A Model for Initiation of Mosaic HOX Gene Expression Patterns by Non-Coding RNAs in Early Embryos
Svetlana Petruk, Yurii Sedkov, Hugh W. Brock and Alexander Mazo
Pages 1 - 6
http://dx.doi.org/10.4161/rna.4.1.4300
Abstract
There is growing appreciation for the role of non-coding (nc) RNA in regulation of HOX genes of Drosophila. Our data suggest that current models for activation by ncRNA at the bithorax complex (BX-C) genes are mistaken. We propose that bxd and iab ncRNAs repress coding HOX genes Ultrabithorax and abdominal-A, respectively, by transcriptional interference. It is not clear how regulation by non-coding RNAs is integrated with other regulatory mechanisms at HOX loci. We suggest that non-coding RNAs regulated by the trithorax group of epigenetic regulators have an early transient role in repression of HOX genes at the bithorax complex. Later, we propose that repression by HOX proteins, and members of the Polycomb group take over from repression by ncRNAs. We discuss emerging research questions in light of this model.
Open Access
Isolation and Posttranscriptional Modification Analysis of Native BC1 RNA from Mouse Brain
Timofey S. Rozhdestvensky, Pamela F. Crain and Juergen Brosius
Pages 11 - 15
http://dx.doi.org/10.4161/rna.4.1.4306
Abstract
We present a simple and general affinity method, based on size fractionation and nucleic acid complementarity, to isolate sufficient amounts of native RNA molecules for further physicochemical studies, such as modification state of nucleotides. In the case presented here, we purified four micrograms of dendritic neuronal BC1 RNA from 130 grams of mouse brain (initially yielding a total of 200 mg RNA). Directly combined liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC/MS) analysis revealed no base or sugar backbone modifications in native BC1 RNA, despite earlier indications that C-54 could be methylated in vitro (Cm5, position 54).
Open Access
Localization of the Developmental Timing Regulator Lin28 to mRNP Complexes, P-bodies and Stress Granules
Erica Balzer and Eric G. Moss
Pages 16 - 25
http://dx.doi.org/10.4161/rna.4.1.4364
Abstract
Lin28 is a conserved cytoplasmic protein with an unusual pairing of RNA-binding motifs: a cold shock domain and a pair of retroviral-type CCHC zinc fingers. In the nematode C. elegans, it is a regulator of developmental timing. In mammals, it is abundant in diverse types of undifferentiated cells. However, its molecular function is unknown. In pluripotent mammalian cells, Lin28 is observed in RNase-sensitive complexes with Poly(A)-Binding Protein, and in polysomal fractions of sucrose gradients, suggesting it is associated with translating mRNAs. Upon cellular stress, Lin28 locates to stress granules, which contain non-translating mRNA complexes. However, Lin28 also localizes to cytoplasmic Processing bodies, or P-bodies, sites of mRNA degradation and microRNA regulation, consistent with it acting to regulate mRNA translation or stability. Mutational analysis shows that Lin28’s conserved RNA binding domains cooperate to put Lin28 in mRNPs, but that only the CCHC domain is required for localization to P-bodies. When both RNA-binding domains are mutated, Lin28 accumulates in the nucleus, suggesting that it normally shuttles from nucleus to cytoplasm bound to RNA. These studies are consistent with a model in which Lin28 binds mRNAs in the nucleus and accompanies them to ribosomes and P-bodies. We propose that Lin28 influences the translation or stability of specific mRNAs during differentiation.
Open Access
Spinal Muscular Atrophy: Position and Functional Importance of the Branch Site Preceding SMN Exon 7
Raphael Scholl, Julien Marquis, Kathrin Meyer and Daniel Schumperli
Pages 34 - 37
http://dx.doi.org/10.4161/rna.4.1.4534
Abstract
In spinal muscular atrophy, the SMN1 gene is deleted or destroyed by mutation, while the neigbouring, nearly identical SMN2 gene acts as a partial functional substitute. However, due to a single nucleotide exchange, the seventh exon of SMN2 is mostly excluded from the mature mRNA, and the resulting shorter protein is non-functional. Here, we map the previously uncharacterised intron 6 branch point by RT-PCR. Moreover we show that exon 7 inclusion can be either abolished or improved by mutations in this branch site region.
Open Access
Mitochondrial tRNA Mutations: Clinical and Functional Perturbations
Emily Zifa, Stamatina Giannouli, Paschalis Theotokis, Costas Stamatis, Zissis Mamuris and Constantinos Stathopoulos
Pages 38 - 66
http://dx.doi.org/10.4161/rna.4.1.4548
Abstract
During the last decade, there has been a progressive accumulation of reports that connect the identification of specific mitochondrial tRNA gene mutations to severe disorders in human. As a result, mitochondrial tRNA genes and their products have emerged as novel and essential molecular markers for wide biochemical and genetic screenings among different human populations. So far, 139 pathogenic and 243 polymorphic mt tRNA mutations have been described and they have become the foreground of numerous case reports. Given the complexity of mitochondrial genetics and biochemistry, the clinical manifestations of mitochondrial disorders are extremely heterogeneous. They range from lesions of single tissues or structures to more severe impairements including myopathies, encephalomyopathies, cardiomyopathies, or complex multisystem syndromes. Moreover, the exact mechanisms by which biochemical cascades can be dramatically affected by mitochondrial tRNA mutations still remain uncharacterized. However and regardless of the vast amount of information that daily emerges, only few efforts have been carried out to systematically record all the mitochondrial tRNA-associated pathogenic mutations or polymorphisms. In this report, we summarize all the clinical phenotypes associated with mitochondrial tRNA pathogenic mutations that have been reported so far. In a next step we describe in detail all the pathogenic and polymorphic mutations that have been recorded so far and we categorize them per tRNA species and per associated disease. Finally, we discuss the impact of the frequency of mitochondrial tRNA mutations in general population surveys and we preview any relevant implications on the essential functional integrity of mitochondrial biochemical pathways.
Open Access
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