Nucleolar protein Nop25 is involved in nucleolar architecture

Protein expression of nucleolar protein 12 in the retina and its implication in protection of retina from UV irradiation damage

Nucleolar protein 12 (NOL12), one of the nucleolar proteins which are primarily expressed in the nucleolus and play key roles in RNA metabolism, cell proliferation, cell cycle, and cell survival, is widely expressed in various species and multiple organs. Although it has been reported that the mRNA of Drosophila NOL12 homolog viriato is expressed in the eyes of Drosophila, the protein expression of NOL12 in mammalian eyes remains to be elucidated. In this study, we showed through immunohistochemistry that NOL12 was present in the rat retina, with predominant distribution in the cytoplasm of the retinal neuronal cells. In the human retinoblastoma cell line WERI-Rb1, we found that altering NOL12 expression led to a change in WERI-Rb1 cell viability. Knocking down NOL12 expression decreased cell viability. In contrast, overexpressing NOL12 increased cell viability. Furthermore, increasing NOL12 expression inhibited ultraviolet (UV)-induced apoptosis. These findings demonstrated that NOL12 may play an important protective role in retinal cells. In the WERI-Rb1 cells exposed to UV irradiation, we detected that NOL12 was degraded, but this degradation could be attenuated by a pan-Caspase inhibitor. Notably, the inhibitory effect of NOL12 against UV-induced apoptosis could be restrained by increasing the expression of ATR serine/threonine kinase (ATR), a kinase that, when activated by severe DNA damage, can result in apoptosis. We also found that upregulating NOL12 inhibited the activation of ATR caused by UV irradiation. Additionally, inhibiting ATR activity reduced apoptosis resulting from both silencing NOL12 expression and UV exposure. Thus, NOL12 may protect against UV irradiation-induced retinal damage by inhibiting ATR activity.

The nucleolar protein NOL12 is required for processing of large ribosomal subunit rRNA precursors in Arabidopsis

BACKGROUND

NOL12 5'-3' exoribonucleases, conserved among eukaryotes, play important roles in pre-rRNA processing, ribosome assembly and export. The most well-described yeast counterpart, Rrp17, is required for maturation of 5.8 and 25S rRNAs, whereas human hNOL12 is crucial for the separation of the large (LSU) and small (SSU) ribosome subunit rRNA precursors.

RESULTS

In this study we demonstrate that plant AtNOL12 is also involved in rRNA biogenesis, specifically in the processing of the LSU rRNA precursor, 27S pre-rRNA. Importantly, the absence of AtNOL12 alters the expression of many ribosomal protein and ribosome biogenesis genes. These changes could potentially exacerbate rRNA biogenesis defects, or, conversely, they might stem from the disturbed ribosome assembly caused by delayed pre-rRNA processing. Moreover, exposure of the nol12 mutant to stress factors, including heat and pathogen Pseudomonas syringae, enhances the observed molecular phenotypes, linking pre-rRNA processing to stress response pathways. The aberrant rRNA processing, dependent on AtNOL12, could impact ribosome function, as suggested by improved mutant resistance to ribosome-targeting antibiotics.

CONCLUSION

Despite extensive studies, the pre-rRNA processing pathway in plants remains insufficiently characterized. Our investigation reveals the involvement of AtNOL12 in the maturation of rRNA precursors, correlating this process to stress response in Arabidopsis. These findings contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of plant ribosome biogenesis.

The human cellular protein NoL12 is a specific partner of the HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein NCp7

The human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) nucleocapsid protein (NCp7) is a nucleic acid chaperone protein with two highly conserved zinc fingers. To exert its key roles in the viral cycle, NCp7 interacts with several host proteins. Among them, the human NoL12 protein (hNoL12) was previously identified in genome wide screens as a potential partner of NCp7. hNoL12 is a highly conserved 25 kDa nucleolar RNA-binding protein implicated in the 5'end processing of ribosomal RNA in the nucleolus and thus in the assembly and maturation of ribosomes. In this work, we confirmed the NCp7/hNoL12 interaction in cells by Förster resonance energy transfer visualized by Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy and co-immunoprecipitation. The interaction between NCp7 and hNoL12 was found to strongly depend on their both binding to RNA, as shown by the loss of interaction when the cell lysates were pretreated with RNase. Deletion mutants of hNoL12 were tested for their co-immunoprecipitation with NCp7, leading to the identification of the exonuclease domain of hNoL12 as the binding domain for NCp7. Finally, the interaction with hNoL12 was found to be specific of the mature NCp7 and to require NCp7 basic residues. IMPORTANCE HIV-1 mature nucleocapsid (NCp7) results from the maturation of the Gag precursor in the viral particle and is thus mostly abundant in the first phase of the infection which ends with the genomic viral DNA integration in the cell genome. Most if not all the nucleocapsid partners identified so far are not specific of the mature form. We described here the specific interaction in the nucleolus between NCp7 and the human nucleolar protein 12, a protein implicated in ribosomal RNA maturation and DNA damage response. This interaction takes place in the cell nucleolus, a subcellular compartment where NCp7 accumulates. The absence of binding between hNoL12 and Gag makes hNoL12 one of the few known specific cellular partners of NCp7.

NOL12 Repression Induces Nucleolar Stress-Driven Cellular Senescence and Is Associated with Normative Aging

The nucleolus is a subnuclear compartment with key roles in rRNA synthesis and ribosome biogenesis, complex processes that require hundreds of proteins and factors. Alterations in nucleolar morphology and protein content have been linked to the control of cell proliferation and stress responses and, recently, further implicated in cell senescence and ageing. In this study, we report the functional role of NOL12 in the nucleolar homeostasis of human primary fibroblasts. NOL12 repression induces specific changes in nucleolar morphology, with increased nucleolar area but reduced nucleolar number, along with nucleolar accumulation and increased levels of fibrillarin and nucleolin. Moreover, NOL12 repression leads to stabilization and activation of p53 in an RPL11-dependent manner, which arrests cells at G₂ phase and ultimately leads to senescence. Importantly, we found NOL12 repression in association with nucleolar stress-like responses in human fibroblasts from elderly donors, disclosing it as a biomarker in human chronological aging.

Nol12 is a multifunctional RNA binding protein at the nexus of RNA and DNA metabolism

To counteract the breakdown of genome integrity, eukaryotic cells have developed a network of surveillance pathways to prevent and resolve DNA damage. Recent data has recognized the importance of RNA binding proteins (RBPs) in DNA damage repair (DDR) pathways. Here, we describe Nol12 as a multifunctional RBP with roles in RNA metabolism and genome maintenance. Nol12 is found in different subcellular compartments-nucleoli, where it associates with ribosomal RNA and is required for efficient separation of large and small subunit precursors at site 2; the nucleoplasm, where it co-localizes with the RNA/DNA helicase Dhx9 and paraspeckles; as well as GW/P-bodies in the cytoplasm. Loss of Nol12 results in the inability of cells to recover from DNA stress and a rapid p53-independent ATR-Chk1-mediated apoptotic response. Nol12 co-localizes with DNA repair proteins in vivo including Dhx9, as well as with TOPBP1 at sites of replication stalls, suggesting a role for Nol12 in the resolution of DNA stress and maintenance of genome integrity. Identification of a complex Nol12 interactome, which includes NONO, Dhx9, DNA-PK and Stau1, further supports the protein's diverse functions in RNA metabolism and DNA maintenance, establishing Nol12 as a multifunctional RBP essential for genome integrity.

The dynamics of the alternatively spliced NOL7 gene products and role in nucleolar architecture

Three alternatively spliced forms of the human NOL7 gene coding for relatively small proteins were identified. The two shorter forms were generated by intron retention events, and each isoform was differently localized within the cell. The NOL7-SP1 long form (29 kD) localized to the nucleolus, SP2 was nucleoplasmic, while SP3 was distributed throughout the whole cell. NOL7-SP1 was confined to the nucleolar granular component, and during cell division disassociated from the nucleolus. Knockdown of NOL7-SP1 levels abrogated nucleolar architecture, in particular the internal regions, and reduced cell proliferation. Analysis of the nucleolar dynamics of the SP1 protein during interphase showed nucleolar high binding affinity. Dissection of protein domains showed that nucleolar targeting was mediated by a unique C-terminal nucleolar localization sequence (NoLS). However, this sequence was not sufficient for conferring high binding affinity, which required additional regions of the protein. Our analysis shows that NOL7 is important for maintaining internal nucleolar structure and cell growth rates, and that while specific protein localization can be obtained by specific short localization motifs, nucleolar residency through binding must be mediated by a synergistic combination of protein modules.

Heat shock protein 70 inhibits hydrogen peroxide-induced nucleolar fragmentation via suppressing cleavage and down-regulation of nucleolin

It has been reported that nucleolar fragmentation is a part of the overall apoptotic morphology, however, it is currently obscure whether and how nucleolar fragmentation can be induced by hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) and heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) can prevent nucleolar fragmentation. To dissect these two questions, C(2)C(12) myogenic cells and immortalized mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) with heat shock transcriptional factor 1 (HSF1) null mutation were treated with heat shock response (HS) (42.5 ± 0.5°C for 1 h and recovery at 37°C for 24 h) and then were insulted with 0.5 mmol/L H(2)O(2). Morphological changes of nucleoli were observed under contrast microscope or electronic microscope. It was found that (1) stimulation with H(2)O(2)-induced nucleolar fragmentation by mediating cleavage and down-regulation of nucleolar protein, nucleolin in C(2)C(12) myocytes and MEFs; (2) HS suppressed nucleolar fragmentation by inducing the expression of Hsp70 in an HSF1-dependent manner as indicated by assays of transfection with Hsp70 antisense oligonucleotides (AS-ONs) or recombinant plasmids of full-length Hsp70 cDNA; (3) protection of Hsp70 against nucleolar fragmentation was related to its accumulation in nucleolus mediated by nuclear localization sequence and its inhibition against cleavage and down-regulation of nucleolin. These results suggested that H(2)O(2)-induced nucleolar fragmentation and HS or Hsp70 inhibit H(2)O(2)-induced nucleolar fragmentation through the translocation of Hsp70 into nucleolar and its protection against impairment of nucleolin.

The Drosophila Nol12 homologue viriato is a dMyc target that regulates nucleolar architecture and is required for dMyc-stimulated cell growth

The nucleolus is a subnuclear factory, the activity of which is required beyond ribosome biogenesis for the regulation of cell growth, death and proliferation. In both Drosophila and mammalian cells, the activity of the nucleolus is regulated by the proto-oncogene Myc. Myc induces the transcription of genes required for ribosome biogenesis and the synthesis of rRNA by RNA polymerase I, a nucleolar event that is rate limiting for cell growth. Here, we show that the fruit fly Nol12 homologue Viriato is a key determinant of nucleolar architecture that is required for tissue growth and cell survival during Drosophila development. We further show that viriato expression is controlled by Drosophila Myc (dMyc), and that the ability of dMyc to stimulate nucleolar and cellular growth depends on viriato expression. Therefore, viriato acts downstream of dMyc to ensure a coordinated nucleolar response to dMyc-induced growth and, thereby, normal organ development.