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Comparative genomics illuminates karyotype and sex chromosome evolution of sharks.

Chondrichthyes is an important lineage to reconstruct the evolutionary history of vertebrates. Here, we analyzed genome synteny for six chondrichthyan chromosome-level genomes. Our comparative analysis reveals a slow evolutionary rate of chromosomal changes, with infrequent but independent fusions observed in sharks, skates, and chimaeras. The chondrichthyan common ancestor had a proto-vertebrate-like karyotype, including the presence of 18 microchromosome pairs. The X chromosome is a conversed microchromosome shared by all sharks, suggesting a likely common origin of the sex chromosome at least 181 million years ago. We characterized the Y chromosomes of two sharks that are highly differentiated from the X except for a small young evolutionary stratum and a small pseudoautosomal region. We found that shark sex chromosomes lack global dosage compensation but that dosage-sensitive genes are locally compensated. Our study on shark chromosome evolution enhances our understanding of shark sex chromosomes and vertebrate chromosome evolution.

Animals

Chromatin Landscape Is Associated With Sex-Biased Expression and Drosophila-Like Dosage Compensation of the Z Chromosome in Artemia franciscana.

The males and females of the brine shrimp Artemia franciscana are highly dimorphic, and this dimorphism is associated with substantial sex-biased gene expression in heads and gonads. How these sex-specific patterns of expression are regulated at the molecular level is unknown. A. franciscana also has differentiated ZW sex chromosomes, with complete dosage compensation, but the molecular mechanism through which compensation is achieved is unknown. Here, we conducted CUT&TAG assays targeting 7 post-translational histone modifications (H3K27me3, H3K9me2, H3K9me3, H3K36me3, H3K27ac, H3K4me3, and H4K16ac) in heads and gonads of A. franciscana, allowing us to divide the genome into 12 chromatin states. We further defined functional chromatin signatures for all genes, which were correlated with transcript level abundances. Differences in the occupancy of the profiled epigenetic marks between sexes were associated with differential gene expression between males and females. Finally, we found a significant enrichment of the permissive H4K16ac histone mark in the Z-specific region in both tissues of females but not males, supporting the role of this histone mark in mediating dosage compensation of the Z chromosome.

Animals

Mixed Evidence that Dosage Sensitive Genes Drive Global Dosage Compensation in Flour Beetles.

Heteromorphic sex chromosomes create inherent gene dosage differences between males and females because one sex carries a single copy of the X chromosome while the other carries two. Many species have evolved mechanisms that equalize X-linked gene expression between the sexes and, in some cases, restore ancestral autosomal levels, a process known as dosage compensation. Although chromosome-wide compensation is common in male heterogametic (XY) insects, regulatory outcomes vary across taxa and sex chromosome systems, leaving the evolutionary forces shaping sex chromosome regulation unresolved. One hypothesis proposes that the extent to which genes are sensitive to changes in gene dose determines whether complete compensation evolves. We tested predictions of this insensitive sex chromosome hypothesis (ISCH) across five flour beetle species using comparative transcriptomics and genome-wide RNAi-derived measures of gene-by-gene sensitivity. Including an X-autosome fusion in Tribolium confusum allowed direct assessment of expression evolution following a transition from a diploid autosome to a hemizygous Neo-X. Across all five species, we detect complete chromosome-wide dosage compensation and balance between the sexes in somatic tissues, including the Neo-X region. Consistent with ISCH predictions, neither the ancestral Shared-X nor the Neo-X is depleted of genes that are sensitive to RNAi-based expression disruption. However, contrary to expectations, at the level of individual genes, we find little evidence that more sensitive genes exhibit reduced expression divergence. These results suggest that chromosome-wide compensation can be maintained by global regulatory mechanisms that persist through sex chromosome turnover, even when gene-by-gene constraints are weak. Understanding the molecular basis of these mechanisms remains a central challenge in sex chromosome evolution.

Animals

Spreading of inactivation in an (X;14) translocation.

In the KOP translocation, t(X;14)(q13;q32), virtually the entire long arm of the X has been translocated to the end of the long arm of chromosome 14. Meiotic secondary nondisjunction in a female balanced carrier of the translocation has led to a son with two der(14) or 14-X chromosomes. The normal X chromosome is late replicating in the mother. One of the two 14-X chromosomes is late replicating in the son, with heavy terminal labeling of all but the centromeric end of the chromosome. This suggests that genetic inactivation has spread from the Xq segment of the translocation chromosome to at least two thirds of the segment derived from chromosome 14, and that the remaining proximal segment of chromosome 14 is possibly still genetically active. These findings provide an explanation for the phenotype: Klinefelter syndrome plus a few mild malformations that are sometimes seen in this syndrome but are also seen in duplication of the proximal portion of chromosome 14. Although the proband has a duplication of virtually an entire chromosome 14, 14(pter leads to q32), the phenotypic effect of the autosomal duplication has been mostly nullified by the spread of inactivation.

Centromere

Genome imbalance modulates the expression of long non-coding RNAs in maize.

Genome imbalance, resulting from varying the dosage of individual chromosomes (aneuploidy), has a more detrimental effect than changes in complete sets of chromosomes (haploidy/polyploidy). This imbalance is likely due to disruptions in stoichiometry and interactions among macromolecular assemblies. Previous research has shown that aneuploidy causes global modulation of protein-coding genes (PCGs), microRNAs, and transposable elements (TEs), affecting both the varied chromosome (cis-located) and unvaried genome regions (trans-located) across various taxa. While long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are important gene expression regulators, their roles in the context of genomic imbalance remain largely unexplored. In this study, we analyzed and compared the impact of aneuploidy and haploidy/polyploidy on lncRNA expression using RNA-seq data from maize mature leaf tissue. Our results indicate that cis-located lncRNAs are modulated from dosage compensation to a gene dosage effect, while trans-located lncRNAs exhibit trends ranging from an inverse effect to a positive correlation with chromosomal dosage. Remarkably, the ploidy series showed a lesser degree of lncRNA modulation. LncRNAs and TEs display a similar trend of inverse modulation but exhibit greater sensitivity to dosage changes compared to PCGs. The construction of cis-acting and trans-acting lncRNA co-expression networks indicates that lncRNAs likely function as dosage-sensitive regulators of gene expression under conditions of genomic imbalance. Overall, this study not only elucidates the dosage effect of plant lncRNAs but also serves as a valuable resource for exploring potential regulators of PCGs that play significant biological functions.

Zea mays

The complete telomere-to-telomere sequence of a mouse Y chromosome.

The mouse Y chromosome is essential for male reproduction, yet the GRCm39 reference contains 25 gaps, particularly in repetitive and complex regions. Here, we assembled a telomere-to-telomere Y chromosome (mT2T Y) of 95.21 Mb from a C57BL/6 mouse incorporating parental genomes. This assembly fills all gaps, corrects structural errors, and adds over 8.70 Mb of previously unassembled sequence to the reference genome. We annotated 142 previously unidentified genes, identified Y specific satellite arrays, and mapped homologous recombination loci in the pseudoautosomal region (PAR). Analysis of X Y homologous gene expression revealed a Y chromosome dosage compensation mechanism. By combining mT2T Y with T2T mhaESC, we completed the T2T assembly of all C57BL/6 chromosomes, designated T2T mhaESC+Y, providing a complete C57BL/6 reference genome.

Animals

A Functional chromatin domain does not resist X chromosome inactivation: silencing of cLys correlates with methylation of a dual promoter-replication origin.

To investigate the molecular mechanism(s) involved in the propagation and maintenance of X chromosome inactivation (XCI), the 21.4-kb chicken lysozyme (cLys) chromatin domain was inserted into the Hprt locus on the mouse X chromosome. The inserted fragment includes flanking matrix attachment regions (MARs), an origin of bidirectional replication (OBR), and all the cis-regulatory elements required for correct tissue-specific expression of cLys. It also contains a recently identified and widely expressed second gene, cGas41. The cLys domain is known to function as an autonomous unit resistant to chromosomal position effects, as evidenced by numerous transgenic mouse lines showing copy-number-dependent and development-specific expression of cLys in the myeloid lineage. We asked the questions whether this functional chromatin domain was resistant to XCI and whether the X inactivation signal could spread across an extended region of avian DNA. A generally useful method was devised to generate pure populations of macrophages with the transgene either on the active (Xa) or the inactive (Xi) chromosome. We found that (i) cLys and cGas41 are expressed normally from the Xa; (ii) the cLys chromatin domain, even when bracketed by MARs, is not resistant to XCI; (iii) transcription factors are excluded from lysozyme enhancers on the Xi; and (iv) inactivation correlates with methylation of a CpG island that is both an OBR and a promoter of the cGas41 gene.

Animals

Model for evolution of Y chromosomes and dosage compensation.

Some difficulties with the classical model for the evolution of a genetically invert Y chromosome are discussed. An alternative model is proposed, which is based on the principle of Mullers ratchet; this involves the accumulation of chromosomes bearing deleterious mutant genes in a finite population in the absence of crossing-over. This process would result in the gradual increase, with time, in the number of mutant loci carried in an average Y chromosome, although the frequency of individual deleterious alleles at most loci remains low. It is shown that this creates a selection pressure for differentially increasing the activity of the X chromosome in heterogametic individuals at the expense of that of the Y, leading eventually to a genetically inert Y chromosome and to the evolution of dosage compensation.

Alleles

Direct correlation between a chromosome puff and the synthesis of a larval saliva protein in Drosophila melanogaster.

The structural gene Sgs-4 responsible for larval saliva protein 4 of Drosophila melanogaster was localized, with the help of Notch deficiencies, within the section between bands 3C10 and 3D1 of the X chromosome. In this chromosome section there is, very probably, only one fine band. In the third larval instar chromosome this section is transcriptionally active and forms a puff. When the ecdysone concentration increases, about 5 h before prepupa formation, it becomes inactive.--In section 3C of X chromosomes of third instar larvae of the stock Hikone-R no puff is formed. The saliva of these larvae lacks protein 4. However, female hybrids (H/B and H/O) from Hikone-R crossed with Berlin and Oregon respectively produce a Hikone-specific saliva protein 4h. The synthesis of protein 4h in the hybrids H/B and H/O is ascribed to an activation of the gene Sgs-4 in the Hikone chromosome.--In the saliva of heterozygotes (FM1/H) carrying one inversion chromosome In(1)FM1 and one X chromosome from Hikone, protein 4h could not be detected. In these inversion heterozygotes in 90% of all nuclei the homologues are not paired in 3C, and 3C is puffed only in the FM1 chromosome. This suggests that a precondition for the activation of Hikone gene Sgs-4 in heterozygotes may be intimate homologue pairing.--Intersexes with one of their X chromosomes from Hikone-R and the other from Berlin produce relatively more protein 4h than do diploid H/B females, indicating facilitated transcription as a result of dosage compensation.

Animals

A tumorigenesis threshold for endogenous Myc revealed by dosage-compensation for Myc-haploinsufficiency in the absence of p53.

The MYC proto-oncogene is crucial for neoplasia in most tumors. Overexpressed, oncogenic MYC amplifies the flux through most major processes but does not specify a unique carcinogenic pathway. This "amplifier" model suggests that MYC must exceed an expression threshold to become oncogenic. We designed a genetic test of this model, using the mouse Trp53 null mutant (p53KO) as a highly robust tumor generator to examine the effect of a modest change in the endogenous Myc level (Myc +/-). Strikingly, tumor-free survival is greatly extended in p53KO mice with haploid Myc gene-dosage, yet in the tumors that do develop (mainly hemangiosarcomas and thymic lymphomas), their Myc deficit has been invariably compensated either by increasing Myc genomic dosage (hemangiosarcomas) or expression (lymphomas). Furthermore, acutely halving the endogenous Myc gene-dosage in established tumor allografts curtails growth rates. These results indicate that even an incremental reduction of MYC activity can be salutary in cancer and that one of the major tumor suppressor functions of p53 derives from its ability to prevent MYC overexpression. Myc generates acute DNA damage by several mechanisms and accordingly, p53's anti-Myc function may be inextricably linked to its role in genome integrity surveillance.

Myc haplo-insufficiency

Genetics and physiological expression of beta-hydroxy acid dehydrogenase in Drosophila.

A mutant Hadnl was induced in Drosophila melanogaster and found to be deficient in beta-hydroxy acid dehydrogenase. This mutation was utilized to study the genetics and physiological expression of Had+ . Had+ was mapped to the X chromosome at 54.4 and seems to be the structural gene for the enzyme. Enzyme activity in male and female flies indicates that the gene shows both dosage compensation independent from dose effect and differential activity during ontogeny. Electrophoretic mobility data indicate that the enzyme is a dimer which forms by random association of subunits. The fact that the mutant shows no detrimental effect implies that the enzyme is dispensable, at least under laboratory conditions. The biological and technical implications of this gene--enzyme system are discussed.

Animals

Expression of PGK-A in the Australian brush-tailed possum, Trichosurus vulpecula (Kerr), consistent with paternal X inactivation.

An extensive survey of erythrocytes of marsupials other than kangaroos for electrophoretic variation if X-linked enzymes revealed two rare PGK-A phenotypes in the phalangerid Trichosurus vupecula and one in Trichosurus caninus. Four putatively heterozygous females expressed only the variant allelic isozyme in some tissues but expressed a trace of the normal isozyme in others. A putatively hemizygous male expressed only the variant isozyme in all tissues. The phenotypic patterns were consistent with those observed in kangaroos known to exhibit partial or complete parternal X inactivation in cells of females. Tow of the T. vulpecula were a mother and her female pouch young, further suggesting that paternal X inactivation occurs in T. vulpecula. This peculiar mechanism of dosage compensation may not be restricted to kangaroos.

Animals

Extensive Recombination Suppression and Genetic Degeneration of a Young ZW Sex Chromosome System in Halfbeak Fish.

Sex chromosome systems have evolved independently across the tree of life, at different times in the past, and the evolutionary consequences of lacking recombination in sex-linked regions have been characterized in many old-established systems. However, empirical studies of young sex chromosomes are still scarce, especially in vertebrates. Integrating whole-genome sequencing data of two species of halfbeak fish, Hyporhamphus sajori and Hyporhamphus intermedius, we identified the sex-determining system in H. sajori as female heterogamety, involving a large fully sex-linked ZW region (∼26 Mb) on chromosome 5. The closest relative, H. intermedius, has a small sex-linked region on a different chromosome and shows male heterogamety, suggesting at least one turnover in this fish genus. The H. sajori sex-linked region includes two evolutionary strata, but the estimated Z-W divergence times are small, less than 3 million years for the older stratum, which is less than between the two species. Nevertheless, this evolutionarily young W-linked region is enriched with repetitive sequences, differs from the ancestral state by five inversions, and about one-third of its protein-coding genes have already become nonfunctional. Transcriptomic analysis suggests that some form of dosage compensation may already be evolving for some sex-linked genes.

Animals

Incomplete dosage compensation in an evolving Drosophila sex chromosome.

Cellular autoradiography was used to measure relative rates of chromosomal RNA synthesis and to examine the regulatory phenomenon of X-linked dosage compensation in Drosophila miranda, a species containing two distinct, nonhomologous X chromosomes (X1 and X2). The X1 chromosome was found to be dosage-compensated, since the rate of RNA synthesis along the single X1 chromosome in males equaled that of both X1 chromosomes in females. Unlike other sex chromosomes that have been studied, the more recently evolved X2 heterochromosome exhibited regional differences in transcriptional activity when males and females were compared. The distal 10% of the X2 was not dosage-compensated, whereas the majority of an interior segment, representing 30% of the X2 chromosome's length, was found to be dosage-compensated. Our data are consistent with the idea that the evolution of X2 dosage compensation has paralleled the differentiation of the X2 sex chromosome. In addition, gene rearrangement seems to have accompanied the acquisition of a dosage-compensory mechanism in the X2.

Animals

Genetical and cytological location of the structural parts coding for the first three steps of pyrimidine biosynthesis in Drosophila melanogaster.

The rudimentary locus (r; X--55.3) of Drosophila melanogaster is shown to contain the structural sequences for the enzymes CPSase, ATCase and DHOase. The enzyme concentration in adult flies is correlated with the number of r+ copies in the genome. The expression of the locus follows the rules of the gene dosage compensation hypothesis when extracts of newly emerged males and females are compared.

Animals