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Karabulut A, He S, Chen CY, McKinney SA, Gibson MC. Electroporation of short hairpin RNAs for rapid and efficient gene knockdown in the starlet sea anemone, Nematostella vectensis. Dev Biol 2019; 448:7-15. [PMID: 30641041 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2019.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2018] [Revised: 12/18/2018] [Accepted: 01/04/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
A mechanistic understanding of evolutionary developmental biology requires the development of novel techniques for the manipulation of gene function in phylogenetically diverse organismal systems. Recently, gene-specific knockdown by microinjection of short hairpin RNA (shRNA) was applied in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis, demonstrating that the shRNA approach can be used for efficient and robust sequence-specific knockdown of a gene of interest. However, the time- and labor-intensive process of microinjection limits access to this technique and its application in large scale experiments. To address this issue, here we present an electroporation protocol for shRNA delivery into Nematostella eggs. This method leverages the speed and simplicity of electroporation, enabling users to manipulate gene expression in hundreds of eggs or embryos within minutes. We provide a detailed description of the experimental procedure, including reagents, electroporation conditions, preparation of Nematostella eggs, and follow-up care of experimental animals. Finally, we demonstrate the knockdown of several endogenous and exogenous genes with known phenotypes and discuss the potential applications of this method.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmet Karabulut
- Stowers Institute for Medical Research, 1000 E. 50th Street, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA
| | - Shuonan He
- Stowers Institute for Medical Research, 1000 E. 50th Street, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA
| | - Cheng-Yi Chen
- Stowers Institute for Medical Research, 1000 E. 50th Street, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA
| | - Sean A McKinney
- Stowers Institute for Medical Research, 1000 E. 50th Street, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA
| | - Matthew C Gibson
- Stowers Institute for Medical Research, 1000 E. 50th Street, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA; Dept. Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City, KS 66160 USA.
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Polyphyly of nuclear lamin genes indicates an early eukaryotic origin of the metazoan-type intermediate filament proteins. Sci Rep 2015; 5:10652. [PMID: 26024016 PMCID: PMC4448529 DOI: 10.1038/srep10652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2014] [Accepted: 04/20/2015] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The nuclear lamina is a protein meshwork associated with the inner side of the nuclear envelope contributing structural, signalling and regulatory functions. Here, I report on the evolution of an important component of the lamina, the lamin intermediate filament proteins, across the eukaryotic tree of life. The lamins show a variety of protein domain and sequence motif architectures beyond the classical α-helical rod, nuclear localisation signal, immunoglobulin domain and CaaX motif organisation, suggesting extension and adaptation of functions in many species. I identified lamin genes not only in metazoa and Amoebozoa as previously described, but also in other opisthokonts including Ichthyosporea and choanoflagellates, in oomycetes, a sub-family of Stramenopiles, and in Rhizaria, implying that they must have been present very early in eukaryotic evolution if not even the last common ancestor of all extant eukaryotes. These data considerably extend the current perception of lamin evolution and have important implications with regard to the evolution of the nuclear envelope.
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Peter A, Stick R. Evolutionary aspects in intermediate filament proteins. Curr Opin Cell Biol 2015; 32:48-55. [PMID: 25576801 DOI: 10.1016/j.ceb.2014.12.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2014] [Revised: 11/05/2014] [Accepted: 12/19/2014] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Intermediate filament (IF) proteins, together with tubulins and actins, constitute the majority of cytoskeletal proteins in metazoans. Proteins of the IF family fulfil increasingly diverse functions but share common structural features. Phylogenetic analysis within the metazoan lineage traces back their origin to a common lamin-like ancestor. Major steps in lamin evolution occurred at the base of the vertebrate radiation, while cytoplasmic IF protein subfamilies evolved independently in the major metazoan lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annette Peter
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biology and Chemistry, University of Bremen, Germany
| | - Reimer Stick
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biology and Chemistry, University of Bremen, Germany.
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Schilf P, Peter A, Hurek T, Stick R. Lamins of the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) and the evolution of the vertebrate lamin protein family. Eur J Cell Biol 2014; 93:308-21. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejcb.2014.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2014] [Revised: 06/23/2014] [Accepted: 06/25/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022] Open
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Gérard K, Guilloton E, Arnaud-Haond S, Aurelle D, Bastrop R, Chevaldonné P, Derycke S, Hanel R, Lapègue S, Lejeusne C, Mousset S, Ramšak A, Remerie T, Viard F, Féral JP, Chenuil A. PCR survey of 50 introns in animals: cross-amplification of homologous EPIC loci in eight non-bilaterian, protostome and deuterostome phyla. Mar Genomics 2013; 12:1-8. [PMID: 24184205 DOI: 10.1016/j.margen.2013.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2013] [Revised: 10/03/2013] [Accepted: 10/07/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Exon Primed Intron Crossing (EPIC) markers provide molecular tools that are susceptible to be variable within species while remaining amplifiable by PCR using potentially universal primers. In this study we tested the possibility of obtaining PCR products from 50 EPIC markers on 23 species belonging to seven different phyla (Porifera, Cnidaria, Arthropoda, Nematoda, Mollusca, Annelida, Echinodermata) using 70 new primer pairs. A previous study had identified and tested those loci in a dozen species, including another phylum, Urochordata (Chenuil et al., 2010). Results were contrasted among species. The best results were achieved with the oyster (Mollusca) where 28 loci provided amplicons susceptible to contain an intron according to their size. This was however not the case with the other mollusk Crepidula fornicata, which seems to have undergone a reduction in intron number or intron size. In the Porifera, 13 loci appeared susceptible to contain an intron, a surprisingly high number for this phylum considering its phylogenetic distance with genomic data used to design the primers. For two cnidarian species, numerous loci (24) were obtained. Ecdysozoan phyla (arthropods and nematodes) proved less successful than others as expected considering reports of their rapid rate of genome evolution and the worst results were obtained for several arthropods. Some general patterns among phyla arose, and we discuss how the results of this EPIC survey may give new insights into genome evolution of the study species. This work confirms that this set of EPIC loci provides an easy-to-use toolbox to identify genetic markers potentially useful for population genetics, phylogeography or phylogenetic studies for a large panel of metazoan species. We then argue that obtaining diploid sequence genotypes for these loci became simple and affordable owing to Next-Generation Sequencing development. Species surveyed in this study belong to several genera (Acanthaster, Alvinocaris, Aplysina, Aurelia, Crepidula, Eunicella, Hediste, Hemimysis, Litoditis, Lophelia, Mesopodopsis, Mya, Ophiocten, Ophioderma, Ostrea, Pelagia, Platynereis, Rhizostoma, Rimicaris), two of them, belonging to the family Vesicomydae and Eunicidae, could not be determined at the genus level.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Gérard
- Laboratorio Ecología Molecular, las Palmeras 3425, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile.
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Abstract
Lamins are the major components of the nuclear lamina, a filamentous layer found at the interphase between chromatin and the inner nuclear membrane. The lamina supports the nuclear envelope and provides anchorage sites for chromatin. Lamins and their associated proteins are required for most nuclear activities, mitosis, and for linking the nucleoskeleton to the network of cytoskeletal filaments. Mutations in lamins and their associated proteins give rise to a wide range of diseases, collectively called laminopathies. This review focuses on the evolution of the lamin protein family. Evolution from basal metazoans to man will be described on the basis of protein sequence comparisons and analyses of their gene structure. Lamins are the founding members of the family of intermediate filament proteins. How genes encoding cytoplasmic IF proteins could have arisen from the archetypal lamin gene progenitor, can be inferred from a comparison of the respective gene structures. The lamin/IF protein family seems to be restricted to the metazoans. In general, invertebrate genomes harbor only a single lamin gene encoding a B-type lamin. The archetypal lamin gene structure found in basal metazoans is conserved up to the vertebrate lineage. The completely different structure of lamin genes in Caenorhabditis and Drosophila are exceptions rather than the rule within their systematic groups. However, variation in the length of the coiled-coil forming central domain might be more common than previously anticipated. The increase in the number of lamin genes in vertebrates can be explained by two rounds of genome duplication. The origin of lamin A by exon shuffling might explain the processing of prelamin A to the mature non-isoprenylated form of lamin A. By alternative splicing the number of vertebrate lamin proteins has increased even further. Lamin C, an alternative splice form of the LMNA gene, is restricted to mammals. Amphibians and mammals express germline-specific lamins that differ in their protein structure from that of somatic lamins. Evidence is provided that there exist lamin-like proteins outside the metazoan lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annette Peter
- Department for Cell Biology, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
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Gallegos ME, Balakrishnan S, Chandramouli P, Arora S, Azameera A, Babushekar A, Bargoma E, Bokhari A, Chava SK, Das P, Desai M, Decena D, Saramma SDD, Dey B, Doss AL, Gor N, Gudiputi L, Guo C, Hande S, Jensen M, Jones S, Jones N, Jorgens D, Karamchedu P, Kamrani K, Kolora LD, Kristensen L, Kwan K, Lau H, Maharaj P, Mander N, Mangipudi K, Menakuru H, Mody V, Mohanty S, Mukkamala S, Mundra SA, Nagaraju S, Narayanaswamy R, Ndungu-Case C, Noorbakhsh M, Patel J, Patel P, Pendem SV, Ponakala A, Rath M, Robles MC, Rokkam D, Roth C, Sasidharan P, Shah S, Tandon S, Suprai J, Truong TQN, Uthayaruban R, Varma A, Ved U, Wang Z, Yu Z. The C. elegans rab family: identification, classification and toolkit construction. PLoS One 2012; 7:e49387. [PMID: 23185324 PMCID: PMC3504004 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0049387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2012] [Accepted: 10/09/2012] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Rab monomeric GTPases regulate specific aspects of vesicle transport in eukaryotes including coat recruitment, uncoating, fission, motility, target selection and fusion. Moreover, individual Rab proteins function at specific sites within the cell, for example the ER, golgi and early endosome. Importantly, the localization and function of individual Rab subfamily members are often conserved underscoring the significant contributions that model organisms such as Caenorhabditis elegans can make towards a better understanding of human disease caused by Rab and vesicle trafficking malfunction. With this in mind, a bioinformatics approach was first taken to identify and classify the complete C. elegans Rab family placing individual Rabs into specific subfamilies based on molecular phylogenetics. For genes that were difficult to classify by sequence similarity alone, we did a comparative analysis of intron position among specific subfamilies from yeast to humans. This two-pronged approach allowed the classification of 30 out of 31 C. elegans Rab proteins identified here including Rab31/Rab50, a likely member of the last eukaryotic common ancestor (LECA). Second, a molecular toolset was created to facilitate research on biological processes that involve Rab proteins. Specifically, we used Gateway-compatible C. elegans ORFeome clones as starting material to create 44 full-length, sequence-verified, dominant-negative (DN) and constitutive active (CA) rab open reading frames (ORFs). Development of this toolset provided independent research projects for students enrolled in a research-based molecular techniques course at California State University, East Bay (CSUEB).
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria E Gallegos
- Department of Biological Sciences, California State University East Bay, Hayward, CA, USA.
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Genes encoding cytoplasmic intermediate filament proteins of vertebrates revisited: Identification of a cytoplasmic intermediate filament protein in the sea anemone Nematostella. Eur J Cell Biol 2012; 91:809-17. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejcb.2012.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2012] [Revised: 07/31/2012] [Accepted: 08/03/2012] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
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Zimek A, Weber K. Flanking genes of an essential gene give information about the evolution of metazoa. Eur J Cell Biol 2010; 90:356-64. [PMID: 21163549 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejcb.2010.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2010] [Revised: 10/06/2010] [Accepted: 10/08/2010] [Indexed: 10/18/2022] Open
Abstract
We collected as much information as possible on new lamin genes and their flanking genes. The number of lamin genes varies from 1 to 4 depending more or less on the phylogenetic position of the species. Strong genome drift is recognised by fewer and unusually placed introns and a change in flanking genes. This applies to the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, the insect Drosophila melanogaster, the urochordate Ciona intestinalis, the annelid Capitella teleta and the planaria Schmidtea mediterranea. In contrast stable genomes show astonishing conservation of the flanking genes. These are identical in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis and the cephalochordate Branchiostoma floridae lamin B1 gene. Even in the lamin B1 genes from Xenopus tropicalis and man one of the flanking genes is conserved. Finally our analysis forms the basis for a molecular analysis of metazoan phylogeny.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Zimek
- Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, 37077 Goettingen, Germany.
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Chenuil A, Hoareau TB, Egea E, Penant G, Rocher C, Aurelle D, Mokhtar-Jamai K, Bishop JDD, Boissin E, Diaz A, Krakau M, Luttikhuizen PC, Patti FP, Blavet N, Mousset S. An efficient method to find potentially universal population genetic markers, applied to metazoans. BMC Evol Biol 2010; 10:276. [PMID: 20836842 PMCID: PMC2949868 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2148-10-276] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2010] [Accepted: 09/13/2010] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Despite the impressive growth of sequence databases, the limited availability of nuclear markers that are sufficiently polymorphic for population genetics and phylogeography and applicable across various phyla restricts many potential studies, particularly in non-model organisms. Numerous introns have invariant positions among kingdoms, providing a potential source for such markers. Unfortunately, most of the few known EPIC (Exon Primed Intron Crossing) loci are restricted to vertebrates or belong to multigenic families. Results In order to develop markers with broad applicability, we designed a bioinformatic approach aimed at avoiding multigenic families while identifying intron positions conserved across metazoan phyla. We developed a program facilitating the identification of EPIC loci which allowed slight variation in intron position. From the Homolens databases we selected 29 gene families which contained 52 promising introns for which we designed 93 primer pairs. PCR tests were performed on several ascidians, echinoderms, bivalves and cnidarians. On average, 24 different introns per genus were amplified in bilaterians. Remarkably, five of the introns successfully amplified in all of the metazoan genera tested (a dozen genera, including cnidarians). The influence of several factors on amplification success was investigated. Success rate was not related to the phylogenetic relatedness of a taxon to the groups that most influenced primer design, showing that these EPIC markers are extremely conserved in animals. Conclusions Our new method now makes it possible to (i) rapidly isolate a set of EPIC markers for any phylum, even outside the animal kingdom, and thus, (ii) compare genetic diversity at potentially homologous polymorphic loci between divergent taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Chenuil
- Aix-Marseille Université, Laboratoire DIMAR, CNRS UMR6540, rue de la batterie des Lions, 13007 Marseille, France.
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Hahn Y. Molecular evolution of TEPP protein genes in metazoans. Biochem Genet 2009; 47:651-64. [PMID: 19548082 DOI: 10.1007/s10528-009-9261-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2008] [Accepted: 06/03/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
TEPP is a gene expressed in human reproductive organs such as testis, prostate, and placenta. Here, identification and molecular evolutionary analysis of TEPP proteins in various metazoan animals including deuterostomes (chordates, hemichordates, and echinoderms), lophotrochozoans (mollusks and annelids), and cnidarians (sea anemone and coral) are reported. A multiple sequence alignment revealed two highly conserved regions in TEPP proteins that had no similarity to any other known domains or proteins. Genomic sequence analysis showed frequent shifting of the splice sites of intron 1 in mammalian TEPP genes. A comparison of the intron positions in the coding region showed that the exon/intron structure of the TEPP gene was established in an early metazoan ancestor and that independent loss of a single intron occurred in echinoderms and in vertebrates. The urochordate tunicate TEPP genes are intronless, possibly due to replacement of the original gene by a retrogene. No homolog was detected in birds, insects, nematodes, and teleost fishes despite the extensive sequence data of these species, implying that the TEPP gene might be lost in these lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoonsoo Hahn
- Department of Life Science (BK21 Program) and Research Center for Biomolecules and Biosystems, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 156-756, Korea.
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