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Schwartz HT, Tan CH, Peraza J, Raymundo KLT, Sternberg PW. Molecular identification of a peroxidase gene controlling body size in the entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema hermaphroditum. Genetics 2024; 226:iyad209. [PMID: 38078889 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 02/08/2024] Open
Abstract
The entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema hermaphroditum was recently rediscovered and is being developed as a genetically tractable experimental system for the study of previously unexplored biology, including parasitism of its insect hosts and mutualism with its bacterial endosymbiont Xenorhabdus griffiniae. Through whole-genome re-sequencing and genetic mapping we have for the first time molecularly identified the gene responsible for a mutationally defined phenotypic locus in an entomopathogenic nematode. In the process we observed an unexpected mutational spectrum following ethyl methansulfonate mutagenesis in this species. We find that the ortholog of the essential Caenorhabditis elegans peroxidase gene skpo-2 controls body size and shape in S. hermaphroditum. We confirmed this identification by generating additional loss-of-function mutations in the gene using CRISPR-Cas9. We propose that the identification of skpo-2 will accelerate gene targeting in other Steinernema entomopathogenic nematodes used commercially in pest control, as skpo-2 is X-linked and males hemizygous for loss of its function can mate, making skpo-2 an easily recognized and maintained marker for use in co-CRISPR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hillel T Schwartz
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - Chieh-Hsiang Tan
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - Jackeline Peraza
- Department of Biology, Barnard College of Columbia University, NewYork, NY 10027, USA
| | | | - Paul W Sternberg
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
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Bartoš O, Bohlen J, Šlechtová VB, Kočí J, Röslein J, Janko K. Sequence capture: Obsolete or irreplaceable? A thorough validation across phylogenetic distances and its applicability to hybrids and allopolyploids. Mol Ecol Resour 2023. [PMID: 37122140 DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.13806] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2021] [Revised: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
As whole-genome sequencing has become pervasive, some have suggested that reduced genomic representation approaches, for example, sequence capture, are becoming obsolete. In the present study, we argue that these techniques still provide excellent tools in terms of price and quality of data as well as in their ability to provide markers with specific features, as required, for example, in phylogenomics. A potential drawback of the wide-scale application of reduced representation approaches could be their drop in efficiency with increasing phylogenetic distance from the reference species. While some studies have focused on the degree and performance of reduced representation techniques in such situations, to our knowledge, none of them evaluated their applicability to inter-specific hybrids and polyploids. This highlights a significant gap in current knowledge since there is increasing evidence for the frequent occurrence of natural hybrids and polyploids, as well as for the major importance of both phenomena in evolution. The main aim of the present study was to carry out a thorough validation of SEQcap applicability to (1) a set of non-model taxa with a wide range of phylogenetic relatedness and (2) inter-specific hybrids of various ploidies and genomic compositions. Considering the latter point, we especially focused on mechanisms causing allelic bias and consequent allelic dropout, as these could have confounding effects with respect to the evolutionary genomic dynamics of hybrids, especially in asexuals, which virtually reproduce as a frozen F1 generation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oldřich Bartoš
- Laboratory of Fish Genetics, Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Libechov, Czech Republic
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jörg Bohlen
- Laboratory of Fish Genetics, Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Libechov, Czech Republic
| | - Vendula Bohlen Šlechtová
- Laboratory of Fish Genetics, Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Libechov, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Kočí
- Laboratory of Fish Genetics, Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Libechov, Czech Republic
- Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Röslein
- Laboratory of Fish Genetics, Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Libechov, Czech Republic
- Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
| | - Karel Janko
- Laboratory of Fish Genetics, Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Libechov, Czech Republic
- Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
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Smith HE. Mutation Mapping and Identification by Whole-Genome Sequencing. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2468:257-269. [PMID: 35320569 PMCID: PMC9389619 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2181-3_13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Geneticists approach biology with a simple question: which genes are required for the pathway or process of interest? Classical genetic screens (aka forward genetics) in model organisms such as Caenorhabditis elegans have been the method of choice for answering that question. Next-generation sequencing provides the means to generate a comprehensive list of sequence variants, including the mutation of interest. Herein is described a workflow for sample preparation and data analysis to allow the simultaneous mapping and identification of candidate mutations by whole-genome sequencing in Caenorhabditis elegans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harold E Smith
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
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New evaluation methods of read mapping by 17 aligners on simulated and empirical NGS data: an updated comparison of DNA- and RNA-Seq data from Illumina and Ion Torrent technologies. Neural Comput Appl 2021; 33:15669-15692. [PMID: 34155424 PMCID: PMC8208613 DOI: 10.1007/s00521-021-06188-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2020] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
During the last (15) years, improved omics sequencing technologies have expanded the scale and resolution of various biological applications, generating high-throughput datasets that require carefully chosen software tools to be processed. Therefore, following the sequencing development, bioinformatics researchers have been challenged to implement alignment algorithms for next-generation sequencing reads. However, nowadays selection of aligners based on genome characteristics is poorly studied, so our benchmarking study extended the “state of art” comparing 17 different aligners. The chosen tools were assessed on empirical human DNA- and RNA-Seq data, as well as on simulated datasets in human and mouse, evaluating a set of parameters previously not considered in such kind of benchmarks. As expected, we found that each tool was the best in specific conditions. For Ion Torrent single-end RNA-Seq samples, the most suitable aligners were CLC and BWA-MEM, which reached the best results in terms of efficiency, accuracy, duplication rate, saturation profile and running time. About Illumina paired-end osteomyelitis transcriptomics data, instead, the best performer algorithm, together with the already cited CLC, resulted Novoalign, which excelled in accuracy and saturation analyses. Segemehl and DNASTAR performed the best on both DNA-Seq data, with Segemehl particularly suitable for exome data. In conclusion, our study could guide users in the selection of a suitable aligner based on genome and transcriptome characteristics. However, several other aspects, emerged from our work, should be considered in the evolution of alignment research area, such as the involvement of artificial intelligence to support cloud computing and mapping to multiple genomes.
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Rasmussen NR, Smith HE, Reiner DJ. The MLK-1/SCD-4 Mixed Lineage Kinase/MAP3K functions to promote dauer formation upstream of DAF-2/InsR. MICROPUBLICATION BIOLOGY 2021; 2021. [PMID: 34142023 PMCID: PMC8207178 DOI: 10.17912/micropub.biology.000405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The C. elegans dauer is an alternative third stage larva induced by dense population and adverse environmental conditions. Genes whose mutants caused dauer formation constitutive (Daf-c) and dauer formation defective (Daf-d) phenotypes were ordered via epistasis into a signaling network, with upstream DAF-7/TGF-beta and DAF-11/receptor guanylyl cyclase defining sensory branches and downstream DAF-2/Insulin receptor and DAF-12/nuclear hormone receptor executing the dauer decision. Mutations in the Scd genes were defined as incompletely penetrant suppressors of the constitutive dauer phenotype conferred by mutation of the DAF-7/TGF-beta signaling axis. SCD-2 was previously shown to be an ortholog of mammalian ALK (Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase), a receptor tyrosine kinase. Mutations disrupting the HEN-1/Jeb ligand, SOC-1/DOS/GAB adaptor protein and SMA-5/ERK5 atypical MAP Kinase caused Scd phenotypes similar to that of mutant SCD-2. This group regulated expression from a TGF-beta-responsive GFP reporter. Here we find that a strain harboring a mutation in the uncharacterized SCD-4 is mutant for MLK-1, the C. elegans ortholog of mammalian Mixed Lineage Kinase and Drosophila slipper (slpr), a MAP3 kinase. We validated this finding by showing that a previously characterized deletion in MLK-1 caused a Scd phenotype similar to that of mutant SCD-4 and altered expression from the TGF-beta-responsive GFP reporter, suggesting that SCD-4 and MLK-1 are the same protein. Based on shared phenotypes and molecular identities, we hypothesize that MLK-1 functions as a MAP3K in the SCD-2/ALK cascade that signals through SMA-5/ERK5 MAP Kinase to modulate the output of the TGF-beta cascade controlling dauer formation in response to environmental cues.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Harold E Smith
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
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A complement factor H homolog, heparan sulfation, and syndecan maintain inversin compartment boundaries in C. elegans cilia. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2016698118. [PMID: 33859044 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2016698118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a leading cause of blindness among the elderly. Canonical disease models suggest that defective interactions between complement factor H (CFH) and cell surface heparan sulfate (HS) result in increased alternative complement pathway activity, cytolytic damage, and tissue inflammation in the retina. Although these factors are thought to contribute to increased disease risk, multiple studies indicate that noncanonical mechanisms that result from defective CFH and HS interaction may contribute to the progression of AMD as well. A total of 60 ciliated sensory neurons in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans detect chemical, olfactory, mechanical, and thermal cues in the environment. Here, we find that a C. elegans CFH homolog localizes on CEP mechanosensory neuron cilia where it has noncanonical roles in maintaining inversin/NPHP-2 within its namesake proximal compartment and preventing inversin/NPHP-2 accumulation in distal cilia compartments in aging adults. CFH localization and maintenance of inversin/NPHP-2 compartment integrity depend on the HS 3-O sulfotransferase HST-3.1 and the transmembrane proteoglycan syndecan/SDN-1. Defective inversin/NPHP-2 localization in mouse and human photoreceptors with CFH mutations indicates that these functions and interactions may be conserved in vertebrate sensory neurons, suggesting that previously unappreciated defects in cilia structure may contribute to the progressive photoreceptor dysfunction associated with CFH loss-of-function mutations in some AMD patients.
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Bradshaw JL, Rafiqullah IM, Robinson DA, McDaniel LS. Transformation of nonencapsulated Streptococcus pneumoniae during systemic infection. Sci Rep 2020; 10:18932. [PMID: 33144660 PMCID: PMC7641166 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-75988-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2020] [Accepted: 10/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) is a principal cause of bacterial middle ear infections, pneumonia, and meningitis. Capsule-targeted pneumococcal vaccines have likely contributed to increased carriage of nonencapsulated S. pneumoniae (NESp). Some NESp lineages are associated with highly efficient DNA uptake and transformation frequencies. However, NESp strains lack capsule that may increase disease severity. We tested the hypothesis that NESp could acquire capsule during systemic infection and transform into more virulent pneumococci. We reveal that NESp strains MNZ67 and MNZ41 are highly transformable and resistant to multiple antibiotics. Natural transformation of NESp when co-administered with heat-killed encapsulated strain WU2 in a murine model of systemic infection resulted in encapsulation of NESp and increased virulence during bacteremia. Functional capsule production increased the pathogenic potential of MNZ67 by significantly decreasing complement deposition on the bacterial surface. However, capsule acquisition did not further decrease complement deposition on the relatively highly pathogenic strain MNZ41. Whole genome sequencing of select transformants demonstrated that recombination of up to 56.7 kbp length occurred at the capsule locus, along with additional recombination occurring at distal sites harboring virulence-associated genes. These findings indicate NESp can compensate for lack of capsule production and rapidly evolve into more virulent strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica L Bradshaw
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA.,Department of Physiology and Anatomy, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, USA
| | - Iftekhar M Rafiqullah
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA
| | - D Ashley Robinson
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA
| | - Larry S McDaniel
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA.
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Harnessing the power of genetics: fast forward genetics in Caenorhabditis elegans. Mol Genet Genomics 2020; 296:1-20. [PMID: 32888055 DOI: 10.1007/s00438-020-01721-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Forward genetics is a powerful tool to unravel molecular mechanisms of diverse biological processes. The success of genetic screens primarily relies on the ease of genetic manipulation of an organism and the availability of a plethora of genetic tools. The roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans has been one of the favorite models for genetic studies due to its hermaphroditic lifestyle, ease of maintenance, and availability of various genetic manipulation tools. The strength of C. elegans genetics is highlighted by the leading role of this organism in the discovery of several conserved biological processes. In this review, the principles and strategies for forward genetics in C. elegans are discussed. Further, the recent advancements that have drastically accelerated the otherwise time-consuming process of mutation identification, making forward genetic screens a method of choice for understanding biological functions, are discussed. The emphasis of the review has been on providing practical and conceptual pointers for designing genetic screens that will identify mutations, specifically disrupting the biological processes of interest.
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Poterico JA, Mestanza O. Response to comment on "genetic variants and source of introduction of SARS-CoV-2 in South America". J Med Virol 2020; 93:25-27. [PMID: 32716059 DOI: 10.1002/jmv.26359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
During a pandemic, science needs data to generate helpful evidence, and researchers assume this responsibility despite the risk of potential bias. This is the response to the comment made by Pedro Romero, who argued that our manuscript did not use reassembling and mapping strategies for corroborating mutations, and lacked bootstrap support in the phylogenetic analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julio A Poterico
- Genetics Service, Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño-San Borja (INSN-SB), Lima, Peru
| | - Orson Mestanza
- Genetics Service, Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño-San Borja (INSN-SB), Lima, Peru
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Identification of Suppressors of top-2 Embryonic Lethality in Caenorhabditis elegans. G3-GENES GENOMES GENETICS 2020; 10:1183-1191. [PMID: 32086248 PMCID: PMC7144083 DOI: 10.1534/g3.119.400927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Topoisomerase II is an enzyme with important roles in chromosome biology. This enzyme relieves supercoiling and DNA and RNA entanglements generated during mitosis. Recent studies have demonstrated that Topoisomerase II is also involved in the segregation of homologous chromosomes during the first meiotic division. However, the function and regulation of Topoisomerase II in meiosis has not been fully elucidated. Here, we conducted a genetic suppressor screen in Caenorhabditis elegans to identify putative genes that interact with topoisomerase II during meiosis. Using a temperature-sensitive allele of topoisomerase II, top-2(it7ts), we identified eleven suppressors of top-2-induced embryonic lethality. We used whole-genome sequencing and a combination of RNAi and CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing to identify and validate the responsible suppressor mutations. We found both recessive and dominant suppressing mutations that include one intragenic and 10 extragenic loci. The extragenic suppressors consist of a known Topoisomerase II-interacting protein and two novel interactors. We anticipate that further analysis of these suppressing mutations will provide new insights into the function of Topoisomerase II during meiosis.
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Gross LE, Spies N, Simm S, Schleiff E. Toc75-V/OEP80 is processed during translocation into chloroplasts, and the membrane-embedded form exposes its POTRA domain to the intermembrane space. FEBS Open Bio 2020; 10:444-454. [PMID: 31953987 PMCID: PMC7050246 DOI: 10.1002/2211-5463.12791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2019] [Revised: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The insertion of membrane proteins requires proteinaceous complexes in the cytoplasm, the membrane, and the lumen of organelles. Most of the required complexes have been described, while the components for insertion of β-barrel-type proteins into the outer membrane of chloroplasts remain unknown. The same holds true for the signals required for the insertion of β-barrel-type proteins. At present, only the processing of Toc75-III, the β-barrel-type protein of the central chloroplast translocon with an atypical signal, has been explored in detail. However, it has been debated whether Toc75-V/ outer envelope protein 80 (OEP80), a second protein of the same family, contains a signal and undergoes processing. To substantiate the hypothesis that Toc75-V/OEP80 is processed as well, we reinvestigated the processing in a protoplast-based assay as well as in native membranes. Our results confirm the existence of a cleavable segment. By protease protection and pegylation, we observed intermembrane space localization of the soluble N-terminal domain. Thus, Toc75-V contains a cleavable N-terminal signal and exposes its polypeptide transport-associated domains to the intermembrane space of plastids, where it likely interacts with its substrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucia E. Gross
- Department of Molecular Cell Biology of PlantsGoethe UniversityFrankfurtGermany
| | - Nicole Spies
- Department of Molecular Cell Biology of PlantsGoethe UniversityFrankfurtGermany
| | - Stefan Simm
- Department of Molecular Cell Biology of PlantsGoethe UniversityFrankfurtGermany
- Frankfurt Institute for Advanced StudiesGermany
| | - Enrico Schleiff
- Department of Molecular Cell Biology of PlantsGoethe UniversityFrankfurtGermany
- Frankfurt Institute for Advanced StudiesGermany
- Buchmann Institute for Molecular Life SciencesGoethe UniversityFrankfurtGermany
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Bush SJ, Foster D, Eyre DW, Clark EL, De Maio N, Shaw LP, Stoesser N, Peto TEA, Crook DW, Walker AS. Genomic diversity affects the accuracy of bacterial single-nucleotide polymorphism-calling pipelines. Gigascience 2020; 9:giaa007. [PMID: 32025702 PMCID: PMC7002876 DOI: 10.1093/gigascience/giaa007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2019] [Revised: 12/02/2019] [Accepted: 01/15/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Accurately identifying single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from bacterial sequencing data is an essential requirement for using genomics to track transmission and predict important phenotypes such as antimicrobial resistance. However, most previous performance evaluations of SNP calling have been restricted to eukaryotic (human) data. Additionally, bacterial SNP calling requires choosing an appropriate reference genome to align reads to, which, together with the bioinformatic pipeline, affects the accuracy and completeness of a set of SNP calls obtained. This study evaluates the performance of 209 SNP-calling pipelines using a combination of simulated data from 254 strains of 10 clinically common bacteria and real data from environmentally sourced and genomically diverse isolates within the genera Citrobacter, Enterobacter, Escherichia, and Klebsiella. RESULTS We evaluated the performance of 209 SNP-calling pipelines, aligning reads to genomes of the same or a divergent strain. Irrespective of pipeline, a principal determinant of reliable SNP calling was reference genome selection. Across multiple taxa, there was a strong inverse relationship between pipeline sensitivity and precision, and the Mash distance (a proxy for average nucleotide divergence) between reads and reference genome. The effect was especially pronounced for diverse, recombinogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli but less dominant for clonal species such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis. CONCLUSIONS The accuracy of SNP calling for a given species is compromised by increasing intra-species diversity. When reads were aligned to the same genome from which they were sequenced, among the highest-performing pipelines was Novoalign/GATK. By contrast, when reads were aligned to particularly divergent genomes, the highest-performing pipelines often used the aligners NextGenMap or SMALT, and/or the variant callers LoFreq, mpileup, or Strelka.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen J Bush
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Research Protection Unit in Healthcare Associated Infections and Antimicrobial Resistance at University of Oxford in partnership with Public Health England, Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Dona Foster
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - David W Eyre
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Emily L Clark
- The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, UK
| | - Nicola De Maio
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridgeshire, CB10 1SH, UK
| | - Liam P Shaw
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Nicole Stoesser
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Tim E A Peto
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Research Protection Unit in Healthcare Associated Infections and Antimicrobial Resistance at University of Oxford in partnership with Public Health England, Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Derrick W Crook
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Research Protection Unit in Healthcare Associated Infections and Antimicrobial Resistance at University of Oxford in partnership with Public Health England, Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - A Sarah Walker
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Research Protection Unit in Healthcare Associated Infections and Antimicrobial Resistance at University of Oxford in partnership with Public Health England, Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
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Wamucho A, Unrine JM, Kieran TJ, Glenn TC, Schultz CL, Farman M, Svendsen C, Spurgeon DJ, Tsyusko OV. Genomic mutations after multigenerational exposure of Caenorhabditis elegans to pristine and sulfidized silver nanoparticles. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2019; 254:113078. [PMID: 31479814 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2019] [Revised: 07/31/2019] [Accepted: 08/17/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Our previous study showed heritable reproductive toxicity in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans after multigenerational exposure to AgNO3 and silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs). The aim of this study was to determine whether such inheritable effects are correlated with induced germline mutations in C. elegans. Individual C. elegans lineages were exposed for 10 generations to equitoxic concentrations at EC30 of AgNO3, Ag-NPs, and sulfidized Ag-NPs (sAg-NPs), a predominant environmentally transformed product of pristine Ag-NPs. The mutations were detected via whole genome DNA sequencing approach by comparing F0 and F10 generations. An increase in the total number of variants, though not statistically significant, was observed for all Ag treatments and the variants were mainly contributed by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). This potentially contributed towards reproductive as well as growth toxicity shown previously after ten generations of exposure in every Ag treatment. However, despite Ag-NPs and AgNO3 inducing stronger reproductive toxicity than sAg-NPs, exposure to sAg-NPs resulted in higher mutation accumulation with significant increase in the number of transversions. Thus our results suggest that other mechanisms of inheritance, such as epigenetics, may be at play in Ag-NP- and AgNO3-induced multigenerational and transgenerational reproductive toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anye Wamucho
- Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Kentucky, 1100 S. Limestone St., Lexington, KY 40546, USA; Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology, University of Kentucky, 1095 V.A. Drive, 306 Health Science Research Building, Lexington, KY 40536, USA
| | - Jason M Unrine
- Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Kentucky, 1100 S. Limestone St., Lexington, KY 40546, USA; Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology, University of Kentucky, 1095 V.A. Drive, 306 Health Science Research Building, Lexington, KY 40536, USA
| | - Troy J Kieran
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, 120 Green St., GA 30602-7223, USA
| | - Travis C Glenn
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, 120 Green St., GA 30602-7223, USA
| | - Carolin L Schultz
- Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh-Gifford, Wallingford, Oxon OX10 8BB, UK; Department of Materials, Oxford University, Begbroke Science Park, Begbroke Hill, Yarnton, Oxford OX5 1PF, UK
| | - Mark Farman
- Department of Plant Pathology, 225 Plant Science Building, Lexington, KY 40546, USA
| | - Claus Svendsen
- Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh-Gifford, Wallingford, Oxon OX10 8BB, UK
| | - David J Spurgeon
- Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh-Gifford, Wallingford, Oxon OX10 8BB, UK
| | - Olga V Tsyusko
- Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Kentucky, 1100 S. Limestone St., Lexington, KY 40546, USA; Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology, University of Kentucky, 1095 V.A. Drive, 306 Health Science Research Building, Lexington, KY 40536, USA.
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Iacoangeli A, Al Khleifat A, Sproviero W, Shatunov A, Jones AR, Morgan SL, Pittman A, Dobson RJ, Newhouse SJ, Al-Chalabi A. DNAscan: personal computer compatible NGS analysis, annotation and visualisation. BMC Bioinformatics 2019; 20:213. [PMID: 31029080 PMCID: PMC6487045 DOI: 10.1186/s12859-019-2791-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2018] [Accepted: 04/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) is a commonly used technology for studying the genetic basis of biological processes and it underpins the aspirations of precision medicine. However, there are significant challenges when dealing with NGS data. Firstly, a huge number of bioinformatics tools for a wide range of uses exist, therefore it is challenging to design an analysis pipeline. Secondly, NGS analysis is computationally intensive, requiring expensive infrastructure, and many medical and research centres do not have adequate high performance computing facilities and cloud computing is not always an option due to privacy and ownership issues. Finally, the interpretation of the results is not trivial and most available pipelines lack the utilities to favour this crucial step. RESULTS We have therefore developed a fast and efficient bioinformatics pipeline that allows for the analysis of DNA sequencing data, while requiring little computational effort and memory usage. DNAscan can analyse a whole exome sequencing sample in 1 h and a 40x whole genome sequencing sample in 13 h, on a midrange computer. The pipeline can look for single nucleotide variants, small indels, structural variants, repeat expansions and viral genetic material (or any other organism). Its results are annotated using a customisable variety of databases and are available for an on-the-fly visualisation with a local deployment of the gene.iobio platform. DNAscan is implemented in Python. Its code and documentation are available on GitHub: https://github.com/KHP-Informatics/DNAscan . Instructions for an easy and fast deployment with Docker and Singularity are also provided on GitHub. CONCLUSIONS DNAscan is an extremely fast and computationally efficient pipeline for analysis, visualization and interpretation of NGS data. It is designed to provide a powerful and easy-to-use tool for applications in biomedical research and diagnostic medicine, at minimal computational cost. Its comprehensive approach will maximise the potential audience of users, bringing such analyses within the reach of non-specialist laboratories, and those from centres with limited funding available.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Iacoangeli
- Department of Biostatistics and Health Informatics, King's College London, London, UK. .,Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK.
| | - A Al Khleifat
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK
| | - W Sproviero
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK
| | - A Shatunov
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK
| | - A R Jones
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK
| | - S L Morgan
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, UCL, Institute of Neurology, London, UK
| | - A Pittman
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, UCL, Institute of Neurology, London, UK
| | - R J Dobson
- Department of Biostatistics and Health Informatics, King's College London, London, UK.,Farr Institute of Health Informatics Research, UCL Institute of Health Informatics, University College London, London, UK.,National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre and Dementia Unit at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and King's College London, London, UK
| | - S J Newhouse
- Department of Biostatistics and Health Informatics, King's College London, London, UK.,Farr Institute of Health Informatics Research, UCL Institute of Health Informatics, University College London, London, UK.,National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre and Dementia Unit at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and King's College London, London, UK
| | - A Al-Chalabi
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK.,King's College Hospital, Bessemer Road, London, SE5 9RS, UK
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