suppress transcriptional defects caused by the med6 ts mutation, indicating a functional interaction between these two mediator subunits in the activation of transcription. Biochemical analysis of mediator subassembly revealed that mediator can be dissociated into two tightly associated subcomplexes. The Med6 and Srb4 proteins are contained in the same subcomplex together with other dominant Srb proteins, consistent with their functional relationship revealed by the genetic study. Our results suggest not only the existence of a specific interaction between Med6 and Srb4 but also the requirement of this interaction in transcriptional regulation of RNA polymerase II holoenzyme.

Cloning, Molecular↗

The DEAD-box RNA helicase Vad1 regulates multiple virulence-associated genes in Cryptococcus neoformans.

The study of fungal regulatory networks is essential to the understanding of how these pathogens respond to host environmental signals with effective virulence-associated traits. In this study, a virulence-associated DEAD-box RNA helicase-encoding gene (VAD1) was isolated from a mutant defective in the virulence factor laccase. A Deltavad1 mutant exhibited a profound reduction in virulence in a mouse model that was restored after reconstitution with WT VAD1. Loss of VAD1 resulted in upregulation of NOT1, a gene encoding a global repressor of transcription. NOT1 was found to act as an intermediary transcriptional repressor of laccase. Vad1 was located within macromolecular complexes that formed cytoplasmic granular bodies in mature cells and during infection of mouse brain. In addition, VAD1 was shown by in situ hybridization to be expressed in the brain of an AIDS patient coinfected with C. neoformans. To understand the role of VAD1 in virulence, a functional genomics approach was used to identify 3 additional virulence determinants dependent on VAD1: PCK1, TUF1, and MPF3, involved in gluconeogenesis, mitochondrial protein synthesis, and cell wall integrity, respectively. These data show that fungal virulence-associated genes are coordinately regulated and that an analysis of such transcriptomes allows for the identification of important new genes involved in the normal growth and virulence of fungal pathogens.

Amino Acid Motifs↗

[Effect of thyroid hormones on the nuclear-cytoplasmic transport of RNA].

The regulation of gene expression by hormones can be implemented at different levels: mRNA transcription, processing, transport from the nucleus into the cytoplasm, and translation. In the authors' earlier papers it was shown that the thyroxin hormone-receptor complex (HRC) increased chromatin matrix activity and induced new sites of transcription initiation. The present work was concerned with a study of the role of the thyroxin HRC in the regulation of the mechanism of 3H-RNA transport from the nucleus into the cytoplasm. An idea of the involvement of the HRC cytoplasmic thyroxin in RNA transport resulted from the detection in 30-40 S of RNP particles from rat liver nuclear proteins similar to the thyroxin cytoplasmic receptor by the antigen determinants. These data combined with others on the stimulation of 3H-RNA discharge from isolated nuclei under the influence of the thyroxin cytoplasmic HRC led to a conclusion that the thyroxin cytoplasmic HRC was involved in the regulation of gene expression by the thyroid hormones not only at the stage of transcription but also at the post-transcription stage, namely at the stage of RNA nuclear-cytoplasmic transport.

Animals↗

A consensus CaMK IV-responsive RNA sequence mediates regulation of alternative exons in neurons.

Neurons make extensive use of alternative pre-mRNA splicing to regulate gene expression and diversify physiological responses. We showed previously in a pituitary cell line that the Ca(++)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase CaMK IV specifically repressed splicing of the BK channel STREX exon. This repression is dependent on a CaMK IV-responsive RNA element (CaRRE) within the STREX 3' splice site. Here, we report that similar Ca(++) regulation of splicing, mediated by L-type calcium channels and CaM kinase IV, occurs in cultured neurons and in the brain. We identify a critical CaRRE motif (CACATNRTTAT) that is essential for conferring CaMK IV repression on an otherwise constitutive exon. Additional Ca(++)-regulated exons that carry this consensus sequence are also identified in the human genome. Thus, the Ca(++)/CaMK IV pathway in neurons controls the alternative splicing of a group of exons through this short CaRRE consensus sequence. The functions of some of these exons imply that splicing control through the CaMK IV pathway will alter neuronal activity.

Alternative Splicing↗

Antisense RNA and p53 regulation in induced murine cell differentiation.

p53 expression is strongly modulated during the process of induced differentiation, at the same time as both cell cycle and genetic expression become modulated, giving rise to a commitment to terminal differentiation. We took advantage of two murine cell lines inducible for differentiation, an erythroleukemia and a melanoma cell line, to outline common features of the regulation of p53 expression during the differentiation process. We found that p53 mRNA decreased early after induced differentiation and that regulation was controlled at a posttranscriptional level. Our data showed that this regulation affects p53 pre-mRNA maturation. Because, in both systems used, actinomycin D treatment abolished the inducer-mediated decrease of p53 mRNA, we looked for induced RNAs potentially involved in this process. Using different parts of the p53 gene and flanking regions as probes, we identified three RNA species whose expression is modulated during induced differentiation. A first species is made of high molecular weight RNAs that accumulate in the nuclear compartment and seem to represent antisense transcripts of the p53 gene. A second species, 1.3-kb long, was found to accumulate in the nucleus of induced MEL cells and was homologous to a restricted part of the first intron of the p53 gene due to the presence of a B1 repetitive element in an antisense orientation with respect to the p53 pre-messenger RNA. Finally, a family of B2-containing RNAs was observed in both cytoplasmic and nuclear compartments. The variation in the amounts of sense and antisense RNAs, respectively, suggested an interesting speculative model for the maturation of B2-containing pre-messenger RNAs.

Animals↗

A novel cyclin provides a link between dopamine and RNA processing.

Regulation of gene expression by dopamine may play an important role in learning, reward, and addiction. Hyman and colleagues now report the characterization of ania-6, a novel cyclin that associates with RNA polymerase II and is induced by dopamine or cocaine in the neostriatum. Ania-6 may thus provide a link between dopamine and gene expression at the level of mRNA processing.

Alternative Splicing↗

Down-regulation of liver RNA breakdown by turpentine administration in the starved rat: autophagy and relevant factors.

OBJECTIVE AND DESIGN: To determine whether the inhibition of RNA breakdown observed in ad libitum fed rats 24 h after turpentine administration still occurs in inflamed rats fasted for 24 h and to examine the mechanism and factors involved. METHODS: RNA breakdown was measured during cyclic in situ perfusion of livers by the accumulation of [14C] cytidine after in vivo RNA labelling. Autophagic activity was determined by the morphometric analysis of lysosomal structures. RESULTS: The decrease in RNA breakdown (53%) observed in the inflamed rats was accompanied by a 38% drop in the fractional cytoplasmic volume of initial and digestive autophagic vacuoles. Among amino acids, only the portal levels of glutamate were significantly enhanced by 83%. In vivo suppression of glucocorticoid activity using RU 38486 in inflamed rats did not affect the inhibition of RNA breakdown. CONCLUSIONS: The results show that turpentine-induced inflammation in fasted rats inhibits RNA degradation as well as autophagy and that glucocorticoids do not seem to be involved.

Acute Disease↗

Characterization of specific DNA-binding factors activated by double-stranded RNA as positive regulators of interferon alpha/beta-stimulated genes.

Viral infection results in transcriptional activation of the cellular interferon alpha/beta-stimulated genes (ISGs) independent of the autocrine action of interferon alpha/beta (IFN-alpha/beta). Induction of ISG expression by virus appears to be mediated through production of viral double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). Previously, we identified two novel dsRNA-activated factors (DRAFs) that bind to the interferon-stimulated response element (ISRE), the DNA sequence that mediates transcriptional activation by IFN-alpha/beta. In this report we define sequences that flank the classical ISRE to be necessary for DRAF1 binding. More significantly, it is shown that the sequences required to bind DRAF1 correlate with the ability to mediate ISG induction by virus. These results strongly suggest that DRAF1 is a positive regulator of ISG transcription. DRAF1 is shown to bind selectively to the promoters of those ISGs which are strongly induced by viral infection, again suggesting the functional significance of this factor. UV cross-linking experiments indicate that DRAF1 and DRAF2 share a common DNA-binding subunit of approximately 70 kDa which is referred to as the DRAF binding component (DRAFB). DRAFB is shown to preexist in the cytoplasm of unstimulated cells. Consistent with this observation, both DRAF1 and DRAF2 are activated in the cytoplasm prior to nuclear translocation.

Base Sequence↗

Candidate RNA-binding proteins regulating extrasomatic mRNA targeting and translation in mammalian neurons.

In mammalian neurons, long-lasting changes in the efficacy of individual synapses depend on the synthesis of new proteins. To maintain specificity, neuronal cells have to ensure that these newly synthesized proteins accumulate at the appropriate subpopulation of synapses. One way that neurons have solved this challenge appears to be the local translation of extrasomatic mRNAs in dendrites and at postsynaptic sites. Mechanisms, which regulate the targeting, translation, and stability of dendritic mRNAs, involve an organized interaction between cis-acting elements of localized transcripts and trans-acting RNA-binding proteins. The molecular identity and cellular functions of trans-acting factors that are likely to play an important role in post-transcriptional processing of extrasomatic transcripts in mammalian neurons are now being elucidated.

Animals↗

Tamoxifen down-regulates CaMKII messenger RNA levels in normal human breast tissue.

Tamoxifen was proven to reduce the incidence of breast cancer by 49% in women at increased risk of the disease in the Breast Cancer Prevention Trial. In order to identify potential candidates to explain the preventive effect induced by tamoxifen on breast cancer, normal breast tissue obtained from 42 fibroadenoma patients, randomly assigned to receive placebo or tamoxifen, was analyzed by the reverse Northern blot and RT-PCR techniques. The cDNA fragments used on Northern blot membranes were generated by the Human Cancer Genome Project funded by the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and FAPESP (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo, Brazil). Total RNA was obtained from normal breast tissue from patients with clinical, cytological and ultrasound diagnosis of fibroadenoma. After a 50-day treatment with tamoxifen (10 or 20 mg/day) or placebo, normal breast tissue adjacent to the tumor was collected during lumpectomy with local anesthesia. One differentially expressed gene, Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII), was found to be down-regulated during TAM treatment. CaMKII is an ubiquitous serine/threonine protein kinase that has been implicated in the diverse effects of hormones utilizing Ca2+ as a second messenger as well as in c-fos activation. These results indicate that the down-regulation of CaMKII induced by TAM might represent alternative or additional mechanisms of the action of this drug on cell cycle control and response to hormones in normal human breast tissue.

Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal↗

Conservation of structure and cold-regulation of RNA-binding proteins in cyanobacteria: probable convergent evolution with eukaryotic glycine-rich RNA-binding proteins.

The rbp gene family of the cyanobacterium Anabaena variabilis strain M3 consists of eight members that encode small RNA-binding proteins containing a single RNA recognition motif (RRM). Similar genes are found in the genomes of Synechocystis sp. PCC6803, Helicobacter pylori and Treponema pallidum, but are absent from the other completely sequenced prokaryotic genomes. The expression of the rbp genes of Anabaena is induced by low temperature, with the exception of the rbpD gene. We found four stretches of conserved sequences in the 5'-untranslated region of the cyanobacterial rbp genes that are known to be induced by low temperature. The cold-regulated Rbp proteins contain a short C-terminal glycine-rich domain. In this respect, these proteins are similar to plant and mammalian glycine-rich RNA-binding proteins (GRPs), which also contain a single RRM domain with a C-terminal glycine-rich domain and are highly expressed at low temperature. Detailed phylogenetic analysis showed, however, that the cyanobacterial Rbp proteins and the eukaryotic GRPs do not belong to a single lineage, but that the glycine-rich domains are likely to have been added independently. The cold-regulation of both types of proteins is also likely to have evolved independently. Furthermore, the chloroplast RNA-binding proteins are not likely to have originated from the Rbp proteins of endosymbiont cyanobacterium, but are supposed to have diverged from the GRPs. These results suggest that the cyanobacterial Rbp proteins and the eukaryotic GRPs are similar in both structure and regulation, but that this apparent similarity has resulted from convergent evolution.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Spacing between simian virus 40 early transcriptional control sequences is important for regulation of early RNA synthesis and gene expression.

We have analyzed the effect of insertion mutants between the simian virus 40 (SV40) 21-base pair (bp) repeats and the early-early (EE) TATA sequence. Insertion of 4, 42, or 90 bp of DNA at the SV40 NcoI site (map position 37) has been analyzed for its effect on expression of the SV40 early gene and positioning of the RNA 5' ends. Insertion of 4 bp reduced SV40 early promoter-dependent chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) expression by six- to eightfold. Increasing the size of the insertion to 42 or 90 bp resulted in a further drop in early gene expression to basal levels. At the RNA level, the 4-bp insertion reduced EE RNA synthesis approximately 10-fold. No concomitant increase in late-early (LE) RNA synthesis was observed. Insertion of 42 or 90 bp of DNA resulted in a decrease of EE RNA synthesis and a stimulation of LE RNA synthesis. Deletion of the SV40 72-bp repeats from the insertion mutants demonstrated that some, but not all, of the LE RNA depends upon the presence of these sequences. These studies suggest that the ability of RNA polymerase II to utilize the EE (TATA-directed) transcriptional control sequence requires an interaction with the upstream 21-bp repeats or the 72-bp repeats or both. That LE RNA levels in pJI1-in42 CAT and pJI1-in90 CAT were equivalent to the level of EE RNA in pJI1-CAT, yet the level of CAT gene expression was decreased greater than 10-fold, suggests that LE mRNA is under translational control and probably prefers a 5' initiation codon proximal to that of the CAT gene.

Base Sequence↗

Novel conserved domains in proteins with predicted roles in eukaryotic cell-cycle regulation, decapping and RNA stability.

BACKGROUND: The emergence of eukaryotes was characterized by the expansion and diversification of several ancient RNA-binding domains and the apparent de novo innovation of new RNA-binding domains. The identification of these RNA-binding domains may throw light on the emergence of eukaryote-specific systems of RNA metabolism. RESULTS: Using sensitive sequence profile searches, homology-based fold recognition and sequence-structure superpositions, we identified novel, divergent versions of the Sm domain in the Scd6p family of proteins. This family of Sm-related domains shares certain features of conventional Sm domains, which are required for binding RNA, in addition to possessing some unique conserved features. We also show that these proteins contain a second previously uncharacterized C-terminal domain, termed the FDF domain (after a conserved sequence motif in this domain). The FDF domain is also found in the fungal Dcp3p-like and the animal FLJ22128-like proteins, where it fused to a C-terminal domain of the YjeF-N domain family. In addition to the FDF domains, the FLJ22128-like proteins contain yet another divergent version of the Sm domain at their extreme N-terminus. We show that the YjeF-N domains represent a novel version of the Rossmann fold that has acquired a set of catalytic residues and structural features that distinguish them from the conventional dehydrogenases. CONCLUSIONS: Several lines of contextual information suggest that the Scd6p family and the Dcp3p-like proteins are conserved components of the eukaryotic RNA metabolism system. We propose that the novel domains reported here, namely the divergent versions of the Sm domain and the FDF domain may mediate specific RNA-protein and protein-protein interactions in cytoplasmic ribonucleoprotein complexes. More specifically, the protein complexes containing Sm-like domains of the Scd6p family are predicted to regulate the stability of mRNA encoding proteins involved in cell cycle progression and vesicular assembly. The Dcp3p and FLJ22128 proteins may localize to the cytoplasmic processing bodies and possibly catalyze a specific processing step in the decapping pathway. The explosive diversification of Sm domains appears to have played a role in the emergence of several uniquely eukaryotic ribonucleoprotein complexes, including those involved in decapping and mRNA stability.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Bacteriophage lambda N-dependent transcription antitermination. Competition for an RNA site may regulate antitermination.

Bacteriophage lambda controls the expression of its early genes in a temporal manner by a series of transcription termination and antitermination events. This antitermination requires the lambda N protein as well as host proteins called Nus, and cis-acting sites called nut. Following transcription of the nut site, N and Nus proteins bind to the nut RNA and modify the transcription complex to a termination-resistant form. The nut site is a composite of at least two components; one is the boxB hairpin structure which interacts with N. The other is boxA, a nine-nucleotide sequence upstream of boxB. To understand more about the formation of the antitermination complex, we have characterized the effect of point mutations in and deletions of boxA on antitermination. Point mutations in boxA were found to either enhance or reduce N-mediated antitermination. Several boxA deletions, on the other hand, had little effect on antitermination other than to eliminate the requirement for the NusB host protein. To explain these observations, we propose that at least two factors compete to interact with boxA, NusB and an inhibitor of the antitermination reaction. In addition, we propose that NusB is required to prevent the inhibitor from binding at boxA. The results with various nusB and boxA mutations can be explained by this model of competition between NusB and an inhibitor for boxA RNA.

Bacterial Proteins↗