1
|
Holm LL, Doktor TK, Flugt KK, Petersen US, Petersen R, Andresen B. All exons are not created equal-exon vulnerability determines the effect of exonic mutations on splicing. Nucleic Acids Res 2024; 52:4588-4603. [PMID: 38324470 PMCID: PMC11077056 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkae077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Revised: 01/05/2024] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/09/2024] Open
Abstract
It is now widely accepted that aberrant splicing of constitutive exons is often caused by mutations affecting cis-acting splicing regulatory elements (SREs), but there is a misconception that all exons have an equal dependency on SREs and thus a similar vulnerability to aberrant splicing. We demonstrate that some exons are more likely to be affected by exonic splicing mutations (ESMs) due to an inherent vulnerability, which is context dependent and influenced by the strength of exon definition. We have developed VulExMap, a tool which is based on empirical data that can designate whether a constitutive exon is vulnerable. Using VulExMap, we find that only 25% of all exons can be categorized as vulnerable, whereas two-thirds of 359 previously reported ESMs in 75 disease genes are located in vulnerable exons. Because VulExMap analysis is based on empirical data on splicing of exons in their endogenous context, it includes all features important in determining the vulnerability. We believe that VulExMap will be an important tool when assessing the effect of exonic mutations by pinpointing whether they are located in exons vulnerable to ESMs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lise L Holm
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
- Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
| | - Thomas K Doktor
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
- Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
| | - Katharina K Flugt
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
- Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
| | - Ulrika S S Petersen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
- Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
| | - Rikke Petersen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
- Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
| | - Brage S Andresen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
- Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense M, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Martínez-Pizarro A, Álvarez M, Dembic M, Lindegaard CA, Castro M, Richard E, Andresen BS, Desviat LR. Splice-Switching Antisense Oligonucleotides Correct Phenylalanine Hydroxylase Exon 11 Skipping Defects and Rescue Enzyme Activity in Phenylketonuria. Nucleic Acid Ther 2024. [PMID: 38591802 DOI: 10.1089/nat.2024.0014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/10/2024] Open
Abstract
The PAH gene encodes the hepatic enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH), and its deficiency, known as phenylketonuria (PKU), leads to neurotoxic high levels of phenylalanine. PAH exon 11 is weakly defined, and several missense and intronic variants identified in patients affect the splicing process. Recently, we identified a novel intron 11 splicing regulatory element where U1snRNP binds, participating in exon 11 definition. In this work, we describe the implementation of an antisense strategy targeting intron 11 sequences to correct the effect of PAH mis-splicing variants. We used an in vitro assay with minigenes and identified splice-switching antisense oligonucleotides (SSOs) that correct the exon skipping defect of PAH variants c.1199+17G>A, c.1199+20G>C, c.1144T>C, and c.1066-3C>T. To examine the functional rescue induced by the SSOs, we generated a hepatoma cell model with variant c.1199+17G>A using CRISPR/Cas9. The edited cell line reproduces the exon 11 skipping pattern observed from minigenes, leading to reduced PAH protein levels and activity. SSO transfection results in an increase in exon 11 inclusion and corrects PAH deficiency. Our results provide proof of concept of the potential therapeutic use of a single SSO for different exonic and intronic splicing variants causing PAH exon 11 skipping in PKU.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ainhoa Martínez-Pizarro
- Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa UAM-CSIC, IUBM, CIBERER, IdiPaz, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Mar Álvarez
- Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa UAM-CSIC, IUBM, CIBERER, IdiPaz, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Maja Dembic
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Caroline A Lindegaard
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Margarita Castro
- Centro de Diagnóstico de Enfermedades Moleculares (CEDEM), CIBERER, IdiPaz, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Eva Richard
- Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa UAM-CSIC, IUBM, CIBERER, IdiPaz, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Brage S Andresen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Lourdes R Desviat
- Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa UAM-CSIC, IUBM, CIBERER, IdiPaz, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Lin BC, Katneni U, Jankowska KI, Meyer D, Kimchi-Sarfaty C. In silico methods for predicting functional synonymous variants. Genome Biol 2023; 24:126. [PMID: 37217943 PMCID: PMC10204308 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-023-02966-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2022] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Single nucleotide variants (SNVs) contribute to human genomic diversity. Synonymous SNVs are previously considered to be "silent," but mounting evidence has revealed that these variants can cause RNA and protein changes and are implicated in over 85 human diseases and cancers. Recent improvements in computational platforms have led to the development of numerous machine-learning tools, which can be used to advance synonymous SNV research. In this review, we discuss tools that should be used to investigate synonymous variants. We provide supportive examples from seminal studies that demonstrate how these tools have driven new discoveries of functional synonymous SNVs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Brian C Lin
- Hemostasis Branch 1, Division of Hemostasis, Office of Plasma Protein Therapeutics CMC, Office of Therapeutic Products, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Upendra Katneni
- Hemostasis Branch 1, Division of Hemostasis, Office of Plasma Protein Therapeutics CMC, Office of Therapeutic Products, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Katarzyna I Jankowska
- Hemostasis Branch 1, Division of Hemostasis, Office of Plasma Protein Therapeutics CMC, Office of Therapeutic Products, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Douglas Meyer
- Hemostasis Branch 1, Division of Hemostasis, Office of Plasma Protein Therapeutics CMC, Office of Therapeutic Products, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Chava Kimchi-Sarfaty
- Hemostasis Branch 1, Division of Hemostasis, Office of Plasma Protein Therapeutics CMC, Office of Therapeutic Products, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Sarkar A, Panati K, Narala VR. Code inside the codon: The role of synonymous mutations in regulating splicing machinery and its impact on disease. Mutat Res Rev Mutat Res 2022; 790:108444. [PMID: 36307006 DOI: 10.1016/j.mrrev.2022.108444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Revised: 10/10/2022] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
In eukaryotes, precise pre-mRNA processing, including alternative splicing, is essential to carry out the intricate protein translation process. Both point mutations (that alter the translated protein sequence) and synonymous mutations (that do not alter the translated protein sequence) are capable of affecting the splicing process. Synonymous mutations are known to affect gene expression via altering mRNA stability, mRNA secondary structure, splicing processes, and translational kinetics. In higher eukaryotes, precise splicing is regulated by three weakly conserved cis-elements, 5' and 3' splice sites and the branch site. Many other cis-acting elements (exonic/intronic splicing enhancers and silencers) and trans-acting splicing factors (serine and arginine-rich proteins and heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins) have also been found to enhance or suppress the splicing process. The appearance of synonymous mutations in cis-acting elements can alter the splicing process by changing the binding pattern of splicing factors to exonic splicing enhancers or silencer motifs. This results in exon skipping, intron retention, and various other forms of alternative splicing, eventually leading to the emergence of a wide range of diseases. The focus of this review is to elucidate the role of synonymous mutations and their impact on abnormal splicing mechanisms. Further, this study highlights the function of synonymous mutation in mediating abnormal splicing in cancer and development of X-linked, and autosomal inherited diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Avik Sarkar
- Department of Zoology, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal 721102, India
| | - Kalpana Panati
- Department of Biotechnology, Government College for Men, Kadapa 516004, India
| | | |
Collapse
|
5
|
Rajabi F, Rohr F, Wessel A, Martell L, Dobrowolski SF, Guldberg P, Güttler F, Levy HL. Phenylalanine hydroxylase genotype-phenotype associations in the United States: A single center study. Mol Genet Metab 2019; 128:415-421. [PMID: 31623983 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymgme.2019.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2019] [Revised: 09/12/2019] [Accepted: 09/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Phenylketonuria (PKU) is an autosomal recessive inborn error of metabolism caused by pathogenic variants in the phenylalanine hydroxylase gene (PAH). The correlation between genotype and phenotype can be complex and sometimes variable but often very useful for categorizing and predicting dietary tolerance and potential outcome. We reviewed medical records for 367 patients diagnosed with PKU or persistent mild hyperphenylalaninemia (MHP) between 1950 and 2015 who had PAH genotyping. In 351 we had the full PAH genotype as well as phenotypic characteristics such as phenylalanine (Phe) concentrations (at newborn screening, confirmation, and highest known), and dietary Phe tolerance. On 716 mutant chromosomes, including 14 in genotypes with only one identified variant, we identified 114 different pathogenic variants. The most frequent, p.R408W, was present in 15.4% of the alleles; other frequent variants were c.1315 + 1G > A (6.1%), p.I65T (5.7%), and p.R261Q (5.7%). Three variants, c.142 T > G (p.L48 V), c.615G > C (p.E205D), and c.1342_1345delCTCC, were novel. We used the phenotypic parameters of variants paired with null alleles (functional hemizygotes) to assign the variants as classic PKU, moderate PKU, mild PKU, MHP-gray zone, or MHP. We also included the phenotype association(s) for all of the full genotypes. In 103 patients, we also could assign sapropterin dihydrochloride responsiveness, which is a synthetic form of the tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4) PAH cofactor. This compilation from a single metabolic center provides further information on PAH variants in the United States and the correlations between genotype and phenotype.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Farrah Rajabi
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Frances Rohr
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ann Wessel
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Leslie Martell
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Per Guldberg
- Danish Cancer Society Research Center, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Harvey L Levy
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Martínez-Pizarro A, Dembic M, Pérez B, Andresen BS, Desviat LR. Intronic PAH gene mutations cause a splicing defect by a novel mechanism involving U1snRNP binding downstream of the 5' splice site. PLoS Genet 2018; 14:e1007360. [PMID: 29684050 PMCID: PMC5933811 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1007360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2017] [Revised: 05/03/2018] [Accepted: 04/11/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Phenylketonuria (PKU), one of the most common inherited diseases of amino acid metabolism, is caused by mutations in the phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene. Recently, PAH exon 11 was identified as a vulnerable exon due to a weak 3’ splice site, with different exonic mutations affecting exon 11 splicing through disruption of exonic splicing regulatory elements. In this study, we report a novel intron 11 regulatory element, which is involved in exon 11 splicing, as revealed by the investigated pathogenic effect of variants c.1199+17G>A and c.1199+20G>C, identified in PKU patients. Both mutations cause exon 11 skipping in a minigene system. RNA binding assays indicate that binding of U1snRNP70 to this intronic region is disrupted, concomitant with a slightly increased binding of inhibitors hnRNPA1/2. We have investigated the effect of deletions and point mutations, as well as overexpression of adapted U1snRNA to show that this splicing regulatory motif is important for regulation of correct splicing at the natural 5’ splice site. The results indicate that U1snRNP binding downstream of the natural 5’ splice site determines efficient exon 11 splicing, thus providing a basis for development of therapeutic strategies to correct PAH exon 11 splicing mutations. In this work, we expand the functional effects of non-canonical intronic U1 snRNP binding by showing that it may enhance exon definition and that, consequently, intronic mutations may cause exon skipping by a novel mechanism, where they disrupt stimulatory U1 snRNP binding close to the 5’ splice site. Notably, our results provide further understanding of the reported therapeutic effect of exon specific U1 snRNA for splicing mutations in disease. Splicing defects constitute a major cause of human disease. Mutations affecting conserved splicing sequences at exon-intron junctions are easily recognized as possibly pathogenic, whereas variants in exonic or intronic regions are difficult to classify without functional evidence provided by transcript analysis or in vitro analysis using minigenes. In this work, we sought out to study the pathogenicity of two novel intronic PAH variants identified in phenylketonuria patients. Both mutations resulted in exon skipping in minigenes. We demonstrate that U1snRNP70 binds to the intronic region and that this binding is abolished in the mutant sequences. Correction of the splicing defect was achieved using modified U1 snRNA perfectly complementary to each of the mutant sequences. The results extend the repertoire of natural U1 snRNP cellular functions by including its role as splicing enhancer via binding downstream of the natural 5’ splice site. In addition, our results correlate with the described therapeutic effect of modified U1snRNP for splicing mutations in different genes, thus having a significant impact in the development of specific therapies for splicing defects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ainhoa Martínez-Pizarro
- Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa UAM-CSIC, CEDEM, CIBERER, IdiPaz, Universidad Autónoma, Madrid, Spain
| | - Maja Dembic
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Belén Pérez
- Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa UAM-CSIC, CEDEM, CIBERER, IdiPaz, Universidad Autónoma, Madrid, Spain
| | - Brage S. Andresen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
- * E-mail: (BSA); (LRD)
| | - Lourdes R. Desviat
- Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa UAM-CSIC, CEDEM, CIBERER, IdiPaz, Universidad Autónoma, Madrid, Spain
- * E-mail: (BSA); (LRD)
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Arbesman J, Ravichandran S, Funchain P, Thompson CL. Melanoma cases demonstrate increased carrier frequency of phenylketonuria/hyperphenylalanemia mutations. Pigment Cell Melanoma Res 2018; 31:529-533. [PMID: 29473999 DOI: 10.1111/pcmr.12695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2017] [Accepted: 02/09/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Identifying novel melanoma genetic risk factors informs screening and prevention efforts. Mutations in the phenylalanine hydroxylase gene (the causative gene in phenylketonuria) lead to reduced pigmentation in untreated phenylketonuria patients, and reduced pigmentation is associated with greater melanoma risk. Therefore, we sought to characterize the relationship between phenylketonuria carrier status and melanoma risk. Using National Newborn Screening Reports, we determined the United States phenylketonuria/hyperphenylalanemia carrier frequency in Caucasians to be 1.76%. We examined three publically available melanoma datasets for germline mutations in the phenylalanine hydroxylase gene associated with classic phenylketonuria and/or hyperphenylalanemia. Mutations were identified in 29/814 melanoma patients, with a carrier frequency of 3.56%. There was a twofold enrichment (p-value = 3.4 × 10-5 ) compared to the Caucasian frequency of hyperphenylalanemia/phenylketonuria carriers. These data demonstrate a novel association between phenylalanine hydroxylase carrier status and melanoma risk. Further, functional investigation is warranted to determine the link between phenylalanine hydroxylase mutations and melanomagenesis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Arbesman
- Department of Dermatology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA
| | | | - Pauline Funchain
- Department of Hematology/Oncology, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH, USA
| | - Cheryl L Thompson
- Department of Nutrition, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Palhais B, Dembic M, Sabaratnam R, Nielsen KS, Doktor TK, Bruun GH, Andresen BS. The prevalent deep intronic c. 639+919 G>A GLA mutation causes pseudoexon activation and Fabry disease by abolishing the binding of hnRNPA1 and hnRNP A2/B1 to a splicing silencer. Mol Genet Metab 2016; 119:258-269. [PMID: 27595546 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymgme.2016.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2016] [Revised: 08/25/2016] [Accepted: 08/26/2016] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Fabry disease is an X-linked recessive inborn disorder of the glycosphingolipid metabolism, caused by total or partial deficiency of the lysosomal α-galactosidase A enzyme due to mutations in the GLA gene. The prevalent c.639+919 G>A mutation in GLA leads to pathogenic insertion of a 57bp pseudoexon sequence from intron 4, which is responsible for the cardiac variant phenotype. In this study we investigate the splicing regulatory mechanism leading to GLA pseudoexon activation. Splicing analysis of GLA minigenes revealed that pseudoexon activation is influenced by cell-type. We demonstrate that the wild-type sequence harbors an hnRNP A1 and hnRNP A2/B1-binding exonic splicing silencer (ESS) overlapping the 5'splice site (5'ss) that prevents pseudoexon inclusion. The c.639+919 G>A mutation disrupts this ESS allowing U1 snRNP recognition of the 5'ss. We show that the wild-type GLA 5'ss motif with the ESS is also able to inhibit inclusion of an unrelated pseudoexon in the FGB gene, and that also in the FGB context inactivation of the ESS by the c.639+919 G>A mutation causes pseudoexon activation, underscoring the universal nature of the ESS. Finally, we demonstrate that splice switching oligonucleotide (SSO) mediated blocking of the pseudoexon 3'ss and 5'ss effectively restores normal GLA splicing. This indicates that SSO based splicing correction may be a therapeutic alternative in the treatment of Fabry disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Palhais
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Maja Dembic
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Rugivan Sabaratnam
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Kira S Nielsen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Thomas Koed Doktor
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Gitte Hoffmann Bruun
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Brage Storstein Andresen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Scalet D, Balestra D, Rohban S, Bovolenta M, Perrone D, Bernardi F, Campaner S, Pinotti M. Exploring Splicing-Switching Molecules For Seckel Syndrome Therapy. Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Basis Dis 2017; 1863:15-20. [PMID: 27639833 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbadis.2016.09.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2016] [Revised: 09/05/2016] [Accepted: 09/13/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The c.2101A>G synonymous change (p.G674G) in the gene for ATR, a key player in the DNA-damage response, has been the first identified genetic cause of Seckel Syndrome (SS), an orphan disease characterized by growth and mental retardation. This mutation mainly causes exon 9 skipping, through an ill-defined mechanism. Through ATR minigene expression studies, we demonstrated that the detrimental effect of this mutation (6±1% of correct transcripts only) depends on the poor exon 9 definition (47±4% in the ATRwt context), because the change was ineffective when the weak 5' or the 3' splice sites (ss) were strengthened (scores from 0.54 to 1) by mutagenesis. Interestingly, the exonic c.2101A nucleotide is conserved across species, and the SS-causing mutation is predicted to concurrently strengthen a Splicing Silencer (ESS) and weaken a Splicing Enhancer (ESE). Consistently, the artificial c.2101A>C change, predicted to weaken the ESE only, moderately impaired exon inclusion (28±7% of correct transcripts). The observation that an antisense oligonucleotide (AONATR) targeting the c.2101A position recovers exon inclusion in the mutated context supports a major role of the underlying ESS. A U1snRNA variant (U1ATR) designed to perfectly base-pair the weak 5'ss, rescued exon inclusion (63±3%) in the ATRSS-allele. Most importantly, upon lentivirus-mediated delivery, the U1ATR partially rescued ATR mRNA splicing (from ~19% to ~54%) and protein (from negligible to ~6%) in embryonic fibroblasts derived from humanized ATRSS mice. Altogether these data elucidate the molecular mechanisms of the ATR c.2101A>G mutation and identify two potential complementary RNA-based therapies for Seckel syndrome.
Collapse
|
10
|
Bruun GH, Doktor TK, Borch-Jensen J, Masuda A, Krainer AR, Ohno K, Andresen BS. Global identification of hnRNP A1 binding sites for SSO-based splicing modulation. BMC Biol 2016; 14:54. [PMID: 27380775 PMCID: PMC4932749 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-016-0279-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2016] [Accepted: 06/23/2016] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Many pathogenic genetic variants have been shown to disrupt mRNA splicing. Besides splice mutations in the well-conserved splice sites, mutations in splicing regulatory elements (SREs) may deregulate splicing and cause disease. A promising therapeutic approach is to compensate for this deregulation by blocking other SREs with splice-switching oligonucleotides (SSOs). However, the location and sequence of most SREs are not well known. Results Here, we used individual-nucleotide resolution crosslinking immunoprecipitation (iCLIP) to establish an in vivo binding map for the key splicing regulatory factor hnRNP A1 and to generate an hnRNP A1 consensus binding motif. We find that hnRNP A1 binding in proximal introns may be important for repressing exons. We show that inclusion of the alternative cassette exon 3 in SKA2 can be significantly increased by SSO-based treatment which blocks an iCLIP-identified hnRNP A1 binding site immediately downstream of the 5’ splice site. Because pseudoexons are well suited as models for constitutive exons which have been inactivated by pathogenic mutations in SREs, we used a pseudoexon in MTRR as a model and showed that an iCLIP-identified hnRNP A1 binding site downstream of the 5′ splice site can be blocked by SSOs to activate the exon. Conclusions The hnRNP A1 binding map can be used to identify potential targets for SSO-based therapy. Moreover, together with the hnRNP A1 consensus binding motif, the binding map may be used to predict whether disease-associated mutations and SNPs affect hnRNP A1 binding and eventually mRNA splicing. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12915-016-0279-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gitte H Bruun
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, DK-5230, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Thomas K Doktor
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, DK-5230, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Jonas Borch-Jensen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, DK-5230, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Akio Masuda
- Division of Neurogenetics, Center for Neurological Diseases and Cancer, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, 466-8550, Japan
| | - Adrian R Krainer
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, PO Box 100, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, 11724, USA
| | - Kinji Ohno
- Division of Neurogenetics, Center for Neurological Diseases and Cancer, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, 466-8550, Japan
| | - Brage S Andresen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, DK-5230, Odense M, Denmark.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Hartung AM, Swensen J, Uriz IE, Lapin M, Kristjansdottir K, Petersen USS, Bang JMV, Guerra B, Andersen HS, Dobrowolski SF, Carey JC, Yu P, Vaughn C, Calhoun A, Larsen MR, Dyrskjøt L, Stevenson DA, Andresen BS. The Splicing Efficiency of Activating HRAS Mutations Can Determine Costello Syndrome Phenotype and Frequency in Cancer. PLoS Genet 2016; 12:e1006039. [PMID: 27195699 PMCID: PMC4873146 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1006039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2016] [Accepted: 04/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Costello syndrome (CS) may be caused by activating mutations in codon 12/13 of the HRAS proto-oncogene. HRAS p.Gly12Val mutations have the highest transforming activity, are very frequent in cancers, but very rare in CS, where they are reported to cause a severe, early lethal, phenotype. We identified an unusual, new germline p.Gly12Val mutation, c.35_36GC>TG, in a 12-year-old boy with attenuated CS. Analysis of his HRAS cDNA showed high levels of exon 2 skipping. Using wild type and mutant HRAS minigenes, we confirmed that c.35_36GC>TG results in exon 2 skipping by simultaneously disrupting the function of a critical Exonic Splicing Enhancer (ESE) and creation of an Exonic Splicing Silencer (ESS). We show that this vulnerability of HRAS exon 2 is caused by a weak 3' splice site, which makes exon 2 inclusion dependent on binding of splicing stimulatory proteins, like SRSF2, to the critical ESE. Because the majority of cancer- and CS- causing mutations are located here, they affect splicing differently. Therefore, our results also demonstrate that the phenotype in CS and somatic cancers is not only determined by the different transforming potentials of mutant HRAS proteins, but also by the efficiency of exon 2 inclusion resulting from the different HRAS mutations. Finally, we show that a splice switching oligonucleotide (SSO) that blocks access to the critical ESE causes exon 2 skipping and halts proliferation of cancer cells. This unravels a potential for development of new anti-cancer therapies based on SSO-mediated HRAS exon 2 skipping.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anne-Mette Hartung
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Jeff Swensen
- Caris Life Sciences, Phoenix, Arizona, United States of America
- Department of Pathology, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- ARUP Laboratories, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Inaki E. Uriz
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Morten Lapin
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Karen Kristjansdottir
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Ulrika S. S. Petersen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Jeanne Mari V. Bang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Barbara Guerra
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Henriette Skovgaard Andersen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Steven F. Dobrowolski
- Department of Pathology, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - John C. Carey
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Ping Yu
- ARUP Laboratories, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Cecily Vaughn
- ARUP Laboratories, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Amy Calhoun
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States of America
| | - Martin R. Larsen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Lars Dyrskjøt
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - David A. Stevenson
- Division of Medical Genetics, Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States of America
| | - Brage S. Andresen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and The Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Cai LY, Nie J, Zhang YW, Zhang FT, Zhou YL, Zhang XX. A smart tailor-made G-clip reporter for sensitive detection of G-triplet-containing sequences. Analyst 2015; 140:3343-6. [PMID: 25833083 DOI: 10.1039/c5an00281h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Taking advantage of the intrinsic characteristics of G-triplet-containing sequences, a pioneering tailor-made clip-like reporter containing three-fourths of a G-quadruplex is established. The reporter can clip the G triplet in the target sequence through a recognition process to form a complete G-quadruplex structure.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Liang-Yuan Cai
- Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (BNLMS), MOE Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, College of Chemistry, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
13
|
Palhais B, Præstegaard VS, Sabaratnam R, Doktor TK, Lutz S, Burda P, Suormala T, Baumgartner M, Fowler B, Bruun GH, Andersen HS, Kožich V, Andresen BS. Splice-shifting oligonucleotide (SSO) mediated blocking of an exonic splicing enhancer (ESE) created by the prevalent c.903+469T>C MTRR mutation corrects splicing and restores enzyme activity in patient cells. Nucleic Acids Res 2015; 43:4627-39. [PMID: 25878036 PMCID: PMC4482064 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkv275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2015] [Accepted: 03/19/2015] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The prevalent c.903+469T>C mutation in MTRR causes the cblE type of homocystinuria by strengthening an SRSF1 binding site in an ESE leading to activation of a pseudoexon. We hypothesized that other splicing regulatory elements (SREs) are also critical for MTRR pseudoexon inclusion. We demonstrate that the MTRR pseudoexon is on the verge of being recognized and is therefore vulnerable to several point mutations that disrupt a fine-tuned balance between the different SREs. Normally, pseudoexon inclusion is suppressed by a hnRNP A1 binding exonic splicing silencer (ESS). When the c.903+469T>C mutation is present two ESEs abrogate the activity of the ESS and promote pseudoexon inclusion. Blocking the 3′splice site or the ESEs by SSOs is effective in restoring normal splicing of minigenes and endogenous MTRR transcripts in patient cells. By employing an SSO complementary to both ESEs, we were able to rescue MTRR enzymatic activity in patient cells to approximately 50% of that in controls. We show that several point mutations, individually, can activate a pseudoexon, illustrating that this mechanism can occur more frequently than previously expected. Moreover, we demonstrate that SSO blocking of critical ESEs is a promising strategy to treat the increasing number of activated pseudoexons.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Palhais
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Veronica S Præstegaard
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Rugivan Sabaratnam
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Thomas Koed Doktor
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Seraina Lutz
- Division of Metabolism, University Children's Hospital, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Patricie Burda
- Division of Metabolism, University Children's Hospital, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Terttu Suormala
- Division of Metabolism, University Children's Hospital, Zürich, Switzerland
| | | | - Brian Fowler
- Division of Metabolism, University Children's Hospital, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Gitte Hoffmann Bruun
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Henriette Skovgaard Andersen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | - Viktor Kožich
- Institute of Inherited Metabolic Disorders, Charles University in Prague-First Faculty of Medicine and General University Hospital, Praha, Czech Republic
| | - Brage Storstein Andresen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Villum Center for Bioanalytical Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Bali V, Bebok Z. Decoding mechanisms by which silent codon changes influence protein biogenesis and function. Int J Biochem Cell Biol 2015; 64:58-74. [PMID: 25817479 DOI: 10.1016/j.biocel.2015.03.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2014] [Revised: 03/02/2015] [Accepted: 03/14/2015] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
SCOPE Synonymous codon usage has been a focus of investigation since the discovery of the genetic code and its redundancy. The occurrences of synonymous codons vary between species and within genes of the same genome, known as codon usage bias. Today, bioinformatics and experimental data allow us to compose a global view of the mechanisms by which the redundancy of the genetic code contributes to the complexity of biological systems from affecting survival in prokaryotes, to fine tuning the structure and function of proteins in higher eukaryotes. Studies analyzing the consequences of synonymous codon changes in different organisms have revealed that they impact nucleic acid stability, protein levels, structure and function without altering amino acid sequence. As such, synonymous mutations inevitably contribute to the pathogenesis of complex human diseases. Yet, fundamental questions remain unresolved regarding the impact of silent mutations in human disorders. In the present review we describe developments in this area concentrating on mechanisms by which synonymous mutations may affect protein function and human health. PURPOSE This synopsis illustrates the significance of synonymous mutations in disease pathogenesis. We review the different steps of gene expression affected by silent mutations, and assess the benefits and possible harmful effects of codon optimization applied in the development of therapeutic biologics. PHYSIOLOGICAL AND MEDICAL RELEVANCE Understanding mechanisms by which synonymous mutations contribute to complex diseases such as cancer, neurodegeneration and genetic disorders, including the limitations of codon-optimized biologics, provides insight concerning interpretation of silent variants and future molecular therapies.
Collapse
|
15
|
Hunt RC, Simhadri VL, Iandoli M, Sauna ZE, Kimchi-Sarfaty C. Exposing synonymous mutations. Trends Genet 2014; 30:308-21. [PMID: 24954581 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2014.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 227] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2013] [Revised: 04/16/2014] [Accepted: 04/17/2014] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Synonymous codon changes, which do not alter protein sequence, were previously thought to have no functional consequence. Although this concept has been overturned in recent years, there is no unique mechanism by which these changes exert biological effects. A large repertoire of both experimental and bioinformatic methods has been developed to understand the effects of synonymous variants. Results from this body of work have provided global insights into how biological systems exploit the degeneracy of the genetic code to control gene expression, protein folding efficiency, and the coordinated expression of functionally related gene families. Although it is now clear that synonymous variants are important in a variety of contexts, from human disease to the safety and efficacy of therapeutic proteins, there is no clear consensus on the approaches to identify and validate these changes. Here, we review the diverse methods to understand the effects of synonymous mutations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ryan C Hunt
- Division of Hematology, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| | - Vijaya L Simhadri
- Division of Hematology, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Matthew Iandoli
- Division of Hematology, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Zuben E Sauna
- Division of Hematology, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| | - Chava Kimchi-Sarfaty
- Division of Hematology, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Olsen RKJ, Brøner S, Sabaratnam R, Doktor TK, Andersen HS, Bruun GH, Gahrn B, Stenbroen V, Olpin SE, Dobbie A, Gregersen N, Andresen BS. TheETFDHc.158A>G Variation Disrupts the Balanced Interplay of ESE- and ESS-Binding Proteins thereby Causing Missplicing and Multiple Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenation Deficiency. Hum Mutat 2013; 35:86-95. [DOI: 10.1002/humu.22455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2012] [Accepted: 09/25/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Rikke K. J. Olsen
- Research Unit for Molecular Medicine; Aarhus University Hospital and Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University; Aarhus Denmark
| | - Sabrina Brøner
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; University of Southern Denmark; Odense Denmark
| | - Rugivan Sabaratnam
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; University of Southern Denmark; Odense Denmark
| | - Thomas K. Doktor
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; University of Southern Denmark; Odense Denmark
| | - Henriette S. Andersen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; University of Southern Denmark; Odense Denmark
| | - Gitte H. Bruun
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; University of Southern Denmark; Odense Denmark
| | - Birthe Gahrn
- Research Unit for Molecular Medicine; Aarhus University Hospital and Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University; Aarhus Denmark
| | - Vibeke Stenbroen
- Research Unit for Molecular Medicine; Aarhus University Hospital and Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University; Aarhus Denmark
| | - Simon E. Olpin
- Department of Clinical Chemistry; The Children's Hospital; Sheffield United Kingdom
| | - Angus Dobbie
- Department of Clinical Genetics; St James's University Hospital; Leeds United Kingdom
| | - Niels Gregersen
- Research Unit for Molecular Medicine; Aarhus University Hospital and Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University; Aarhus Denmark
| | - Brage S. Andresen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; University of Southern Denmark; Odense Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Bashyam MD, Chaudhary AK, Kiran M, Nagarajaram HA, Devi RR, Ranganath P, Dalal A, Bashyam L, Gupta N, Kabra M, Muranjan M, Puri RD, Verma IC, Nampoothiri S, Kadandale JS. Splice, insertion-deletion and nonsense mutations that perturb the phenylalanine hydroxylase transcript cause phenylketonuria in India. J Cell Biochem 2013; 115:566-74. [PMID: 24130151 DOI: 10.1002/jcb.24692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2013] [Accepted: 10/10/2013] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Phenylketonuria (PKU) is an autosomal recessive metabolic disorder caused by mutational inactivation of the phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene. Missense mutations are the most common PAH mutation type detected in PKU patients worldwide. We performed PAH mutation analysis in 27 suspected Indian PKU families (including 7 from our previous study) followed by structure and function analysis of specific missense and splice/insertion-deletion/nonsense mutations, respectively. Of the 27 families, disease-causing mutations were detected in 25. A total of 20 different mutations were identified of which 7 "unique" mutations accounted for 13 of 25 mutation positive families. The unique mutations detected exclusively in Indian PKU patients included three recurrent mutations detected in three families each. The 20 mutations included only 5 missense mutations in addition to 5 splice, 4 each nonsense and insertion-deletion mutations, a silent variant in coding region and a 3'UTR mutation. One deletion and two nonsense mutations were characterized to confirm significant reduction in mutant transcript levels possibly through activation of nonsense mediated decay. All missense mutations affected conserved amino acid residues and sequence and structure analysis suggested significant perturbations in the enzyme activity of respective mutant proteins. This is probably the first report of identification of a significantly low proportion of missense PAH mutations from PKU families and together with the presence of a high proportion of splice, insertion-deletion, and nonsense mutations, points to a unique PAH mutation profile in Indian PKU patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Murali D Bashyam
- Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics, Hyderabad, India
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
18
|
Heintz C, Dobrowolski SF, Andersen HS, Demirkol M, Blau N, Andresen BS. Splicing of phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) exon 11 is vulnerable: molecular pathology of mutations in PAH exon 11. Mol Genet Metab 2012; 106:403-11. [PMID: 22698810 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymgme.2012.05.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2012] [Revised: 05/20/2012] [Accepted: 05/20/2012] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
In about 20-30% of phenylketonuria (PKU) patients, phenylalanine (Phe) levels can be controlled by cofactor 6R-tetrahydrobiopterin (BH(4)) administration. The phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) genotype has a predictive value concerning BH(4)-response and therefore a correct assessment of the mutation molecular pathology is important. Mutations that disturb the splicing of exons (e.g. interplay between splice site strength and regulatory sequences like exon splicing enhancers (ESEs)/exon splicing silencers (ESSs)) may cause different severity of PKU. In this study, we identified PAH exon 11 as a vulnerable exon and used patient derived lymphoblast cell lines and PAH minigenes to study the molecular defect that impacted pre-mRNA processing. We showed that the c.1144T>C and c.1066-3C>T mutations cause exon 11 skipping, while the c.1139C>T mutation is neutral or slightly beneficial. The c.1144T>C mutation resides in a putative splicing enhancer motif and binding by splicing factors SF2/ASF, SRp20 and SRp40 is disturbed. Additional mutations in potential splicing factor binding sites contributed to elucidate the pathogenesis of mutations in PAH exon 11. We suggest that PAH exon 11 is vulnerable due to a weak 3' splice site and that this makes exon 11 inclusion dependent on an ESE spanning position c.1144. Importantly, this implies that other mutations in exon 11 may affect splicing, since splicing is often determined by a fine balance between several positive and negative splicing regulatory elements distributed throughout the exon. Finally, we identified a pseudoexon in intron 11, which would have pathogenic consequences if activated by mutations or improved splicing conditions. Exonic mutations that disrupt splicing are unlikely to facilitate response to BH(4) and may lead to inconsistent genotype-phenotype correlations. Therefore, recognizing such mutations enhances our ability to predict the BH(4)-response.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Heintz
- Division of Clinical Chemistry and Biochemistry, University Children's Hospital, Zürich, Switzerland
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
19
|
Doktor TK, Schroeder LD, Vested A, Palmfeldt J, Andersen HS, Gregersen N, Andresen BS. SMN2 exon 7 splicing is inhibited by binding of hnRNP A1 to a common ESS motif that spans the 3' splice site. Hum Mutat 2011; 32:220-30. [PMID: 21120954 DOI: 10.1002/humu.21419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2010] [Accepted: 11/02/2010] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
Spinal Muscular Atrophy is caused by homozygous loss of SMN1 with phenotypic modulation by SMN2. SMN2 expresses only limited amounts of full-length transcript due to skipping of exon 7 caused by disruption of an SF2/ASF binding ESE. Additionally, hnRNP A1 has been reported to inhibit inclusion of SMN2 exon 7. We previously reported high similarity between the sequence spanning the 3' ss of SMN1 and SMN2 exon 7 and an hnRNP A1 binding ESS, which regulates MCAD exon 5 splicing. We show here that this 3' ss motif indeed functions as a crucial hnRNP A1 binding ESS, which inhibits inclusion of SMN1/2 exon 7 and is antagonized by the SMN1 ESE, but not by the inactive SMN2 sequence. Pull-down experiments revealed a specific interaction between hnRNP A1 and the 3' ss AG-dinucleotide, which could be disrupted by mutations shown to improve splicing in reporter minigenes. Genomic analyses revealed that in the human genome, 3' ss matching the SMN1/2 ESS motif region are much less abundant than 3' ss with a disrupted ESS motif. This indicates that this ESS may be a general splicing inhibitory motif, which binds hnRNP A1 and inhibits exon inclusion by binding to 3' ss harboring this ESS motif.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Koed Doktor
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|