scholarly journals Molecular Lesions of Insulator CTCF and Its Paralogue CTCFL (BORIS) in Cancer: An Analysis from Published Genomic Studies

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ioannis Voutsadakis

CTCF (CCCTC-binding factor) is a transcription regulator with hundreds of binding sites in the human genome. It has a main function as an insulator protein, defining together with cohesins the boundaries of areas of the genome called topologically associating domains (TADs). TADs contain regulatory elements such as enhancers which function as regulators of the transcription of genes inside the boundaries of the TAD while they are restricted from regulating genes outside these boundaries. This paper will examine the most common genetic lesions of CTCF as well as its related protein CTCFL (CTCF-like also called BORIS) in cancer using publicly available data from published genomic studies. Cancer types where abnormalities in the two genes are more common will be examined for possible associations with underlying repair defects or other prevalent genetic lesions. The putative functional effects in CTCF and CTCFL lesions will also be explored.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lifei Li ◽  
Nicolai K. H. Barth ◽  
Christian Pilarsky ◽  
Leila Taher

AbstractThe human genome is organized into topologically associating domains (TADs), which represent contiguous regions with a higher frequency of intra-interactions as opposed to inter-interactions. TADs contribute to gene expression regulation by restricting interactions between regulatory elements, and their disruption by genomic rearrangements can result in altered gene expression and, ultimately, in cancer. Here, we provide a proof-of-principle that mutations within TADs can be used to predict the survival of cancer patients. For this purpose, we first constructed a set of 1,467 TADs representing the three-dimensional organization of genome across 24 normal human tissues. We then used Cox regression analysis to assess the prognostic value of the TADs in different cancer types, and identified a total of 35 TADs that were prognostic for at least one of nine cancer types. Interestingly, only 46% of the prognostic TADs comprised one or more genes with a known causal association with cancer. Moreover, for those TADs encompassing such a gene, the prognostic effect of the TAD was only directed related to the presence/absence of mutations in the gene in 13% of the cases. These observations indicate that the predictive power of a large proportion of the prognostic TADs is independent of whether pan-cancer genes are mutated or not. Furthermore, 34% of the 35 prognostic TADs showed strong structural perturbations in the cancer genome, which might mediate cancer development and progression. This study has important implications for the interpretation of cancer-related non-coding mutations and offer insights to new strategies for personalizing cancer medicine.


2002 ◽  
Vol 361 (3) ◽  
pp. 451-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan I. SBODIO ◽  
Harvey F. LODISH ◽  
Nai-Wen CHI

The poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) tankyrase-1 contains an ankyrin-repeat domain that binds to various partners, including the telomeric protein TRF1 (telomere-repeat-binding factor 1) and the vesicular protein IRAP (insulin-responsive aminopeptidase). TRF1 binding recruits tankyrase-1 to telomeres and allows its PARP activity to regulate telomere homoeostasis. By contrast, IRAP binding and the Golgi co-localization of tankyrase-1 with IRAP might allow tankyrase-1 to affect the targeting of IRAP-containing vesicles. A closely related protein, tankyrase-2, has also been implicated in vesicular targeting. Unlike tankyrase-1, tankyrase-2 has not been shown to have PARP activity. In addition, it has not been implicated in telomere homoeostasis, because it did not interact with TRF1 in previous studies. Here we show that tankyrase-2 contains intrinsic PARP activity and, like tankryase-1, binds to both TRF1 and IRAP. Our analysis suggests that the ankyrin (ANK) domain of tankyrase-2 comprises five subdomains that provide redundant binding sites for IRAP. Moreover, tankyrase-2 associates and co-localizes with tankyrase-1, suggesting that both tankyrases might function as a complex. Taken together, our findings indicate that tankyrase-1 and tankyrase-2 interact with the same set of proteins and probably mediate overlapping functions, both at telomeres and in vesicular compartments.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ankit Gupta ◽  
Alexander M. Rush

AbstractWe consider the task of detecting regulatory elements in the human genome directly from raw DNA. Past work has focused on small snippets of DNA, making it difficult to model long-distance dependencies that arise from DNA’s 3-dimensional conformation. In order to study long-distance dependencies, we develop and release a novel dataset for a larger-context modeling task. Using this new data set we model long-distance interactions using dilated convolutional neural networks, and compare them to standard convolutions and recurrent neural networks. We show that dilated convolutions are effective at modeling the locations of regulatory markers in the human genome, such as transcription factor binding sites, histone modifications, and DNAse hypersensitivity sites.


Author(s):  
Caroline L Harrold ◽  
Matthew E Gosden ◽  
Lars L P Hanssen ◽  
Rosa J Stolper ◽  
Damien J Downes ◽  
...  

AbstractMammalian genomes are subdivided into large (50-2000 kb) regions of chromatin referred to as Topologically Associating Domains (TADs or sub-TADs). Chromatin within an individual TAD contacts itself more frequently than with regions in surrounding TADs thereby directing enhancer-promoter interactions. In many cases, the borders of TADs are defined by convergently orientated boundary elements associated with CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF), which stabilises the cohesin complex on chromatin and prevents its translocation. This delimits chromatin loop extrusion which is thought to underlie the formation of TADs. However, not all CTCF-bound sites act as boundaries and, importantly, not all TADs are flanked by convergent CTCF sites. Here, we examined the CTCF binding sites within a ∼70 kb sub-TAD containing the duplicated mouse α-like globin genes and their five enhancers (5’-R1-R2-R3-Rm-R4-α1-α2-3’). The 5’ border of this sub-TAD is defined by a pair of CTCF sites. Surprisingly, we show that deletion of the CTCF binding sites within and downstream of the α-globin locus leaves the sub-TAD largely intact. The predominant 3’ border of the sub-TAD is defined by a steep reduction in contacts: this corresponds to the transcribed α2-globin gene rather than the CTCF sites at the 3’-end of the sub-TAD. Of interest, the almost identical α1- and α2-globin genes interact differently with the enhancers, resulting in preferential expression of the proximal α1-globin gene which behaves as a partial boundary between the enhancers and the distal α2-globin gene. Together, these observations provide direct evidence that actively transcribed genes can behave as boundary elements.Significance StatementMammalian genomes are complex, organised 3D structures, partitioned into Topologically Associating Domains (TADs): chromatin regions that preferentially self-interact. These chromatin interactions are thought to be driven by a mechanism that continuously extrudes chromatin loops, forming structures delimited by chromatin boundary elements and reflecting the activity of enhancers and promoters. Boundary elements bind architectural proteins such as CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF). Previously, an overlap between the functional roles of enhancers and promoters has been shown. However, whether there is overlap between enhancers/promoters and boundary elements is not known. Here, we show that actively transcribed genes can also behave as boundary elements, similar to CTCF boundaries. In both cases, multi-protein complexes bound to these regions may stall the process of chromatin loop extrusion.


Nature ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 583 (7818) ◽  
pp. 711-719 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric L. Van Nostrand ◽  
Peter Freese ◽  
Gabriel A. Pratt ◽  
Xiaofeng Wang ◽  
Xintao Wei ◽  
...  

AbstractMany proteins regulate the expression of genes by binding to specific regions encoded in the genome1. Here we introduce a new data set of RNA elements in the human genome that are recognized by RNA-binding proteins (RBPs), generated as part of the Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) project phase III. This class of regulatory elements functions only when transcribed into RNA, as they serve as the binding sites for RBPs that control post-transcriptional processes such as splicing, cleavage and polyadenylation, and the editing, localization, stability and translation of mRNAs. We describe the mapping and characterization of RNA elements recognized by a large collection of human RBPs in K562 and HepG2 cells. Integrative analyses using five assays identify RBP binding sites on RNA and chromatin in vivo, the in vitro binding preferences of RBPs, the function of RBP binding sites and the subcellular localization of RBPs, producing 1,223 replicated data sets for 356 RBPs. We describe the spectrum of RBP binding throughout the transcriptome and the connections between these interactions and various aspects of RNA biology, including RNA stability, splicing regulation and RNA localization. These data expand the catalogue of functional elements encoded in the human genome by the addition of a large set of elements that function at the RNA level by interacting with RBPs.


BMC Genomics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiwei Chen ◽  
Longhua Zhou ◽  
Panpan Jiang ◽  
Ruiju Lu ◽  
Nigel G. Halford ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Sucrose nonfermenting-1 (SNF1)-related protein kinases (SnRKs) play important roles in regulating metabolism and stress responses in plants, providing a conduit for crosstalk between metabolic and stress signalling, in some cases involving the stress hormone, abscisic acid (ABA). The burgeoning and divergence of the plant gene family has led to the evolution of three subfamilies, SnRK1, SnRK2 and SnRK3, of which SnRK2 and SnRK3 are unique to plants. Therefore, the study of SnRKs in crops may lead to the development of strategies for breeding crop varieties that are more resilient under stress conditions. In the present study, we describe the SnRK gene family of barley (Hordeum vulgare), the widespread cultivation of which can be attributed to its good adaptation to different environments. Results The barley HvSnRK gene family was elucidated in its entirety from publicly-available genome data and found to comprise 50 genes. Phylogenetic analyses assigned six of the genes to the HvSnRK1 subfamily, 10 to HvSnRK2 and 34 to HvSnRK3. The search was validated by applying it to Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) and rice (Oryza sativa) genome data, identifying 50 SnRK genes in rice (four OsSnRK1, 11 OsSnRK2 and 35 OsSnRK3) and 39 in Arabidopsis (three AtSnRK1, 10 AtSnRK2 and 26 AtSnRK3). Specific motifs were identified in the encoded barley proteins, and multiple putative regulatory elements were found in the gene promoters, with light-regulated elements (LRE), ABA response elements (ABRE) and methyl jasmonate response elements (MeJa) the most common. RNA-seq analysis showed that many of the HvSnRK genes responded to ABA, some positively, some negatively and some with complex time-dependent responses. Conclusions The barley HvSnRK gene family is large, comprising 50 members, subdivided into HvSnRK1 (6 members), HvSnRK2 (10 members) and HvSnRK3 (34 members), showing differential positive and negative responses to ABA.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (9) ◽  
pp. 4707
Author(s):  
Mariana Lopes ◽  
Sandra Louzada ◽  
Margarida Gama-Carvalho ◽  
Raquel Chaves

(Peri)centromeric repetitive sequences and, more specifically, satellite DNA (satDNA) sequences, constitute a major human genomic component. SatDNA sequences can vary on a large number of features, including nucleotide composition, complexity, and abundance. Several satDNA families have been identified and characterized in the human genome through time, albeit at different speeds. Human satDNA families present a high degree of sub-variability, leading to the definition of various subfamilies with different organization and clustered localization. Evolution of satDNA analysis has enabled the progressive characterization of satDNA features. Despite recent advances in the sequencing of centromeric arrays, comprehensive genomic studies to assess their variability are still required to provide accurate and proportional representation of satDNA (peri)centromeric/acrocentric short arm sequences. Approaches combining multiple techniques have been successfully applied and seem to be the path to follow for generating integrated knowledge in the promising field of human satDNA biology.


BMC Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Z. Daly ◽  
Lindsey A. Dudley ◽  
Michael T. Peel ◽  
Stephen A. Liebhaber ◽  
Stephen C. J. Parker ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The pituitary gland is a neuroendocrine organ containing diverse cell types specialized in secreting hormones that regulate physiology. Pituitary thyrotropes produce thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), a critical factor for growth and maintenance of metabolism. The transcription factors POU1F1 and GATA2 have been implicated in thyrotrope fate, but the transcriptomic and epigenomic landscapes of these neuroendocrine cells have not been characterized. The goal of this work was to discover transcriptional regulatory elements that drive thyrotrope fate. Results We identified the transcription factors and epigenomic changes in chromatin that are associated with differentiation of POU1F1-expressing progenitors into thyrotropes using cell lines that represent an undifferentiated Pou1f1 lineage progenitor (GHF-T1) and a committed thyrotrope line that produces TSH (TαT1). We compared RNA-seq, ATAC-seq, histone modification (H3K27Ac, H3K4Me1, and H3K27Me3), and POU1F1 binding in these cell lines. POU1F1 binding sites are commonly associated with bZIP transcription factor consensus binding sites in GHF-T1 cells and Helix-Turn-Helix (HTH) or basic Helix-Loop-Helix (bHLH) factors in TαT1 cells, suggesting that these classes of transcription factors may recruit or cooperate with POU1F1 binding at unique sites. We validated enhancer function of novel elements we mapped near Cga, Pitx1, Gata2, and Tshb by transfection in TαT1 cells. Finally, we confirmed that an enhancer element near Tshb can drive expression in thyrotropes of transgenic mice, and we demonstrate that GATA2 enhances Tshb expression through this element. Conclusion These results extend the ENCODE multi-omic profiling approach to the pituitary gland, which should be valuable for understanding pituitary development and disease pathogenesis. Graphical abstract


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 6
Author(s):  
Matthew C. Wang ◽  
Phillip J. McCown ◽  
Grace E. Schiefelbein ◽  
Jessica A. Brown

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) influence cellular function through binding events that often depend on the lncRNA secondary structure. One such lncRNA, metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1), is upregulated in many cancer types and has a myriad of protein- and miRNA-binding sites. Recently, a secondary structural model of MALAT1 in noncancerous cells was proposed to form 194 hairpins and 13 pseudoknots. That study postulated that, in cancer cells, the MALAT1 structure likely varies, thereby influencing cancer progression. This work analyzes how that structural model is expected to change in K562 cells, which originated from a patient with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), and in HeLa cells, which originated from a patient with cervical cancer. Dimethyl sulfate-sequencing (DMS-Seq) data from K562 cells and psoralen analysis of RNA interactions and structure (PARIS) data from HeLa cells were compared to the working structural model of MALAT1 in noncancerous cells to identify sites that likely undergo structural alterations. MALAT1 in K562 cells is predicted to become more unstructured, with almost 60% of examined hairpins in noncancerous cells losing at least half of their base pairings. Conversely, MALAT1 in HeLa cells is predicted to largely maintain its structure, undergoing 18 novel structural rearrangements. Moreover, 50 validated miRNA-binding sites are affected by putative secondary structural changes in both cancer types, such as miR-217 in K562 cells and miR-20a in HeLa cells. Structural changes unique to K562 cells and HeLa cells provide new mechanistic leads into how the structure of MALAT1 may mediate cancer in a cell-type specific manner.


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