Background: RNA editing is a co/posttranscriptional modification mechanism that increases the diversity of transcripts, with potential functional consequences. The advent of next-generation sequencing technologies has...Background: RNA editing is a co/posttranscriptional modification mechanism that increases the diversity of transcripts, with potential functional consequences. The advent of next-generation sequencing technologies has enabled the identification of RNA edits at unprecedented throughput and resolution. However, our knowledge of RNA editing in swine is still limited.Results: Here, we utilized RES-Scanner to identify RNA editing sites in the brain, subcutaneous fat, heart, liver,muscle, lung and ovary in three 180-day-old Large White gilts based on matched strand-specific RNA sequencing and whole-genome resequencing datasets. In total, we identified 74863 editing sites, and 92.1% of these sites caused adenosine-to-guanosine(A-to-G) conversion. Most A-to-G sites were located in noncoding regions and generally had low editing levels. In total, 151 A-to-G sites were detected in coding regions(CDS), including 94 sites that could lead to nonsynonymous amino acid changes. We provide further evidence supporting a previous observation that pig transcriptomes are highly editable at PRE-1 elements. The number of A-to-G editing sites ranged from 4155(muscle) to 25001(brain) across the seven tissues. The expression levels of the ADAR enzymes could explain some but not all of this variation across tissues. The functional analysis of the genes with tissuespecific editing sites in each tissue revealed that RNA editing might play important roles in tissue function.Specifically, more pathways showed significant enrichment in the fat and liver than in other tissues, while no pathway was enriched in the muscle.Conclusions: This study identified a total of 74863 nonredundant RNA editing sites in seven tissues and revealed the potential importance of RNA editing in tissue function. Our findings largely extend the porcine editome and enhance our understanding of RNA editing in swine.展开更多
Single-guide RNA(sg RNA) is one of the two core components of the CRISPR(clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat)/Cas(CRISPR-associated) genome-editing technology. We established an in vitro Traffic L...Single-guide RNA(sg RNA) is one of the two core components of the CRISPR(clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat)/Cas(CRISPR-associated) genome-editing technology. We established an in vitro Traffic Light Reporter(TLR) system, which is designated as the same colors as traffic lights such as green, red and yellow were produced in cells. The TLR can be readily used in maize mesophyll protoplast for a quick test of promoter activity. The TLR assay indicates the variation in transcription activities of the seven Pol III promoters, from 3.4%(U6-1) to over 21.0%(U6-6). The U6-2 promoter, which was constructed to drive sg RNA expression targeting the Zm Wx1 gene, yielded mutation efficiencies ranging from 48.5% to 97.1%. Based on the reported and unpublished data, the in vitro TLR assay results were confirmed to be a readily system and may be extended to other plant species amenable to efficient genome editing via CRISPR/Cas. Our efforts provide an efficient method of identifying native Pol III-recognized promoters for RNA guide-based genome-editing systems in maize.展开更多
Background: The widely observed RNA-DNA differences(RDDs) have been found to be due to nucleotide alteration by RNA editing. Canonical RNA editing(i.e., A-to-I and C-to-U editing) mediated by the adenosine deaminases ...Background: The widely observed RNA-DNA differences(RDDs) have been found to be due to nucleotide alteration by RNA editing. Canonical RNA editing(i.e., A-to-I and C-to-U editing) mediated by the adenosine deaminases acting on RNA(ADAR) family and apolipoprotein B mRNA editing catalytic polypeptide-like(APOBEC)family during the transcriptional process is considered common and essential for the development of an individual.To date, an increasing number of RNA editing sites have been reported in human, rodents, and some farm animals;however, genome-wide detection of RNA editing events in sheep has not been reported. The aim of this study was to identify RNA editing events in sheep by comparing the RNA-seq and DNA-seq data from three biological replicates of the kidney and spleen tissues.Results: A total of 607 and 994 common edited sites within the three biological replicates were identified in the ovine kidney and spleen, respectively. Many of the RDDs were specific to an individual. The RNA editing-related genes identified in the present study might be evolved for specific biological functions in sheep, such as structural constituent of the cytoskeleton and microtubule-based processes. Furthermore, the edited sites found in the ovine BLCAP and NEIL1 genes are in line with those in previous reports on the porcine and human homologs, suggesting the existence of evolutionarily conserved RNA editing sites and they may play an important role in the structure and function of genes.Conclusions: Our study is the first to investigate RNA editing events in sheep. We screened out 607 and 994 RNA editing sites in three biological replicates of the ovine kidney and spleen and annotated 164 and 247 genes in the kidney and spleen, respectively. The gene function and conservation analysis of these RNA editing-related genes suggest that RNA editing is associated with important gene function in sheep. The putative functionally important RNA editing sites reported in the present study will help future studies on the relationship between these edited sites and the genetic traits in sheep.展开更多
To study the expression of RNA editing deaminases ADAR2 and ADAR3 in different malignant glioma cell lines and the effect of phenylacetate on the expression of these genes, the primarily glial cells of human brain tis...To study the expression of RNA editing deaminases ADAR2 and ADAR3 in different malignant glioma cell lines and the effect of phenylacetate on the expression of these genes, the primarily glial cells of human brain tissue were isolated and cultured. The human glioma SHG-44, U-251, BT-325 cell lines were maintained in culture. The expressions of ADAP,.2 and ADAR3 mRNA were detected by the semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR). The changes in ADAR2 mRNA expression before and after phenylacetate treatment were detected by RT-PCR and image analysis. The level of ADAR gene expression is expressed as the ratio expression rate(RER) of ADAR gene to β-actin according to computer image analysis. ADAR2 displays moderate expression in glial cells, low expression in low-grade malignant glioma SHG-44 cells, and high level expression in high-grade malignant glioma U-251and BT-325 cells. The expression of ADAR2 can be decreased by phenylacetate treatment in glioma U-251 cells. ADAR3 is not expressed in normal brain glial cells, or glioma SHG-44, U-251 and BT-325 cells before and after phenylacetate treatment. The enhanced expression of ADAR2 may be involved in the tumor progression of malignant glioma. Phenylacetate can decrease the expression of ADAR2 in glioma cells, suggesting that it may act on the RNA editing process in glioma.展开更多
Plant chlorophyll biosynthesis and chloroplast development are two complex processes that are regulated by exogenous and endogenous factors. In this study, we identified OsDXR, a gene encoding a reductoisomerase that ...Plant chlorophyll biosynthesis and chloroplast development are two complex processes that are regulated by exogenous and endogenous factors. In this study, we identified OsDXR, a gene encoding a reductoisomerase that positively regulates chlorophyll biosynthesis and chloroplast development in rice. OsDXR knock-out lines displayed the albino phenotype and could not complete the whole life cycle process. OsDXR was highly expressed in rice leaves, and subcellular localization indicated that OsDXR is a chloroplast protein. Many genes involved in chlorophyll biosynthesis and chloroplast development were differentially expressed in the OsDXR knock-out lines compared to the wild type.Moreover, we found that the RNA editing efficiencies of ndhA-1019 and rpl2-1 were significantly reduced in the OsDXR knock-out lines. Furthermore, OsDXR interacted with the RNA editing factor OsMORF1 in a yeast two-hybrid screen and bimolecular fluorescence complementation assay. Finally, disruption of the plastidial 2-C-methyl-derythritol-4-phosphate pathway resulted in defects in chloroplast development and the RNA editing of chloroplast genes.展开更多
Cytidine-to-uridine(C-to-U)RNA editing is common in coding regions of organellar genomes throughout land plants.In most cases RNA editing alters translated amino acids or creates new start codons,potentially confounds...Cytidine-to-uridine(C-to-U)RNA editing is common in coding regions of organellar genomes throughout land plants.In most cases RNA editing alters translated amino acids or creates new start codons,potentially confounds phylogenetic reconstructions.In this study,we used the spike moss genus Selaginella(lycophytes),which has the highest frequency of RNA editing,as a model to test the effects of extreme RNA editing on phylogenetic reconstruction.We predicted the C-to-U RNA editing sites in coding regions of 18 Selaginella plastomes,and reconstructed the phylogenetic relationships within Selaginella based on three data set pairs consisted of plastome or RNA-edited coding sequences,first and second codon positions,and translated amino acid sequences,respectively.We predicted between 400 and 3100 RNA editing sites of 18 Selaginella plastomes.The numbers of RNA editing sites in plastomes were highly correlated with the GC content of first and second codon positions,but not correlated with the GC content of plastomes as a whole.Contrast phylogenetic analyses showed that there were substantial differences(e.g.,the placement of clade B in Selaginella)between the phylogenies generated by the plastome and RNA-edited data sets.This empirical study provides evidence that extreme C-to-U RNA editing in the coding regions of organellar genomes alters the sequences used for phylogenetic reconstruction,and might even confound phylogenetic reconstruction.Therefore,RNA editing sites should be corrected when plastid or mitochondrial genes are used for phylogenetic studies,particularly in those lineages with abundant organellar RNA editing sites,such as hornworts,quillworts,spike mosses,and some seed plants.展开更多
Photosynthesis occurs mainly in chloroplasts,whose development is regulated by proteins encoded by nuclear genes.Among them,pentapeptide repeat(PPR)proteins participate in organelle RNA editing.Although there are more...Photosynthesis occurs mainly in chloroplasts,whose development is regulated by proteins encoded by nuclear genes.Among them,pentapeptide repeat(PPR)proteins participate in organelle RNA editing.Although there are more than 450 members of the PPR protein family in rice,only a few affect RNA editing in rice chloroplasts.Gene editing technology has created new rice germplasm and mutants,which could be used for rice breeding and gene function study.This study evaluated the functions of OsPPR9 in chloroplast RNA editing in rice.The osppr9 mutants were obtained by CRISPR/Cas9,which showed yellowing leaves and a lethal phenotype,with suppressed expression of genes associated with chloroplast development and accumulation of photosynthetic-related proteins.In addition,loss of OsPPR9 protein function reduces the editing efficiency of rps8-C182,rpoC2-C4106,rps14-C80,and ndhB-C611 RNA editing sites,which affects chloroplast growth and development in rice.Our data showed that OsPPR9 is highly expressed in rice leaves and encodes a DYW-PPR protein localized in chloroplasts.Besides,the OsPPR9 protein was shown to interact with OsMORF2 and OsMORF9.Together,our findings provide insights into the role of the PPR protein in regulating chloroplast development in rice.展开更多
The evolutionary and functional features of RNA editing are well studied in mammals,cephalopods,and insects,but not in birds.Here,we integrated transcriptomic and whole-genomic analyses to exhaustively characterize th...The evolutionary and functional features of RNA editing are well studied in mammals,cephalopods,and insects,but not in birds.Here,we integrated transcriptomic and whole-genomic analyses to exhaustively characterize the expansive repertoire of adenosine-to-inosine(A-to-I)RNA editing sites(RESs)in the chicken.In addition,we investigated the evolutionary status of the chicken editome as a potential mechanism of domestication.We detected the lowest editing level in the liver of chickens,compared to muscles in humans,and found higher editing activity and specificity in the brain than in non-neural tissues,consistent with the brain’s functional complexity.To a certain extent,specific editing activity may account for the specific functions of tissues.Our results also revealed that sequences critical to RES secondary structures remained conserved within avian evolution.Furthermore,the RNA editome was shaped by purifying selection during chicken domestication and most RESs may have served as a selection pool for a few functional RESs involved in chicken domestication,including evolution of nervous and immune systems.Regulation of RNA editing in chickens by adenosine deaminase acting on RNA(ADAR)enzymes may be affected by non-ADAR factors whose expression levels changed widely after ADAR knockdown.Collectively,we provide comprehensive lists of candidate RESs and non-ADAR-editing regulators in the chicken,thus contributing to our current understanding of the functions and evolution of RNA editing in animals.展开更多
Recent sequencing efforts have broadly uncovered the evolutionary trajectory of plastid genomes(plastomes)of flowering plants in diverse habitats,yet our knowledge of the evolution of plastid posttranscriptional modif...Recent sequencing efforts have broadly uncovered the evolutionary trajectory of plastid genomes(plastomes)of flowering plants in diverse habitats,yet our knowledge of the evolution of plastid posttranscriptional modifications is limited.In this study,we generated 11 complete plastomes and performed ultra-deep transcriptome sequencing to investigate the co-evolution of plastid RNA editing and genetic variation in Cymbidium,a genus with diverse trophic lifestyles.Genome size and gene content is reduced in terrestrial and green mycoheterotrophic orchids relative to their epiphytic relatives.This could be partly due to extensive losses and pseudogenization of ndh genes for the plastid NADH dehydrogenase-like complex,but independent pseudogenization of ndh genes has also occurred in the epiphyte C.mannii,which was reported to use strong crassulacean acid metabolism photosynthesis.RNA editing sites are abundant but variable in number among Cymbidium plastomes.The nearly twofold variation in editing abundance is mainly due to extensive reduction of ancestral editing sites in ndh transcripts of terrestrial,mycoheterotrophic,and C.mannii plastomes.The co-occurrence of editing reduction and pseudogenization in ndh genes suggests functional constraints on editing machinery may be relaxed,leading to nonrandom loss of ancestral edited sites via reduced editing efficiency.This study represents the first systematic examination of RNA editing evolution linked to plastid genome variation in a single genus.We also propose an explanation for how genomic and posttranscriptional variations might be affected by lifestyle-associated ecological adaptation strategies in Cymbidium.展开更多
It is known that RNA editing occurs in human cells, which can change the information transmission from DNA to RNA and proteins. Most previous studies have focused on editing of the mRNAs. Here we reported that several...It is known that RNA editing occurs in human cells, which can change the information transmission from DNA to RNA and proteins. Most previous studies have focused on editing of the mRNAs. Here we reported that several kinds of RNAs, including miRNA, rRNA, mRNA, miscRNA and unknown RNA, exhibited base editing in a human fetal liver. Several editing types are displayed. Our data reveals that RNA editing may occur in different species of RNAs.展开更多
In higher plants, the chloroplast is the most important organelle for photosynthesis and for numerous essential metabolic processes in the cell. Although many genes involved in chloroplast development have been identi...In higher plants, the chloroplast is the most important organelle for photosynthesis and for numerous essential metabolic processes in the cell. Although many genes involved in chloroplast development have been identified, the mechanisms underlying such development are not fully understood. In this study, a rice(Oryza sativa) mutant exhibiting pale green color and seedling lethality was isolated from a mutant library. The mutated gene was identified as an ortholog of THA8(thylakoid assembly 8) in Arabidopsis and maize. This gene is designated as OsTHA8 hereafter. OsTHA8 showed a typical pentatricopeptide repeat(PPR) characteristic of only four PPR motifs. Inactivation of OsTHA8 led to a deficiency in chloroplast development in the rice seedling stage. OsTHA8 was expressed mainly in young leaves and leaf sheaths.The OsTHA8 protein was localized to the chloroplast. Loss of function of OsTHA8 weakened the editing efficiency of ndhB-611/737 and rps8-182 transcripts under normal conditions. Y2H and BiFC indicated that OsTHA8 facilitates RNA editing by forming an editosome with multiple organellar RNA editing factor(OsMORF8) and thioredoxin z(OsTRXz), which function in RNA editing in rice chloroplasts. Defective OsTHA8 impaired chloroplast ribosome assembly and resulted in reduced expression of PEP-dependent genes and photosynthesis-related genes. Abnormal splicing of the chloroplast gene ycf3 was detected in ostha8. These findings reveal a synergistic regulatory mechanism of chloroplast biogenesis mediated by RNA, broaden the function of the PPR family, and shed light on the RNA editing complex in rice.展开更多
Sunflower is one of the most used commercial oilseed crops and suffers due to Powdery mildew. RNA sequence alteration occurs due to RNA editing which is a post transcriptional modification. It causes a deviation from ...Sunflower is one of the most used commercial oilseed crops and suffers due to Powdery mildew. RNA sequence alteration occurs due to RNA editing which is a post transcriptional modification. It causes a deviation from the genomic DNA sequence resulting in RNA-DNA differences. Accurate study of RNA editing events in diverse species is possible by NGS based methods. Here, we performed RNA sequencing of 12 leaf transcriptomes, which include three genotypes of Helianthus annuus (2023B, TX16R and ID25), H. debilis, H. niveus, and H. praecox along with their respective powdery mildew pathogen infected variants and systematically analysed the mitochondrial RNA editing events using computational reference-based mapping approach. We discovered 687 editing sites, 220 editing events in the protein-coding regions, among all species and genotypes considered in this study. These included “C to U” and “U to C” RNA editing events. On further analysis, we observed that these editing events include 14 different types of amino acid changes that involve the creation of two stop codon events. The conserved editing sites identified were 247 accounting for ~36% of all the editing sites identified. This study provides a detailed picture of the Helianthus species’ mitochondrial RNA editing status. We have identified and characterized for the first time, genotype-specific, species-specific, and stress-specific RNA editing events which may be useful as a potential source for stress-responsive studies in the future.展开更多
RNA editing changes the nucleotides at the transcript level of mitochondrial genes which results in synthesis of functional proteins.This study was designed to find the editing sites which could be implicated in male ...RNA editing changes the nucleotides at the transcript level of mitochondrial genes which results in synthesis of functional proteins.This study was designed to find the editing sites which could be implicated in male fertility restoration and to develop editing based markers for differentiation of cytoplasmic male sterility and maintainer lines from each other.DNA and RNA from young panicles were isolated from three-line system of hybrid rice PRH10,wild abortive(WA)cytoplasm based male sterile(A line Pusa 6A),maintainer(B line Pusa 6B)and restorer(R line PRR78)lines.Pusa 6A and PRR78 having the same WA cytoplasm are allo-nuclear and iso-cytpolasmic lines.The genomic and cDNA amplicons for eight mitochondrial genes(18SrRNA,atp6,atp9,cobII,coxI,coxIII,nadI and rps3)were sequenced and compared.Differences in genomic and cDNA sequences were considered as editing.Two hundred and thirty editing sites having base substitution or insertion/deletion were identified with the highest in 18SrRNA(5.74%)and the lowest in coxI(0.60%).The highest editing sites were observed in fertile maintainer Pusa 6B followed by PRR78 and Pusa 6A,of which random five editing sites in five different rice mitochondrial transcripts namely atp9,cobII,coxIII,rps3 and 18SrRNA were chosen and validated through cleaved amplified polymorphism sequence(CAPS)analysis and found to be partially edited in four genes.The identical editing sites of different mitochondrial genes from maintainer and restorer lines might reflect their possible contribution to fertility restoration of sterile WA cytoplasm.展开更多
Background: RNA editing is a widespread post-transcriptional modification mechanism in mammalian genomes.Although many editing sites have been identified in domestic pigs(Sus scrofa), little is known about the charact...Background: RNA editing is a widespread post-transcriptional modification mechanism in mammalian genomes.Although many editing sites have been identified in domestic pigs(Sus scrofa), little is known about the characteristics and dynamic regulation of RNA editing in the pineal gland(PG), a small neuroendocrine gland that synthesizes and secretes melatonin, which is primarily responsible to modulate sleep patterns.Results: This study analyzed the expression of adenosine-to-inosine(A-to-I) editing regulators and profiled the first dynamic A-to-I RNA editome during postnatal PG development. The results identified ADAR1 as the most abundantly expressed ADAR enzyme, which was down-regulated during postnatal PG development. Furthermore,47,284 high-confidence RNA editing sites were identified, the majority of which(93.6%) were of the canonical A-to-I editing type, followed by C-to-T editing. Analysis of its characteristics showed that the A-to-I editing sites mostly localized in SINE retrotransposons PRE-1/Pre0_SS. Moreover, a strong deficiency and preference for guanine nucleotides at positions of one base upstream or downstream were found, respectively. The overall editing level at the puberty stage was higher than at both infancy and adulthood stages. Additionally, genome-wide RNA editing was found to exhibit a dynamic stage-specific fashion(postnatally). Genes that underwent developmental changes in RNA editing were associated with catabolic processes as well as protein localization and transport functions,implying that RNA editing might be responsible for the molecular machineries of the postnatal developing PG.Remarkably, RNA editing in 3′-UTRs might regulate gene expression by influencing miRNA binding during PG development.Conclusions: This study profiles the first comprehensive developmental RNA editome in the pig PG, which contributes to the understanding of the importance of post-transcriptionally mediated regulation during mammalian postnatal PG development. Moreover, this study widely extends RNA editome resources in mammals.展开更多
Base editing, as an expanded clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats(CRISPR)-Cas genome editing strategy, permits precise and irreversible nucleotide conversion. SaKKH, an efficient variant of a Cas9...Base editing, as an expanded clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats(CRISPR)-Cas genome editing strategy, permits precise and irreversible nucleotide conversion. SaKKH, an efficient variant of a Cas9 ortholog from Staphylococcus aureus(SaCas9), is important in genome editing because it can edit sites with HHHAAT protospacer adjacent motif(PAM) that the canonical Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9(SpCas9) or its variants(e.g. xCas9, Cas9-NG) cannot. However, several technical parameters of SaKKH involved base editors have not been well defined and this uncertainty limits their application. We developed an effective multiplex cytosine base editor(SaKKHn-pBE) and showed that it recognized NNARRT, NNCRRT, NNGRGT, and NNTRGT PAMs. Based on 27 targets tested, we defined technical parameters of SaKKHn-pBE including the editing window, the preferred sequence context, and the mutation type. The editing efficiency was further improved by modification of the SaKKH sgRNA. These advances can be applied in future research and molecular breeding in rice and other plants.展开更多
The CRISPR-Cas13 system,an RNA-guided editing tool,has emerged as a highly efficient and stable RNA editing technique.Although the CRISPR-Cas13 system has been developed in several insect species,its application in le...The CRISPR-Cas13 system,an RNA-guided editing tool,has emerged as a highly efficient and stable RNA editing technique.Although the CRISPR-Cas13 system has been developed in several insect species,its application in lepidopterans has not yet been reported.In the present study,we evaluated the RNA cleavage activity of the CRISPR-Cas13 system in the silkworm(Bombyx mori),a model lepidopteran insect,both ex vivo and in vivo.We established two stable silkworm BmE cell lines expressing PspCas13b and CasRx,respectively.Further analysis demonstrated that both PspCas13b and CasRx effectively down-regulated the transcription of exogenouslyintroduced target and endogenous genes in these cell lines.In addition,we generated two transgenic silkworm strains,one expressing CasRx and the other expressing RNA-guided CRISPR RNA targeting Sex combs reduced(Scr).Further crossing experiments showed that CasRx induced a down-regulation of Scr transcription in silkworms,which impaired systemic growth of larvae.Overall,this study demonstrated that the CRISPR-Cas13RNA editing system works efficiently in the silkworm,providing a potential alternative approach for RNA manipulation in lepidopteran insects.展开更多
基金supported by the National Key Technology R&D Program of China(2015BAD03B02–2)Beijing Natural Science Foundation(6174047)+1 种基金earmarked fund for Modern Agro-industry Technology Research System(CARS-35)Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program(ASTIP-IAS02)
文摘Background: RNA editing is a co/posttranscriptional modification mechanism that increases the diversity of transcripts, with potential functional consequences. The advent of next-generation sequencing technologies has enabled the identification of RNA edits at unprecedented throughput and resolution. However, our knowledge of RNA editing in swine is still limited.Results: Here, we utilized RES-Scanner to identify RNA editing sites in the brain, subcutaneous fat, heart, liver,muscle, lung and ovary in three 180-day-old Large White gilts based on matched strand-specific RNA sequencing and whole-genome resequencing datasets. In total, we identified 74863 editing sites, and 92.1% of these sites caused adenosine-to-guanosine(A-to-G) conversion. Most A-to-G sites were located in noncoding regions and generally had low editing levels. In total, 151 A-to-G sites were detected in coding regions(CDS), including 94 sites that could lead to nonsynonymous amino acid changes. We provide further evidence supporting a previous observation that pig transcriptomes are highly editable at PRE-1 elements. The number of A-to-G editing sites ranged from 4155(muscle) to 25001(brain) across the seven tissues. The expression levels of the ADAR enzymes could explain some but not all of this variation across tissues. The functional analysis of the genes with tissuespecific editing sites in each tissue revealed that RNA editing might play important roles in tissue function.Specifically, more pathways showed significant enrichment in the fat and liver than in other tissues, while no pathway was enriched in the muscle.Conclusions: This study identified a total of 74863 nonredundant RNA editing sites in seven tissues and revealed the potential importance of RNA editing in tissue function. Our findings largely extend the porcine editome and enhance our understanding of RNA editing in swine.
基金supported by the National Science Foundation of China(31771808)Ministry of Science and Technology(2015BAD02B0203)+1 种基金National Engineering Laboratory of Crop Molecular Breedingthe Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences(Y2017XM03)
文摘Single-guide RNA(sg RNA) is one of the two core components of the CRISPR(clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat)/Cas(CRISPR-associated) genome-editing technology. We established an in vitro Traffic Light Reporter(TLR) system, which is designated as the same colors as traffic lights such as green, red and yellow were produced in cells. The TLR can be readily used in maize mesophyll protoplast for a quick test of promoter activity. The TLR assay indicates the variation in transcription activities of the seven Pol III promoters, from 3.4%(U6-1) to over 21.0%(U6-6). The U6-2 promoter, which was constructed to drive sg RNA expression targeting the Zm Wx1 gene, yielded mutation efficiencies ranging from 48.5% to 97.1%. Based on the reported and unpublished data, the in vitro TLR assay results were confirmed to be a readily system and may be extended to other plant species amenable to efficient genome editing via CRISPR/Cas. Our efforts provide an efficient method of identifying native Pol III-recognized promoters for RNA guide-based genome-editing systems in maize.
基金funded by the National Nature Science Foundation of China(U1136605)Ningxia Agricultural Breeding Program(NXNYYZ20150103)Program for Changjiang Scholar and Innovation Research Team in University(IRT1191)
文摘Background: The widely observed RNA-DNA differences(RDDs) have been found to be due to nucleotide alteration by RNA editing. Canonical RNA editing(i.e., A-to-I and C-to-U editing) mediated by the adenosine deaminases acting on RNA(ADAR) family and apolipoprotein B mRNA editing catalytic polypeptide-like(APOBEC)family during the transcriptional process is considered common and essential for the development of an individual.To date, an increasing number of RNA editing sites have been reported in human, rodents, and some farm animals;however, genome-wide detection of RNA editing events in sheep has not been reported. The aim of this study was to identify RNA editing events in sheep by comparing the RNA-seq and DNA-seq data from three biological replicates of the kidney and spleen tissues.Results: A total of 607 and 994 common edited sites within the three biological replicates were identified in the ovine kidney and spleen, respectively. Many of the RDDs were specific to an individual. The RNA editing-related genes identified in the present study might be evolved for specific biological functions in sheep, such as structural constituent of the cytoskeleton and microtubule-based processes. Furthermore, the edited sites found in the ovine BLCAP and NEIL1 genes are in line with those in previous reports on the porcine and human homologs, suggesting the existence of evolutionarily conserved RNA editing sites and they may play an important role in the structure and function of genes.Conclusions: Our study is the first to investigate RNA editing events in sheep. We screened out 607 and 994 RNA editing sites in three biological replicates of the ovine kidney and spleen and annotated 164 and 247 genes in the kidney and spleen, respectively. The gene function and conservation analysis of these RNA editing-related genes suggest that RNA editing is associated with important gene function in sheep. The putative functionally important RNA editing sites reported in the present study will help future studies on the relationship between these edited sites and the genetic traits in sheep.
文摘To study the expression of RNA editing deaminases ADAR2 and ADAR3 in different malignant glioma cell lines and the effect of phenylacetate on the expression of these genes, the primarily glial cells of human brain tissue were isolated and cultured. The human glioma SHG-44, U-251, BT-325 cell lines were maintained in culture. The expressions of ADAP,.2 and ADAR3 mRNA were detected by the semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR). The changes in ADAR2 mRNA expression before and after phenylacetate treatment were detected by RT-PCR and image analysis. The level of ADAR gene expression is expressed as the ratio expression rate(RER) of ADAR gene to β-actin according to computer image analysis. ADAR2 displays moderate expression in glial cells, low expression in low-grade malignant glioma SHG-44 cells, and high level expression in high-grade malignant glioma U-251and BT-325 cells. The expression of ADAR2 can be decreased by phenylacetate treatment in glioma U-251 cells. ADAR3 is not expressed in normal brain glial cells, or glioma SHG-44, U-251 and BT-325 cells before and after phenylacetate treatment. The enhanced expression of ADAR2 may be involved in the tumor progression of malignant glioma. Phenylacetate can decrease the expression of ADAR2 in glioma cells, suggesting that it may act on the RNA editing process in glioma.
基金supported by the Program for Subsidized Project of Suzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences,China(20028)the Science and Technology Foundation of Suzhou(SNG2020048)+3 种基金the Huaishang Talents,China,the National Natural Science Foundation of China(32070345)the Huai’an Academy of Agricultural Sciences Initiation and Development of Scientific Research Fund for High-level Introduced Talents,China(0062019016B)the Six Talents Summit Project of Jiangsu Province,China(NY-129)the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province,China(BK20190239 and BK20180107)。
文摘Plant chlorophyll biosynthesis and chloroplast development are two complex processes that are regulated by exogenous and endogenous factors. In this study, we identified OsDXR, a gene encoding a reductoisomerase that positively regulates chlorophyll biosynthesis and chloroplast development in rice. OsDXR knock-out lines displayed the albino phenotype and could not complete the whole life cycle process. OsDXR was highly expressed in rice leaves, and subcellular localization indicated that OsDXR is a chloroplast protein. Many genes involved in chlorophyll biosynthesis and chloroplast development were differentially expressed in the OsDXR knock-out lines compared to the wild type.Moreover, we found that the RNA editing efficiencies of ndhA-1019 and rpl2-1 were significantly reduced in the OsDXR knock-out lines. Furthermore, OsDXR interacted with the RNA editing factor OsMORF1 in a yeast two-hybrid screen and bimolecular fluorescence complementation assay. Finally, disruption of the plastidial 2-C-methyl-derythritol-4-phosphate pathway resulted in defects in chloroplast development and the RNA editing of chloroplast genes.
基金We thank Dr.Peng-Fei Ma for improving the manuscript.We also thank the two anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments and suggestions.The study was supported by the Strategic Priority Research Program,Chinese Academy of Sciences,China(XDB 31000000)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(31970232)+1 种基金the Large-scale Scientific Facilities of the Chinese Academy of Sciences,China(2017-LSF-GBOWS-02)the technological leading talent project of Yunnan,China(2017HA014).
文摘Cytidine-to-uridine(C-to-U)RNA editing is common in coding regions of organellar genomes throughout land plants.In most cases RNA editing alters translated amino acids or creates new start codons,potentially confounds phylogenetic reconstructions.In this study,we used the spike moss genus Selaginella(lycophytes),which has the highest frequency of RNA editing,as a model to test the effects of extreme RNA editing on phylogenetic reconstruction.We predicted the C-to-U RNA editing sites in coding regions of 18 Selaginella plastomes,and reconstructed the phylogenetic relationships within Selaginella based on three data set pairs consisted of plastome or RNA-edited coding sequences,first and second codon positions,and translated amino acid sequences,respectively.We predicted between 400 and 3100 RNA editing sites of 18 Selaginella plastomes.The numbers of RNA editing sites in plastomes were highly correlated with the GC content of first and second codon positions,but not correlated with the GC content of plastomes as a whole.Contrast phylogenetic analyses showed that there were substantial differences(e.g.,the placement of clade B in Selaginella)between the phylogenies generated by the plastome and RNA-edited data sets.This empirical study provides evidence that extreme C-to-U RNA editing in the coding regions of organellar genomes alters the sequences used for phylogenetic reconstruction,and might even confound phylogenetic reconstruction.Therefore,RNA editing sites should be corrected when plastid or mitochondrial genes are used for phylogenetic studies,particularly in those lineages with abundant organellar RNA editing sites,such as hornworts,quillworts,spike mosses,and some seed plants.
基金funded by the Central Public-Interest Scientific Institution Basal Research Fund,China(CPSIBRF-CNRRI-202111 and CPSIBRF-CNRRI-202110)the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program,Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences(ASTIP)+1 种基金the Project of State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology,China(2020ZZKT10205)the Key Research and Development Project of China Rice Research Institute(CNRRI-2020-01)。
文摘Photosynthesis occurs mainly in chloroplasts,whose development is regulated by proteins encoded by nuclear genes.Among them,pentapeptide repeat(PPR)proteins participate in organelle RNA editing.Although there are more than 450 members of the PPR protein family in rice,only a few affect RNA editing in rice chloroplasts.Gene editing technology has created new rice germplasm and mutants,which could be used for rice breeding and gene function study.This study evaluated the functions of OsPPR9 in chloroplast RNA editing in rice.The osppr9 mutants were obtained by CRISPR/Cas9,which showed yellowing leaves and a lethal phenotype,with suppressed expression of genes associated with chloroplast development and accumulation of photosynthetic-related proteins.In addition,loss of OsPPR9 protein function reduces the editing efficiency of rps8-C182,rpoC2-C4106,rps14-C80,and ndhB-C611 RNA editing sites,which affects chloroplast growth and development in rice.Our data showed that OsPPR9 is highly expressed in rice leaves and encodes a DYW-PPR protein localized in chloroplasts.Besides,the OsPPR9 protein was shown to interact with OsMORF2 and OsMORF9.Together,our findings provide insights into the role of the PPR protein in regulating chloroplast development in rice.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(32100342,U1902204,31771415,31801054)Bureau of Science and Technology of Yunnan Province(2015FA026)+1 种基金Youth Innovation Promotion AssociationWest Light Foundation of CAS(Y902401081)。
文摘The evolutionary and functional features of RNA editing are well studied in mammals,cephalopods,and insects,but not in birds.Here,we integrated transcriptomic and whole-genomic analyses to exhaustively characterize the expansive repertoire of adenosine-to-inosine(A-to-I)RNA editing sites(RESs)in the chicken.In addition,we investigated the evolutionary status of the chicken editome as a potential mechanism of domestication.We detected the lowest editing level in the liver of chickens,compared to muscles in humans,and found higher editing activity and specificity in the brain than in non-neural tissues,consistent with the brain’s functional complexity.To a certain extent,specific editing activity may account for the specific functions of tissues.Our results also revealed that sequences critical to RES secondary structures remained conserved within avian evolution.Furthermore,the RNA editome was shaped by purifying selection during chicken domestication and most RESs may have served as a selection pool for a few functional RESs involved in chicken domestication,including evolution of nervous and immune systems.Regulation of RNA editing in chickens by adenosine deaminase acting on RNA(ADAR)enzymes may be affected by non-ADAR factors whose expression levels changed widely after ADAR knockdown.Collectively,we provide comprehensive lists of candidate RESs and non-ADAR-editing regulators in the chicken,thus contributing to our current understanding of the functions and evolution of RNA editing in animals.
基金supported by the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(grant no.XDB31010000)by the Large-scale Scientific Facilities of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(grant no.2017-LSF-GBOWS-02)+1 种基金by an open research project for“Cross-Cooperative Team”of the Germplasm Bank of Wild Species,Kunming Institute of Botany,Chinese Academy of Sciencesby the CAS Pioneer Hundred Talents Program(to A.Z.).
文摘Recent sequencing efforts have broadly uncovered the evolutionary trajectory of plastid genomes(plastomes)of flowering plants in diverse habitats,yet our knowledge of the evolution of plastid posttranscriptional modifications is limited.In this study,we generated 11 complete plastomes and performed ultra-deep transcriptome sequencing to investigate the co-evolution of plastid RNA editing and genetic variation in Cymbidium,a genus with diverse trophic lifestyles.Genome size and gene content is reduced in terrestrial and green mycoheterotrophic orchids relative to their epiphytic relatives.This could be partly due to extensive losses and pseudogenization of ndh genes for the plastid NADH dehydrogenase-like complex,but independent pseudogenization of ndh genes has also occurred in the epiphyte C.mannii,which was reported to use strong crassulacean acid metabolism photosynthesis.RNA editing sites are abundant but variable in number among Cymbidium plastomes.The nearly twofold variation in editing abundance is mainly due to extensive reduction of ancestral editing sites in ndh transcripts of terrestrial,mycoheterotrophic,and C.mannii plastomes.The co-occurrence of editing reduction and pseudogenization in ndh genes suggests functional constraints on editing machinery may be relaxed,leading to nonrandom loss of ancestral edited sites via reduced editing efficiency.This study represents the first systematic examination of RNA editing evolution linked to plastid genome variation in a single genus.We also propose an explanation for how genomic and posttranscriptional variations might be affected by lifestyle-associated ecological adaptation strategies in Cymbidium.
文摘It is known that RNA editing occurs in human cells, which can change the information transmission from DNA to RNA and proteins. Most previous studies have focused on editing of the mRNAs. Here we reported that several kinds of RNAs, including miRNA, rRNA, mRNA, miscRNA and unknown RNA, exhibited base editing in a human fetal liver. Several editing types are displayed. Our data reveals that RNA editing may occur in different species of RNAs.
基金supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province (C2021208014)the Key R&D Program of Hebei Province (22326312D, 21326332D)。
文摘In higher plants, the chloroplast is the most important organelle for photosynthesis and for numerous essential metabolic processes in the cell. Although many genes involved in chloroplast development have been identified, the mechanisms underlying such development are not fully understood. In this study, a rice(Oryza sativa) mutant exhibiting pale green color and seedling lethality was isolated from a mutant library. The mutated gene was identified as an ortholog of THA8(thylakoid assembly 8) in Arabidopsis and maize. This gene is designated as OsTHA8 hereafter. OsTHA8 showed a typical pentatricopeptide repeat(PPR) characteristic of only four PPR motifs. Inactivation of OsTHA8 led to a deficiency in chloroplast development in the rice seedling stage. OsTHA8 was expressed mainly in young leaves and leaf sheaths.The OsTHA8 protein was localized to the chloroplast. Loss of function of OsTHA8 weakened the editing efficiency of ndhB-611/737 and rps8-182 transcripts under normal conditions. Y2H and BiFC indicated that OsTHA8 facilitates RNA editing by forming an editosome with multiple organellar RNA editing factor(OsMORF8) and thioredoxin z(OsTRXz), which function in RNA editing in rice chloroplasts. Defective OsTHA8 impaired chloroplast ribosome assembly and resulted in reduced expression of PEP-dependent genes and photosynthesis-related genes. Abnormal splicing of the chloroplast gene ycf3 was detected in ostha8. These findings reveal a synergistic regulatory mechanism of chloroplast biogenesis mediated by RNA, broaden the function of the PPR family, and shed light on the RNA editing complex in rice.
文摘Sunflower is one of the most used commercial oilseed crops and suffers due to Powdery mildew. RNA sequence alteration occurs due to RNA editing which is a post transcriptional modification. It causes a deviation from the genomic DNA sequence resulting in RNA-DNA differences. Accurate study of RNA editing events in diverse species is possible by NGS based methods. Here, we performed RNA sequencing of 12 leaf transcriptomes, which include three genotypes of Helianthus annuus (2023B, TX16R and ID25), H. debilis, H. niveus, and H. praecox along with their respective powdery mildew pathogen infected variants and systematically analysed the mitochondrial RNA editing events using computational reference-based mapping approach. We discovered 687 editing sites, 220 editing events in the protein-coding regions, among all species and genotypes considered in this study. These included “C to U” and “U to C” RNA editing events. On further analysis, we observed that these editing events include 14 different types of amino acid changes that involve the creation of two stop codon events. The conserved editing sites identified were 247 accounting for ~36% of all the editing sites identified. This study provides a detailed picture of the Helianthus species’ mitochondrial RNA editing status. We have identified and characterized for the first time, genotype-specific, species-specific, and stress-specific RNA editing events which may be useful as a potential source for stress-responsive studies in the future.
文摘RNA editing changes the nucleotides at the transcript level of mitochondrial genes which results in synthesis of functional proteins.This study was designed to find the editing sites which could be implicated in male fertility restoration and to develop editing based markers for differentiation of cytoplasmic male sterility and maintainer lines from each other.DNA and RNA from young panicles were isolated from three-line system of hybrid rice PRH10,wild abortive(WA)cytoplasm based male sterile(A line Pusa 6A),maintainer(B line Pusa 6B)and restorer(R line PRR78)lines.Pusa 6A and PRR78 having the same WA cytoplasm are allo-nuclear and iso-cytpolasmic lines.The genomic and cDNA amplicons for eight mitochondrial genes(18SrRNA,atp6,atp9,cobII,coxI,coxIII,nadI and rps3)were sequenced and compared.Differences in genomic and cDNA sequences were considered as editing.Two hundred and thirty editing sites having base substitution or insertion/deletion were identified with the highest in 18SrRNA(5.74%)and the lowest in coxI(0.60%).The highest editing sites were observed in fertile maintainer Pusa 6B followed by PRR78 and Pusa 6A,of which random five editing sites in five different rice mitochondrial transcripts namely atp9,cobII,coxIII,rps3 and 18SrRNA were chosen and validated through cleaved amplified polymorphism sequence(CAPS)analysis and found to be partially edited in four genes.The identical editing sites of different mitochondrial genes from maintainer and restorer lines might reflect their possible contribution to fertility restoration of sterile WA cytoplasm.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31902133, 31972541, 31702088)Guangdong Provincial key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding Research Grant(2019B030301010)+2 种基金the Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes (2019KSYS011)National Nonprofit Institute Research Grant (Y2016JC07 and 2018-YWF-YB-7)Foshan University Initiative Scientific Research Program。
文摘Background: RNA editing is a widespread post-transcriptional modification mechanism in mammalian genomes.Although many editing sites have been identified in domestic pigs(Sus scrofa), little is known about the characteristics and dynamic regulation of RNA editing in the pineal gland(PG), a small neuroendocrine gland that synthesizes and secretes melatonin, which is primarily responsible to modulate sleep patterns.Results: This study analyzed the expression of adenosine-to-inosine(A-to-I) editing regulators and profiled the first dynamic A-to-I RNA editome during postnatal PG development. The results identified ADAR1 as the most abundantly expressed ADAR enzyme, which was down-regulated during postnatal PG development. Furthermore,47,284 high-confidence RNA editing sites were identified, the majority of which(93.6%) were of the canonical A-to-I editing type, followed by C-to-T editing. Analysis of its characteristics showed that the A-to-I editing sites mostly localized in SINE retrotransposons PRE-1/Pre0_SS. Moreover, a strong deficiency and preference for guanine nucleotides at positions of one base upstream or downstream were found, respectively. The overall editing level at the puberty stage was higher than at both infancy and adulthood stages. Additionally, genome-wide RNA editing was found to exhibit a dynamic stage-specific fashion(postnatally). Genes that underwent developmental changes in RNA editing were associated with catabolic processes as well as protein localization and transport functions,implying that RNA editing might be responsible for the molecular machineries of the postnatal developing PG.Remarkably, RNA editing in 3′-UTRs might regulate gene expression by influencing miRNA binding during PG development.Conclusions: This study profiles the first comprehensive developmental RNA editome in the pig PG, which contributes to the understanding of the importance of post-transcriptionally mediated regulation during mammalian postnatal PG development. Moreover, this study widely extends RNA editome resources in mammals.
基金supported by the Beijing Scholars Program[BSP041]。
文摘Base editing, as an expanded clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats(CRISPR)-Cas genome editing strategy, permits precise and irreversible nucleotide conversion. SaKKH, an efficient variant of a Cas9 ortholog from Staphylococcus aureus(SaCas9), is important in genome editing because it can edit sites with HHHAAT protospacer adjacent motif(PAM) that the canonical Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9(SpCas9) or its variants(e.g. xCas9, Cas9-NG) cannot. However, several technical parameters of SaKKH involved base editors have not been well defined and this uncertainty limits their application. We developed an effective multiplex cytosine base editor(SaKKHn-pBE) and showed that it recognized NNARRT, NNCRRT, NNGRGT, and NNTRGT PAMs. Based on 27 targets tested, we defined technical parameters of SaKKHn-pBE including the editing window, the preferred sequence context, and the mutation type. The editing efficiency was further improved by modification of the SaKKH sgRNA. These advances can be applied in future research and molecular breeding in rice and other plants.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(32070496,32370555)Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(SWU120033)Technology Innovation and Application Development Program of Chongqing(CSTB2024TIADKPX0023)。
文摘The CRISPR-Cas13 system,an RNA-guided editing tool,has emerged as a highly efficient and stable RNA editing technique.Although the CRISPR-Cas13 system has been developed in several insect species,its application in lepidopterans has not yet been reported.In the present study,we evaluated the RNA cleavage activity of the CRISPR-Cas13 system in the silkworm(Bombyx mori),a model lepidopteran insect,both ex vivo and in vivo.We established two stable silkworm BmE cell lines expressing PspCas13b and CasRx,respectively.Further analysis demonstrated that both PspCas13b and CasRx effectively down-regulated the transcription of exogenouslyintroduced target and endogenous genes in these cell lines.In addition,we generated two transgenic silkworm strains,one expressing CasRx and the other expressing RNA-guided CRISPR RNA targeting Sex combs reduced(Scr).Further crossing experiments showed that CasRx induced a down-regulation of Scr transcription in silkworms,which impaired systemic growth of larvae.Overall,this study demonstrated that the CRISPR-Cas13RNA editing system works efficiently in the silkworm,providing a potential alternative approach for RNA manipulation in lepidopteran insects.