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Tittes C, Nijland J, Schoentag AMC, Hackl T, Di Cianni N, Marchfelder A, Quax TEF. Development of a genetic system for Haloferax gibbonsii LR2-5, model host for haloarchaeal viruses. Appl Environ Microbiol 2024; 90:e0012924. [PMID: 38470030 PMCID: PMC11022537 DOI: 10.1128/aem.00129-24] [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] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Archaeal viruses are among the most enigmatic members of the virosphere, and their diverse morphologies raise many questions about their infection mechanisms. The study of molecular mechanisms underlying virus-host interactions hinges upon robust model organisms with a system for gene expression and deletion. Currently, there are only a limited number of archaea that have associated viruses and have a well-developed genetic system. Here, we report the development of a genetic system for the euryarchaeon Haloferax gibbonsii LR2-5. This strain can be infected by multiple viruses and is a model for the study of virus-host interactions. We created a Hfx. gibbonsii LR2-5 ∆pyrE strain, resulting in uracil auxotrophy, which could be used as a selection marker. An expression plasmid carrying a pyrE gene from the well-established Haloferax volcanii system was tested for functionality. Expression of a GFP-MinD fusion under a tryptophan inducible promoter was fully functional and showed similar cellular localization as in Hfx. volcanii. Thus, the plasmids of the Hfx. volcanii system can be used directly for the Hfx. gibbonsii LR2-5 genetic system, facilitating the transfer of tools between the two. Finally, we tested for the functionality of gene deletions by knocking out two genes of the archaeal motility structure, the archaellum. These deletion mutants were as expected non-motile and the phenotype of one deletion could be rescued by the expression of the deleted archaellum gene from a plasmid. Thus, we developed a functional genetic toolbox for the euryarchaeal virus host Hfx. gibbonsii LR2-5, which will propel future studies on archaeal viruses. IMPORTANCE Species from all domains of life are infected by viruses. In some environments, viruses outnumber their microbial hosts by a factor of 10, and viruses are the most important predators of microorganisms. While much has been discovered about the infection mechanisms of bacterial and eukaryotic viruses, archaeal viruses remain understudied. Good model systems are needed to study their virus-host interactions in detail. The salt-loving archaeon Haloferax gibbonsii LR2-5 has been shown to be infected by a variety of different viruses and, thus, is an excellent model to study archaeal viruses. By establishing a genetic system, we have significantly expanded the toolbox for this model organism, which will fuel our understanding of infection strategies of the underexplored archaeal viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin Tittes
- Biology of Archaea and Viruses, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Jeroen Nijland
- Biology of Archaea and Viruses, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Anna M. C. Schoentag
- Biology of Archaea and Viruses, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Thomas Hackl
- Microbial Ecology Cluster, Groningen Institute of Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | | | | | - Tessa E. F. Quax
- Biology of Archaea and Viruses, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
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2
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Mills J, Gebhard LJ, Schubotz F, Shevchenko A, Speth DR, Liao Y, Duggin IG, Marchfelder A, Erdmann S. Extracellular vesicle formation in Euryarchaeota is driven by a small GTPase. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2311321121. [PMID: 38408251 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2311321121] [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] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Since their discovery, extracellular vesicles (EVs) have changed our view on how organisms interact with their extracellular world. EVs are able to traffic a diverse array of molecules across different species and even domains, facilitating numerous functions. In this study, we investigate EV production in Euryarchaeota, using the model organism Haloferax volcanii. We uncover that EVs enclose RNA, with specific transcripts preferentially enriched, including those with regulatory potential, and conclude that EVs can act as an RNA communication system between haloarchaea. We demonstrate the key role of an EV-associated small GTPase for EV formation in H. volcanii that is also present across other diverse evolutionary branches of Archaea. We propose the name, ArvA, for the identified family of archaeal vesiculating GTPases. Additionally, we show that two genes in the same operon with arvA (arvB and arvC) are also involved in EV formation. Both, arvB and arvC, are closely associated with arvA in the majority of other archaea encoding ArvA. Our work demonstrates that small GTPases involved in membrane deformation and vesiculation, ubiquitous in Eukaryotes, are also present in Archaea and are widely distributed across diverse archaeal phyla.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Mills
- Archaeal Virology, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen 28359, Germany
| | - L Johanna Gebhard
- Archaeal Virology, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen 28359, Germany
| | - Florence Schubotz
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen 28359, Germany
| | - Anna Shevchenko
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden 01307, Germany
| | - Daan R Speth
- Department of Biogeochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen 28359, Germany
| | - Yan Liao
- The Australian Institute for Microbiology and Infection, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia
| | - Iain G Duggin
- The Australian Institute for Microbiology and Infection, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia
| | | | - Susanne Erdmann
- Archaeal Virology, Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Bremen 28359, Germany
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Schiller H, Hong Y, Kouassi J, Rados T, Kwak J, DiLucido A, Safer D, Marchfelder A, Pfeiffer F, Bisson A, Schulze S, Pohlschroder M. Identification of structural and regulatory cell-shape determinants in Haloferax volcanii. Nat Commun 2024; 15:1414. [PMID: 38360755 PMCID: PMC10869688 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45196-0] [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] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Archaea play indispensable roles in global biogeochemical cycles, yet many crucial cellular processes, including cell-shape determination, are poorly understood. Haloferax volcanii, a model haloarchaeon, forms rods and disks, depending on growth conditions. Here, we used a combination of iterative proteomics, genetics, and live-cell imaging to identify mutants that only form rods or disks. We compared the proteomes of the mutants with wild-type cells across growth phases, thereby distinguishing between protein abundance changes specific to cell shape and those related to growth phases. The results identified a diverse set of proteins, including predicted transporters, transducers, signaling components, and transcriptional regulators, as important for cell-shape determination. Through phenotypic characterization of deletion strains, we established that rod-determining factor A (RdfA) and disk-determining factor A (DdfA) are required for the formation of rods and disks, respectively. We also identified structural proteins, including an actin homolog that plays a role in disk-shape morphogenesis, which we named volactin. Using live-cell imaging, we determined volactin's cellular localization and showed its dynamic polymerization and depolymerization. Our results provide insights into archaeal cell-shape determination, with possible implications for understanding the evolution of cell morphology regulation across domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather Schiller
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Biology, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Yirui Hong
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Biology, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Joshua Kouassi
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Biology, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Theopi Rados
- Brandeis University, Department of Biology, Waltham, MA, 02453, USA
| | - Jasmin Kwak
- Brandeis University, Department of Biology, Waltham, MA, 02453, USA
| | - Anthony DiLucido
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Biology, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Daniel Safer
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Physiology, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | | | - Friedhelm Pfeiffer
- Biology II, Ulm University, 89069, Ulm, Germany
- Computational Biology Group, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Alexandre Bisson
- Brandeis University, Department of Biology, Waltham, MA, 02453, USA.
| | - Stefan Schulze
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Biology, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA.
- Rochester Institute of Technology, Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences, Rochester, NY, 14623, USA.
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4
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Miezner G, Turgeman-Grott I, Zatopek KM, Gardner AF, Reshef L, Choudhary DK, Alstetter M, Allers T, Marchfelder A, Gophna U. An archaeal Cas3 protein facilitates rapid recovery from DNA damage. Microlife 2023; 4:uqad007. [PMID: 37223740 PMCID: PMC10117719 DOI: 10.1093/femsml/uqad007] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas systems provide heritable acquired immunity against viruses to archaea and bacteria. Cas3 is a CRISPR-associated protein that is common to all Type I systems, possesses both nuclease and helicase activities, and is responsible for degradation of invading DNA. Involvement of Cas3 in DNA repair had been suggested in the past, but then set aside when the role of CRISPR-Cas as an adaptive immune system was realized. Here we show that in the model archaeon Haloferax volcanii a cas3 deletion mutant exhibits increased resistance to DNA damaging agents compared with the wild-type strain, but its ability to recover quickly from such damage is reduced. Analysis of cas3 point mutants revealed that the helicase domain of the protein is responsible for the DNA damage sensitivity phenotype. Epistasis analysis indicated that cas3 operates with mre11 and rad50 in restraining the homologous recombination pathway of DNA repair. Mutants deleted for Cas3 or deficient in its helicase activity showed higher rates of homologous recombination, as measured in pop-in assays using non-replicating plasmids. These results demonstrate that Cas proteins act in DNA repair, in addition to their role in defense against selfish elements and are an integral part of the cellular response to DNA damage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guy Miezner
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel
| | - Israela Turgeman-Grott
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel
| | - Kelly M Zatopek
- New England Biolabs, Inc., 240 County Road, Ipswich, MA 01938, USA
| | - Andrew F Gardner
- New England Biolabs, Inc., 240 County Road, Ipswich, MA 01938, USA
| | - Leah Reshef
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel
| | - Deepak K Choudhary
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel
| | | | - Thorsten Allers
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK
| | | | - Uri Gophna
- Corresponding author. The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel. E-mail:
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Hadjeras L, Bartel J, Maier LK, Maaß S, Vogel V, Svensson SL, Eggenhofer F, Gelhausen R, Müller T, Alkhnbashi OS, Backofen R, Becher D, Sharma CM, Marchfelder A. Revealing the small proteome of Haloferax volcanii by combining ribosome profiling and small-protein optimized mass spectrometry. Microlife 2023; 4:uqad001. [PMID: 37223747 PMCID: PMC10117724 DOI: 10.1093/femsml/uqad001] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 01/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
In contrast to extensively studied prokaryotic 'small' transcriptomes (encompassing all small noncoding RNAs), small proteomes (here defined as including proteins ≤70 aa) are only now entering the limelight. The absence of a complete small protein catalogue in most prokaryotes precludes our understanding of how these molecules affect physiology. So far, archaeal genomes have not yet been analyzed broadly with a dedicated focus on small proteins. Here, we present a combinatorial approach, integrating experimental data from small protein-optimized mass spectrometry (MS) and ribosome profiling (Ribo-seq), to generate a high confidence inventory of small proteins in the model archaeon Haloferax volcanii. We demonstrate by MS and Ribo-seq that 67% of the 317 annotated small open reading frames (sORFs) are translated under standard growth conditions. Furthermore, annotation-independent analysis of Ribo-seq data showed ribosomal engagement for 47 novel sORFs in intergenic regions. A total of seven of these were also detected by proteomics, in addition to an eighth novel small protein solely identified by MS. We also provide independent experimental evidence in vivo for the translation of 12 sORFs (annotated and novel) using epitope tagging and western blotting, underlining the validity of our identification scheme. Several novel sORFs are conserved in Haloferax species and might have important functions. Based on our findings, we conclude that the small proteome of H. volcanii is larger than previously appreciated, and that combining MS with Ribo-seq is a powerful approach for the discovery of novel small protein coding genes in archaea.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Sandra Maaß
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Felix-Hausdorff-Str. 8, 17489 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Verena Vogel
- Biology II, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Sarah L Svensson
- Department of Molecular Infection Biology II, Institute of Molecular Infection Biology (IMIB), University of Würzburg, Josef-Schneider-Straße 2 / D15, 97080 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Florian Eggenhofer
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 106, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
| | - Rick Gelhausen
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 106, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
| | - Teresa Müller
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 106, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
| | - Omer S Alkhnbashi
- Information and Computer Science Department, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia
| | - Rolf Backofen
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 106, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
- Signalling Research Centres BIOSS and CIBSS, University of Freiburg, Schaenzlestr. 18, 79104 Freiburg, Germany
| | - Dörte Becher
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Felix-Hausdorff-Str. 8, 17489 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Cynthia M Sharma
- Department of Molecular Infection Biology II, Institute of Molecular Infection Biology (IMIB), University of Würzburg, Josef-Schneider-Straße 2 / D15, 97080 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Anita Marchfelder
- Corresponding author: Biology II, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany. E-mail:
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6
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Wörtz J, Smith V, Fallmann J, König S, Thuraisingam T, Walther P, Urlaub H, Stadler PF, Allers T, Hille F, Marchfelder A. Cas1 and Fen1 Display Equivalent Functions During Archaeal DNA Repair. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:822304. [PMID: 35495653 PMCID: PMC9051519 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.822304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2021] [Accepted: 02/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas constitutes an adaptive prokaryotic defence system against invasive nucleic acids like viruses and plasmids. Beyond their role in immunity, CRISPR-Cas systems have been shown to closely interact with components of cellular DNA repair pathways, either by regulating their expression or via direct protein-protein contact and enzymatic activity. The integrase Cas1 is usually involved in the adaptation phase of CRISPR-Cas immunity but an additional role in cellular DNA repair pathways has been proposed previously. Here, we analysed the capacity of an archaeal Cas1 from Haloferax volcanii to act upon DNA damage induced by oxidative stress and found that a deletion of the cas1 gene led to reduced survival rates following stress induction. In addition, our results indicate that Cas1 is directly involved in DNA repair as the enzymatically active site of the protein is crucial for growth under oxidative conditions. Based on biochemical assays, we propose a mechanism by which Cas1 plays a similar function to DNA repair protein Fen1 by cleaving branched intermediate structures. The present study broadens our understanding of the functional link between CRISPR-Cas immunity and DNA repair by demonstrating that Cas1 and Fen1 display equivalent roles during archaeal DNA damage repair.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Victoria Smith
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | - Jörg Fallmann
- Department of Computer Science, Bioinformatics Group, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Sabine König
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry Group, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Göttingen, Germany
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | | | - Paul Walther
- Central Facility for Electron Microscopy, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Henning Urlaub
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry Group, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Göttingen, Germany
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Peter F. Stadler
- Department of Computer Science, Bioinformatics Group, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Competence Center for Scalable Data Services and Solutions, Leipzig Research Center for Civilization Diseases, University Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia
- Institute for Theoretical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Center for RNA in Technology and Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM, United States
- Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Thorsten Allers
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | | | - Anita Marchfelder
- Biology II, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
- *Correspondence: Anita Marchfelder,
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Schwarz TS, Schreiber SS, Marchfelder A. CRISPR Interference as a Tool to Repress Gene Expression in Haloferax volcanii. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2522:57-85. [PMID: 36125743 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2445-6_4] [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] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
To date, a plethora of tools for molecular biology have been developed on the basis of the CRISPR-Cas system. Almost all use the class 2 systems since here the setup is the simplest with only one protein and one guide RNA, allowing for easy transfer to and expression in other organisms. However, the CRISPR-Cas components harnessed for applications are derived from mesophilic bacteria and are not optimal for use in extremophilic archaea.Here, we describe the application of an endogenous CRISPR-Cas system as a tool for silencing gene expression in a halophilic archaeon. Haloferax volcanii has a CRISPR-Cas system of subtype I-B, which can be easily used to repress the transcription of endogenous genes, allowing to study the effects of their depletion. This article gives a step-by-step introduction on how to use the implemented system for any gene of interest in Haloferax volcanii. The concept of CRISPRi described here for Haloferax can be transferred to any other archaeon, that is genetically tractable and has an endogenous CRISPR-Cas I systems.
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Märkle P, Maier LK, Maaß S, Hirschfeld C, Bartel J, Becher D, Voß B, Marchfelder A. A Small RNA Is Linking CRISPR-Cas and Zinc Transport. Front Mol Biosci 2021; 8:640440. [PMID: 34055875 PMCID: PMC8155600 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2021.640440] [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] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2020] [Accepted: 03/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The function and mode of action of small regulatory RNAs is currently still understudied in archaea. In the halophilic archaeon Haloferax volcanii, a plethora of sRNAs have been identified; however, in-depth functional analysis is missing for most of them. We selected a small RNA (s479) from Haloferax volcanii for detailed characterization. The sRNA gene is encoded between a CRISPR RNA locus and the Cas protein gene cluster, and the s479 deletion strain is viable and was characterized in detail. Transcriptome studies of wild-type Haloferax cells and the deletion mutant revealed upregulation of six genes in the deletion strain, showing that this sRNA has a clearly defined function. Three of the six upregulated genes encode potential zinc transporter proteins (ZnuA1, ZnuB1, and ZnuC1) suggesting the involvement of s479 in the regulation of zinc transport. Upregulation of these genes in the deletion strain was confirmed by northern blot and proteome analyses. Furthermore, electrophoretic mobility shift assays demonstrate a direct interaction of s479 with the target znuC1 mRNA. Proteome comparison of wild-type and deletion strains further expanded the regulon of s479 deeply rooting this sRNA within the metabolism of H. volcanii especially the regulation of transporter abundance. Interestingly, s479 is not only encoded next to CRISPR-cas genes, but the mature s479 contains a crRNA-like 5' handle, and experiments with Cas protein deletion strains indicate maturation by Cas6 and interaction with Cas proteins. Together, this might suggest that the CRISPR-Cas system is involved in s479 function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pascal Märkle
- Department of Biology II, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | | | - Sandra Maaß
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Claudia Hirschfeld
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Jürgen Bartel
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Dörte Becher
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Björn Voß
- Institute of Biochemical Engineering, University of Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany
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Turkowyd B, Schreiber S, Wörtz J, Segal ES, Mevarech M, Duggin IG, Marchfelder A, Endesfelder U. Establishing Live-Cell Single-Molecule Localization Microscopy Imaging and Single-Particle Tracking in the Archaeon Haloferax volcanii. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:583010. [PMID: 33329447 PMCID: PMC7714787 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.583010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2020] [Accepted: 10/16/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent years, fluorescence microscopy techniques for the localization and tracking of single molecules in living cells have become well-established and are indispensable tools for the investigation of cellular biology and in vivo biochemistry of many bacterial and eukaryotic organisms. Nevertheless, these techniques are still not established for imaging archaea. Their establishment as a standard tool for the study of archaea will be a decisive milestone for the exploration of this branch of life and its unique biology. Here, we have developed a reliable protocol for the study of the archaeon Haloferax volcanii. We have generated an autofluorescence-free H. volcanii strain, evaluated several fluorescent proteins for their suitability to serve as single-molecule fluorescence markers and codon-optimized them to work under optimal H. volcanii cultivation conditions. We found that two of them, Dendra2Hfx and PAmCherry1Hfx, provide state-of-the-art single-molecule imaging. Our strategy is quantitative and allows dual-color imaging of two targets in the same field of view (FOV) as well as DNA co-staining. We present the first single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) images of the subcellular organization and dynamics of two crucial intracellular proteins in living H. volcanii cells, FtsZ1, which shows complex structures in the cell division ring, and RNA polymerase, which localizes around the periphery of the cellular DNA. This work should provide incentive to develop SMLM strategies for other archaeal organisms in the near future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bartosz Turkowyd
- Department of Systems and Synthetic Microbiology, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology and LOEWE Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Marburg, Germany
| | | | - Julia Wörtz
- Department of Biology II, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Ella Shtifman Segal
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Moshe Mevarech
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Iain G. Duggin
- The ithree Institute, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW, Australia
| | | | - Ulrike Endesfelder
- Department of Systems and Synthetic Microbiology, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology and LOEWE Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Marburg, Germany
- Department of Physics, Mellon College of Science, Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
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Schwarz TS, Berkemer SJ, Bernhart SH, Weiß M, Ferreira-Cerca S, Stadler PF, Marchfelder A. Splicing Endonuclease Is an Important Player in rRNA and tRNA Maturation in Archaea. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:594838. [PMID: 33329479 PMCID: PMC7714728 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.594838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2020] [Accepted: 10/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
In all three domains of life, tRNA genes contain introns that must be removed to yield functional tRNA. In archaea and eukarya, the first step of this process is catalyzed by a splicing endonuclease. The consensus structure recognized by the splicing endonuclease is a bulge-helix-bulge (BHB) motif which is also found in rRNA precursors. So far, a systematic analysis to identify all biological substrates of the splicing endonuclease has not been carried out. In this study, we employed CRISPRi to repress expression of the splicing endonuclease in the archaeon Haloferax volcanii to identify all substrates of this enzyme. Expression of the splicing endonuclease was reduced to 1% of its normal level, resulting in a significant extension of lag phase in H. volcanii growth. In the repression strain, 41 genes were down-regulated and 102 were up-regulated. As an additional approach in identifying new substrates of the splicing endonuclease, we isolated and sequenced circular RNAs, which identified excised introns removed from tRNA and rRNA precursors as well as from the 5' UTR of the gene HVO_1309. In vitro processing assays showed that the BHB sites in the 5' UTR of HVO_1309 and in a 16S rRNA-like precursor are processed by the recombinant splicing endonuclease. The splicing endonuclease is therefore an important player in RNA maturation in archaea.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sarah J Berkemer
- Bioinformatics, Department of Computer Science, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany.,Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Competence Center for Scalable Data Services and Solutions, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Stephan H Bernhart
- Bioinformatics, Department of Computer Science, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany.,Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Matthias Weiß
- Regensburg Center for Biochemistry, Biochemistry III - Institute of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Sébastien Ferreira-Cerca
- Regensburg Center for Biochemistry, Biochemistry III - Institute of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Peter F Stadler
- Bioinformatics, Department of Computer Science, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany.,Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany.,German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Research Center for Civilization Diseases, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany.,Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia.,Institute for Theoretical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Center for RNA in Technology and Health, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Denmark.,Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM, United States
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11
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Stachler AE, Wörtz J, Alkhnbashi OS, Turgeman-Grott I, Smith R, Allers T, Backofen R, Gophna U, Marchfelder A. Adaptation induced by self-targeting in a type I-B CRISPR-Cas system. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:13502-13515. [PMID: 32723866 PMCID: PMC7521656 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.014030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2020] [Revised: 07/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Haloferax volcanii is, to our knowledge, the only prokaryote known to tolerate CRISPR-Cas-mediated damage to its genome in the WT background; the resulting cleavage of the genome is repaired by homologous recombination restoring the WT version. In mutant Haloferax strains with enhanced self-targeting, cell fitness decreases and microhomology-mediated end joining becomes active, generating deletions in the targeted gene. Here we use self-targeting to investigate adaptation in H. volcanii CRISPR-Cas type I-B. We show that self-targeting and genome breakage events that are induced by self-targeting, such as those catalyzed by active transposases, can generate DNA fragments that are used by the CRISPR-Cas adaptation machinery for integration into the CRISPR loci. Low cellular concentrations of self-targeting crRNAs resulted in acquisition of large numbers of spacers originating from the entire genomic DNA. In contrast, high concentrations of self-targeting crRNAs resulted in lower acquisition that was mostly centered on the targeting site. Furthermore, we observed naïve spacer acquisition at a low level in WT Haloferax cells and with higher efficiency upon overexpression of the Cas proteins Cas1, Cas2, and Cas4. Taken together, these findings indicate that naïve adaptation is a regulated process in H. volcanii that operates at low basal levels and is induced by DNA breaks.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Omer S Alkhnbashi
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Israela Turgeman-Grott
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Rachel Smith
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Thorsten Allers
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | - Rolf Backofen
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany; Signalling Research Centres BIOSS and CIBSS, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Uri Gophna
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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12
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Kubatova N, Pyper DJ, Jonker HRA, Saxena K, Remmel L, Richter C, Brantl S, Evguenieva‐Hackenberg E, Hess WR, Klug G, Marchfelder A, Soppa J, Streit W, Mayzel M, Orekhov VY, Fuxreiter M, Schmitz RA, Schwalbe H. Rapid Biophysical Characterization and NMR Spectroscopy Structural Analysis of Small Proteins from Bacteria and Archaea. Chembiochem 2020; 21:1178-1187. [PMID: 31705614 PMCID: PMC7217052 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.201900677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Proteins encoded by small open reading frames (sORFs) have a widespread occurrence in diverse microorganisms and can be of high functional importance. However, due to annotation biases and their technically challenging direct detection, these small proteins have been overlooked for a long time and were only recently rediscovered. The currently rapidly growing number of such proteins requires efficient methods to investigate their structure-function relationship. Herein, a method is presented for fast determination of the conformational properties of small proteins. Their small size makes them perfectly amenable for solution-state NMR spectroscopy. NMR spectroscopy can provide detailed information about their conformational states (folded, partially folded, and unstructured). In the context of the priority program on small proteins funded by the German research foundation (SPP2002), 27 small proteins from 9 different bacterial and archaeal organisms have been investigated. It is found that most of these small proteins are unstructured or partially folded. Bioinformatics tools predict that some of these unstructured proteins can potentially fold upon complex formation. A protocol for fast NMR spectroscopy structure elucidation is described for the small proteins that adopt a persistently folded structure by implementation of new NMR technologies, including automated resonance assignment and nonuniform sampling in combination with targeted acquisition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nina Kubatova
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyCenter for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance (BMRZ)Johann Wolfgang Goethe UniversityMax-von-Laue-Strasse 760438Frankfurt/MainGermany
| | - Dennis J. Pyper
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyCenter for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance (BMRZ)Johann Wolfgang Goethe UniversityMax-von-Laue-Strasse 760438Frankfurt/MainGermany
| | - Hendrik R. A. Jonker
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyCenter for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance (BMRZ)Johann Wolfgang Goethe UniversityMax-von-Laue-Strasse 760438Frankfurt/MainGermany
| | - Krishna Saxena
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyCenter for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance (BMRZ)Johann Wolfgang Goethe UniversityMax-von-Laue-Strasse 760438Frankfurt/MainGermany
| | - Laura Remmel
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyCenter for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance (BMRZ)Johann Wolfgang Goethe UniversityMax-von-Laue-Strasse 760438Frankfurt/MainGermany
| | - Christian Richter
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyCenter for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance (BMRZ)Johann Wolfgang Goethe UniversityMax-von-Laue-Strasse 760438Frankfurt/MainGermany
| | - Sabine Brantl
- AG BakteriengenetikMatthias-Schleiden-InstitutPhilosophenweg 1207743JenaGermany
| | - Elena Evguenieva‐Hackenberg
- Institute for Microbiology and Molecular BiologyJustus Liebig University GiessenHeinrich-Buff-Ring 2635392GiessenGermany
| | - Wolfgang R. Hess
- Faculty of Biology, Genetics and Experimental BioinformaticsAlbert Ludwigs University FreiburgSchänzlestrasse 179104FreiburgGermany
| | - Gabriele Klug
- Institute for Microbiology and Molecular BiologyJustus Liebig University GiessenHeinrich-Buff-Ring 2635392GiessenGermany
| | | | - Jörg Soppa
- Institute for Molecular BiosciencesJohann Wolfgang Goethe UniversityMax-von-Laue-Strasse 960438Frankfurt am MainGermany
| | - Wolfgang Streit
- Department of Microbiology and BiotechnologyUniversity of HamburgOhnhorststrasse 1822609HamburgGermany
| | - Maxim Mayzel
- Swedish NMR CentreUniversity of GothenburgP. O. Box 46540530GothenburgSweden
| | - Vladislav Y. Orekhov
- Swedish NMR CentreUniversity of GothenburgP. O. Box 46540530GothenburgSweden
- Department of Chemistry and Molecular BiologyUniversity of GothenburgKemigården 441296GothenburgSweden
| | - Monika Fuxreiter
- MTA-DE Laboratory of Protein DynamicsDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyUniversity of DebrecenNagyerdei krt 984032DebrecenHungary
| | - Ruth A. Schmitz
- Institute for General MicrobiologyChristian Albrechts University KielAm Botanischen Garten 1–924118KielGermany
| | - Harald Schwalbe
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyCenter for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance (BMRZ)Johann Wolfgang Goethe UniversityMax-von-Laue-Strasse 760438Frankfurt/MainGermany
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13
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Berkemer SJ, Maier LK, Amman F, Bernhart SH, Wörtz J, Märkle P, Pfeiffer F, Stadler PF, Marchfelder A. Identification of RNA 3´ ends and termination sites in Haloferax volcanii. RNA Biol 2020; 17:663-676. [PMID: 32041469 PMCID: PMC7237163 DOI: 10.1080/15476286.2020.1723328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Archaeal genomes are densely packed; thus, correct transcription termination is an important factor for orchestrated gene expression. A systematic analysis of RNA 3´ termini, to identify transcription termination sites (TTS) using RNAseq data has hitherto only been performed in two archaea, Methanosarcina mazei and Sulfolobus acidocaldarius. In this study, only regions directly downstream of annotated genes were analysed, and thus, only part of the genome had been investigated. Here, we developed a novel algorithm (Internal Enrichment-Peak Calling) that allows an unbiased, genome-wide identification of RNA 3´ termini independent of annotation. In an RNA fraction enriched for primary transcripts by terminator exonuclease (TEX) treatment we identified 1,543 RNA 3´ termini. Approximately half of these were located in intergenic regions, and the remainder were found in coding regions. A strong sequence signature consistent with known termination events at intergenic loci indicates a clear enrichment for native TTS among them. Using these data we determined distinct putative termination motifs for intergenic (a T stretch) and coding regions (AGATC). In vivo reporter gene tests of selected TTS confirmed termination at these sites, which exemplify the different motifs. For several genes, more than one termination site was detected, resulting in transcripts with different lengths of the 3´ untranslated region (3´ UTR).
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah J Berkemer
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science - and Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | | | - Fabian Amman
- Institute for Theoretical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Division of Cell and Developmental Biology, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Stephan H Bernhart
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science - and Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Transcriptome Bioinformatics, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | | | | | - Friedhelm Pfeiffer
- Computational Biology Group, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Peter F Stadler
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science - and Interdisciplinary Center for Bioinformatics, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Institute for Theoretical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia.,Center for RNA in Technology and Health, University Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C, Denmark.,Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM, USA.,German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle, Jena and Leipzig, Germany.,Competence Center for Scalable Data Services and Solutions, and Leipzig, Research Center for Civilization Diseases, University Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
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14
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Pfeiffer F, Losensky G, Marchfelder A, Habermann B, Dyall‐Smith M. Whole-genome comparison between the type strain of Halobacterium salinarum (DSM 3754 T ) and the laboratory strains R1 and NRC-1. Microbiologyopen 2020; 9:e974. [PMID: 31797576 PMCID: PMC7002104 DOI: 10.1002/mbo3.974] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Revised: 11/08/2019] [Accepted: 11/09/2019] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Halobacterium salinarum is an extremely halophilic archaeon that is widely distributed in hypersaline environments and was originally isolated as a spoilage organism of salted fish and hides. The type strain 91-R6 (DSM 3754T ) has seldom been studied and its genome sequence has only recently been determined by our group. The exact relationship between the type strain and two widely used model strains, NRC-1 and R1, has not been described before. The genome of Hbt. salinarum strain 91-R6 consists of a chromosome (2.17 Mb) and two large plasmids (148 and 102 kb, with 39,230 bp being duplicated). Cytosine residues are methylated (m4 C) within CTAG motifs. The genomes of type and laboratory strains are closely related, their chromosomes sharing average nucleotide identity (ANIb) values of 98% and in silico DNA-DNA hybridization (DDH) values of 95%. The chromosomes are completely colinear, do not show genome rearrangement, and matching segments show <1% sequence difference. Among the strain-specific sequences are three large chromosomal replacement regions (>10 kb). The well-studied AT-rich island (61 kb) of the laboratory strains is replaced by a distinct AT-rich sequence (47 kb) in 91-R6. Another large replacement (91-R6: 78 kb, R1: 44 kb) codes for distinct homologs of proteins involved in motility and N-glycosylation. Most (107 kb) of plasmid pHSAL1 (91-R6) is very closely related to part of plasmid pHS3 (R1) and codes for essential genes (e.g. arginine-tRNA ligase and the pyrimidine biosynthesis enzyme aspartate carbamoyltransferase). Part of pHS3 (42.5 kb total) is closely related to the largest strain-specific sequence (164 kb) in the type strain chromosome. Genome sequencing unraveled the close relationship between the Hbt. salinarum type strain and two well-studied laboratory strains at the DNA and protein levels. Although an independent isolate, the type strain shows a remarkably low evolutionary difference to the laboratory strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Friedhelm Pfeiffer
- Computational Biology GroupMax‐Planck‐Institute of BiochemistryMartinsriedGermany
| | - Gerald Losensky
- Microbiology and ArchaeaDepartment of BiologyTechnische Universität DarmstadtDarmstadtGermany
| | | | - Bianca Habermann
- Computational Biology GroupMax‐Planck‐Institute of BiochemistryMartinsriedGermany
- CNRSIBDM UMR 7288Aix Marseille UniversitéMarseilleFrance
| | - Mike Dyall‐Smith
- Computational Biology GroupMax‐Planck‐Institute of BiochemistryMartinsriedGermany
- Veterinary BiosciencesFaculty of Veterinary and Agricultural SciencesUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVic.Australia
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15
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Maier L, Marchfelder A, Randau L. BioEssays 2/2020. Bioessays 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/bies.202070021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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16
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Stachler AE, Schwarz TS, Schreiber S, Marchfelder A. CRISPRi as an efficient tool for gene repression in archaea. Methods 2020; 172:76-85. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2019.05.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2019] [Revised: 05/20/2019] [Accepted: 05/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
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17
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Maier LK, Marchfelder A, Randau L. Meeting Report: German Genetics Society-Genome Editing with CRISPR. Bioessays 2019; 42:e1900223. [PMID: 31853989 DOI: 10.1002/bies.201900223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Lennart Randau
- Prokaryotic RNA Biology, Philipps-Universität Marburg, 35043, Marburg, Germany
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18
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Jevtić Ž, Stoll B, Pfeiffer F, Sharma K, Urlaub H, Marchfelder A, Lenz C. The Response of Haloferax volcanii to Salt and Temperature Stress: A Proteome Study by Label-Free Mass Spectrometry. Proteomics 2019; 19:e1800491. [PMID: 31502396 DOI: 10.1002/pmic.201800491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [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: 12/31/2018] [Revised: 08/27/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
In-depth proteome analysis of the haloarchaeal model organism Haloferax volcanii has been performed under standard, low/high salt, and low/high temperature conditions using label-free mass spectrometry. Qualitative analysis of protein identification data from high-pH/reversed-phase fractionated samples indicates 61.1% proteome coverage (2509 proteins), which is close to the maximum recorded values in archaea. Identified proteins match to the predicted proteome in their physicochemical properties, with only a small bias against low-molecular-weight and membrane-associated proteins. Cells grown under low and high salt stress as well as low and high temperature stress are quantitatively compared to standard cultures by sequential window acquisition of all theoretical mass spectra (SWATH-MS). A total of 2244 proteins, or 54.7% of the predicted proteome, are quantified across all conditions at high reproducibility, which allowed for global analysis of protein expression changes under these stresses. Of these, 2034 are significantly regulated under at least one stress condition. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis shows that several major cellular pathways are part of H. volcanii's universal stress response. In addition, specific pathways (purine, cobalamin, and tryptophan) are affected by temperature stress. The most strongly downregulated proteins under all stress conditions, zinc finger protein HVO_2753 and ribosomal protein S14, are found oppositely regulated to their immediate genetic neighbors from the same operon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Živojin Jevtić
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry Group, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Faßberg 11, Göttingen, 37077, Germany
| | | | - Friedhelm Pfeiffer
- Computational Biology Group, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Martinsried, 82152, Germany
| | - Kundan Sharma
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry Group, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Faßberg 11, Göttingen, 37077, Germany
| | - Henning Urlaub
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry Group, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Faßberg 11, Göttingen, 37077, Germany.,Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, 37075, Germany
| | | | - Christof Lenz
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry Group, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Faßberg 11, Göttingen, 37077, Germany.,Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, 37075, Germany
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19
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Kubatova N, Jonker HRA, Saxena K, Richter C, Vogel V, Schreiber S, Marchfelder A, Schwalbe H. Solution Structure and Dynamics of the Small Protein HVO_2922 from
Haloferax volcanii. Chembiochem 2019; 21:149-156. [DOI: 10.1002/cbic.201900085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2019] [Revised: 06/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nina Kubatova
- Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyGoethe University Frankfurt Max von Laue Strasse 7 60438 Frankfurt am Main Germany
| | - Hendrik R. A. Jonker
- Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyGoethe University Frankfurt Max von Laue Strasse 7 60438 Frankfurt am Main Germany
| | - Krishna Saxena
- Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyGoethe University Frankfurt Max von Laue Strasse 7 60438 Frankfurt am Main Germany
| | - Christian Richter
- Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyGoethe University Frankfurt Max von Laue Strasse 7 60438 Frankfurt am Main Germany
| | | | | | | | - Harald Schwalbe
- Organic Chemistry and Chemical BiologyGoethe University Frankfurt Max von Laue Strasse 7 60438 Frankfurt am Main Germany
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20
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Schwarz TS, Wäber NB, Feyh R, Weidenbach K, Schmitz RA, Marchfelder A, Hartmann RK. Homologs of aquifex aeolicus protein-only RNase P are not the major RNase P activities in the archaea haloferax volcanii and methanosarcina mazei. IUBMB Life 2019; 71:1109-1116. [PMID: 31283101 DOI: 10.1002/iub.2122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [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: 05/09/2019] [Revised: 06/07/2019] [Accepted: 06/09/2019] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
The mature 5'-ends of tRNAs are generated by RNase P in all domains of life. The ancient form of the enzyme is a ribonucleoprotein consisting of a catalytic RNA and one or more protein subunits. However, in the hyperthermophilic bacterium Aquifex aeolicus and close relatives, RNase P is a protein-only enzyme consisting of a single type of polypeptide (Aq_880, ~23 kDa). In many archaea, homologs of Aq_880 were identified (termed HARPs for Homologs of Aquifex RNase P) in addition to the RNA-based RNase P, raising the question about the functions of HARP and the classical RNase P in these archaea. Here we investigated HARPs from two euryarchaeotes, Haloferax volcanii and Methanosarcina mazei. Archaeal strains with HARP gene knockouts showed no growth phenotypes under standard conditions, temperature and salt stress (H. volcanii) or nitrogen deficiency (M. mazei). Recombinant H. volcanii and M. mazei HARPs were basically able to catalyse specific tRNA 5'-end maturation in vitro. Furthermore, M. mazei HARP was able to rescue growth of an Escherichia coli RNase P depletion strain with comparable efficiency as Aq_880, while H. volcanii HARP was unable to do so. In conclusion, both archaeal HARPs showed the capacity (in at least one functional assay) to act as RNases P. However, the ease to obtain knockouts of the singular HARP genes and the lack of growth phenotypes upon HARP gene deletion contrasts with the findings that the canonical RNase P RNA gene cannot be deleted in H. volcanii, and a knockdown of RNase P RNA in H. volcanii results in severe tRNA processing defects. We conclude that archaeal HARPs do not make a major contribution to global tRNA 5'-end maturation in archaea, but may well exert a specialised, yet unknown function in (t)RNA metabolism. © 2019 IUBMB Life, 2019 © 2019 IUBMB Life, 71(8):1109-1116, 2019.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Nadine B Wäber
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Philipps University, Marburg, Germany
| | - Rebecca Feyh
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Philipps University, Marburg, Germany
| | - Katrin Weidenbach
- Institute of General Microbiology, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel, Germany
| | - Ruth A Schmitz
- Institute of General Microbiology, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel, Germany
| | | | - Roland K Hartmann
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Philipps University, Marburg, Germany
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21
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alexander Elsholz
- Max Planck Unit for the Science of Pathogens, Charitéplatz 1, Berlin, Germany
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22
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Clouet-d'Orval B, Batista M, Bouvier M, Quentin Y, Fichant G, Marchfelder A, Maier LK. Insights into RNA-processing pathways and associated RNA-degrading enzymes in Archaea. FEMS Microbiol Rev 2018; 42:579-613. [PMID: 29684129 DOI: 10.1093/femsre/fuy016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2018] [Accepted: 04/17/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
RNA-processing pathways are at the centre of regulation of gene expression. All RNA transcripts undergo multiple maturation steps in addition to covalent chemical modifications to become functional in the cell. This includes destroying unnecessary or defective cellular RNAs. In Archaea, information on mechanisms by which RNA species reach their mature forms and associated RNA-modifying enzymes are still fragmentary. To date, most archaeal actors and pathways have been proposed in light of information gathered from Bacteria and Eukarya. In this context, this review provides a state of the art overview of archaeal endoribonucleases and exoribonucleases that cleave and trim RNA species and also of the key small archaeal proteins that bind RNAs. Furthermore, synthetic up-to-date views of processing and biogenesis pathways of archaeal transfer and ribosomal RNAs as well as of maturation of stable small non-coding RNAs such as CRISPR RNAs, small C/D and H/ACA box guide RNAs, and other emerging classes of small RNAs are described. Finally, prospective post-transcriptional mechanisms to control archaeal messenger RNA quality and quantity are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Béatrice Clouet-d'Orval
- Laboratoire de Microbiologie et de Génétique Moléculaires (LMGM), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Manon Batista
- Laboratoire de Microbiologie et de Génétique Moléculaires (LMGM), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Marie Bouvier
- Laboratoire de Microbiologie et de Génétique Moléculaires (LMGM), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Yves Quentin
- Laboratoire de Microbiologie et de Génétique Moléculaires (LMGM), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Gwennaele Fichant
- Laboratoire de Microbiologie et de Génétique Moléculaires (LMGM), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse, CNRS, 31062 Toulouse, France
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Maier LK, Stachler AE, Brendel J, Stoll B, Fischer S, Haas KA, Schwarz TS, Alkhnbashi OS, Sharma K, Urlaub H, Backofen R, Gophna U, Marchfelder A. The nuts and bolts of the Haloferax CRISPR-Cas system I-B. RNA Biol 2018; 16:469-480. [PMID: 29649958 PMCID: PMC6546412 DOI: 10.1080/15476286.2018.1460994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Invading genetic elements pose a constant threat to prokaryotic survival, requiring an effective defence. Eleven years ago, the arsenal of known defence mechanisms was expanded by the discovery of the CRISPR-Cas system. Although CRISPR-Cas is present in the majority of archaea, research often focuses on bacterial models. Here, we provide a perspective based on insights gained studying CRISPR-Cas system I-B of the archaeon Haloferax volcanii. The system relies on more than 50 different crRNAs, whose stability and maintenance critically depend on the proteins Cas5 and Cas7, which bind the crRNA and form the Cascade complex. The interference machinery requires a seed sequence and can interact with multiple PAM sequences. H. volcanii stands out as the first example of an organism that can tolerate autoimmunity via the CRISPR-Cas system while maintaining a constitutively active system. In addition, the H. volcanii system was successfully developed into a tool for gene regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Karina A Haas
- a Biology II, Ulm University , Ulm , Germany.,b Microbiology and Biotechnology, Ulm University , Ulm , Germany
| | | | - Omer S Alkhnbashi
- c Freiburg Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science , University of Freiburg , Georges-Köhler-Allee 106, Freiburg , Germany
| | - Kundan Sharma
- e Max Planck Institute of Biophysical Chemistry , Am Faßberg 11, Göttingen , Germany.,f Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, University of Oxford , Oxford , United Kingdom
| | - Henning Urlaub
- e Max Planck Institute of Biophysical Chemistry , Am Faßberg 11, Göttingen , Germany.,g Institute for Clinical Chemistry, University Medical Center Göttingen , Robert Koch Straße 10, Göttingen , Germany
| | - Rolf Backofen
- c Freiburg Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science , University of Freiburg , Georges-Köhler-Allee 106, Freiburg , Germany.,d Centre for Biological Signalling Studies (BIOSS), Cluster of Excellence, University of Freiburg , Germany
| | - Uri Gophna
- h School of Molecular Cell Biology & Biotechnology, George S. Wise, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv , Israel
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Ma M, Li de la Sierra-Gallay I, Lazar N, Pellegrini O, Durand D, Marchfelder A, Condon C, van Tilbeurgh H. The crystal structure of Trz1, the long form RNase Z from yeast. Nucleic Acids Res 2017; 45:6209-6216. [PMID: 28379452 PMCID: PMC5449637 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkx216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2017] [Accepted: 04/03/2017] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
tRNAs are synthesized as precursor RNAs that have to undergo processing steps to become functional. Yeast Trz1 is a key endoribonuclease involved in the 3΄ maturation of tRNAs in all domains of life. It is a member of the β-lactamase family of RNases, characterized by an HxHxDH sequence motif involved in coordination of catalytic Zn-ions. The RNase Z family consists of two subfamilies: the short (250-400 residues) and the long forms (about double in size). Short form RNase Z enzymes act as homodimers: one subunit embraces tRNA with a protruding arm, while the other provides the catalytic site. The long form is thought to contain two fused β-lactamase domains within a single polypeptide. Only structures of short form RNase Z enzymes are known. Here we present the 3.1 Å crystal structure of the long-form Trz1 from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Trz1 is organized into two β-lactamase domains connected by a long linker. The N-terminal domain has lost its catalytic residues, but retains the long flexible arm that is important for tRNA binding, while it is the other way around in the C-terminal domain. Trz1 likely evolved from a duplication and fusion of the gene encoding the monomeric short form RNase Z.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miao Ma
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS UMR 9198, University of Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France
| | - Ines Li de la Sierra-Gallay
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS UMR 9198, University of Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France
| | - Noureddine Lazar
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS UMR 9198, University of Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France
| | - Olivier Pellegrini
- UMR8261 (CNRS-University of Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité), Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique, 13 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Dominique Durand
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS UMR 9198, University of Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France
| | | | - Ciarán Condon
- UMR8261 (CNRS-University of Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité), Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique, 13 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Herman van Tilbeurgh
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS UMR 9198, University of Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France
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Stachler AE, Turgeman-Grott I, Shtifman-Segal E, Allers T, Marchfelder A, Gophna U. High tolerance to self-targeting of the genome by the endogenous CRISPR-Cas system in an archaeon. Nucleic Acids Res 2017; 45:5208-5216. [PMID: 28334774 PMCID: PMC5435918 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkx150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2016] [Accepted: 03/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
CRISPR-Cas systems allow bacteria and archaea to acquire sequence-specific immunity against selfish genetic elements such as viruses and plasmids, by specific degradation of invader DNA or RNA. However, this involves the risk of autoimmunity if immune memory against host DNA is mistakenly acquired. Such autoimmunity has been shown to be highly toxic in several bacteria and is believed to be one of the major costs of maintaining these defense systems. Here we generated an experimental system in which a non-essential gene, required for pigment production and the reddish colony color, is targeted by the CRISPR-Cas I-B system of the halophilic archaeon Haloferax volcanii. We show that under native conditions, where both the self-targeting and native crRNAs are expressed, self-targeting by CRISPR-Cas causes no reduction in transformation efficiency of the plasmid encoding the self-targeting crRNA. Furthermore, under such conditions, no effect on organismal growth rate or loss of the reddish colony phenotype due to mutations in the targeted region could be observed. In contrast, in cells deleted for the pre-crRNA processing gene cas6, where only the self-targeting crRNA exists as mature crRNA, self-targeting leads to moderate toxicity and the emergence of deletion mutants. Sequencing of the deletions caused by CRISPR-Cas self targeting indicated DNA repair via microhomology-mediated end joining.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Israela Turgeman-Grott
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel
| | - Ella Shtifman-Segal
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel
| | - Thorsten Allers
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK
| | | | - Uri Gophna
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel
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26
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Abstract
The majority of archaea encode CRISPR-Cas systems but only a few CRISPR-Cas-based genetic tools have been developed for organisms from this domain. Nayak and Metcalf have harnessed a bacterial Cas9 protein for genome editing in Methanosarcina acetivorans, enabling efficient gene deletion and replacement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Uri Gophna
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978-01, Israel
| | - Thorsten Allers
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK
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Babski J, Haas KA, Näther-Schindler D, Pfeiffer F, Förstner KU, Hammelmann M, Hilker R, Becker A, Sharma CM, Marchfelder A, Soppa J. Genome-wide identification of transcriptional start sites in the haloarchaeon Haloferax volcanii based on differential RNA-Seq (dRNA-Seq). BMC Genomics 2016; 17:629. [PMID: 27519343 PMCID: PMC4983044 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-016-2920-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2016] [Accepted: 07/07/2016] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Differential RNA-Seq (dRNA-Seq) is a recently developed method of performing primary transcriptome analyses that allows for the genome-wide mapping of transcriptional start sites (TSSs) and the identification of novel transcripts. Although the transcriptomes of diverse bacterial species have been characterized by dRNA-Seq, the transcriptome analysis of archaeal species is still rather limited. Therefore, we used dRNA-Seq to characterize the primary transcriptome of the model archaeon Haloferax volcanii. RESULTS Three independent cultures of Hfx. volcanii grown under optimal conditions to the mid-exponential growth phase were used to determine the primary transcriptome and map the 5'-ends of the transcripts. In total, 4749 potential TSSs were detected. A position weight matrix (PWM) was derived for the promoter predictions, and the results showed that 64 % of the TSSs were preceded by stringent or relaxed basal promoters. Of the identified TSSs, 1851 belonged to protein-coding genes. Thus, fewer than half (46 %) of the 4040 protein-coding genes were expressed under optimal growth conditions. Seventy-two percent of all protein-coding transcripts were leaderless, which emphasized that this pathway is the major pathway for translation initiation in haloarchaea. A total of 2898 of the TSSs belonged to potential non-coding RNAs, which accounted for an unexpectedly high fraction (61 %) of all transcripts. Most of the non-coding TSSs had not been previously described (2792) and represented novel sequences (59 % of all TSSs). A large fraction of the potential novel non-coding transcripts were cis-antisense RNAs (1244 aTSSs). A strong negative correlation between the levels of antisense transcripts and cognate sense mRNAs was found, which suggested that the negative regulation of gene expression via antisense RNAs may play an important role in haloarchaea. The other types of novel non-coding transcripts corresponded to internal transcripts overlapping with mRNAs (1153 iTSSs) and intergenic small RNA (sRNA) candidates (395 TSSs). CONCLUSION This study provides a comprehensive map of the primary transcriptome of Hfx. volcanii grown under optimal conditions. Fewer than half of all protein-coding genes have been transcribed under these conditions. Unexpectedly, more than half of the detected TSSs belonged to several classes of non-coding RNAs. Thus, RNA-based regulation appears to play a more important role in haloarchaea than previously anticipated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Babski
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences, Goethe University, Biocentre, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, D-60439 Frankfurt, Germany
| | | | - Daniela Näther-Schindler
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences, Goethe University, Biocentre, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, D-60439 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Friedhelm Pfeiffer
- Computational Biology Group, MaxPlanckInstitute of Biochemistry, Am Klopferspitz 18, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Konrad U. Förstner
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases (ZINF), University of Würzburg, Josef-Schneider-Str. 2/D15, 97080 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Matthias Hammelmann
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences, Goethe University, Biocentre, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, D-60439 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Rolf Hilker
- Bioinformatik und Systembiologie, University of Gießen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 58, 35392 Gießen, Germany
| | - Anke Becker
- LOEWE-Center for Synthetic Microbiology, Hans-Meerwein-Str., 35032 Marburg, Germany
| | - Cynthia M. Sharma
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases (ZINF), University of Würzburg, Josef-Schneider-Str. 2/D15, 97080 Würzburg, Germany
| | | | - Jörg Soppa
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences, Goethe University, Biocentre, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, D-60439 Frankfurt, Germany
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28
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Stachler AE, Marchfelder A. Gene Repression in Haloarchaea Using the CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats)-Cas I-B System. J Biol Chem 2016; 291:15226-42. [PMID: 27226589 PMCID: PMC4946936 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m116.724062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-Cas system is used by bacteria and archaea to fend off foreign genetic elements. Since its discovery it has been developed into numerous applications like genome editing and regulation of transcription in eukaryotes and bacteria. For archaea currently no tools for transcriptional repression exist. Because molecular biology analyses in archaea become more and more widespread such a tool is vital for investigating the biological function of essential genes in archaea. Here we use the model archaeon Haloferax volcanii to demonstrate that its endogenous CRISPR-Cas system I-B can be harnessed to repress gene expression in archaea. Deletion of cas3 and cas6b genes results in efficient repression of transcription. crRNAs targeting the promoter region reduced transcript levels down to 8%. crRNAs targeting the reading frame have only slight impact on transcription. crRNAs that target the coding strand repress expression only down to 88%, whereas crRNAs targeting the template strand repress expression down to 8%. Repression of an essential gene results in reduction of transcription levels down to 22%. Targeting efficiencies can be enhanced by expressing a catalytically inactive Cas3 mutant. Genes can be targeted on plasmids or on the chromosome, they can be monocistronic or part of a polycistronic operon.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Anita Marchfelder
- From the Department of Biology II, Ulm University, 89069 Ulm, Germany
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29
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Maier LK, Benz J, Fischer S, Alstetter M, Jaschinski K, Hilker R, Becker A, Allers T, Soppa J, Marchfelder A. Deletion of the Sm1 encoding motif in the lsm gene results in distinct changes in the transcriptome and enhanced swarming activity of Haloferax cells. Biochimie 2015; 117:129-37. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2015.02.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2014] [Accepted: 02/26/2015] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
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30
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Hrle A, Maier LK, Sharma K, Ebert J, Basquin C, Urlaub H, Marchfelder A, Conti E. Structural analyses of the CRISPR protein Csc2 reveal the RNA-binding interface of the type I-D Cas7 family. RNA Biol 2015; 11:1072-82. [PMID: 25483036 PMCID: PMC4615900 DOI: 10.4161/rna.29893] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Upon pathogen invasion, bacteria and archaea activate an RNA-interference-like mechanism termed CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats). A large family of Cas (CRISPR-associated) proteins mediates the different stages of this sophisticated immune response. Bioinformatic studies have classified the Cas proteins into families, according to their sequences and respective functions. These range from the insertion of the foreign genetic elements into the host genome to the activation of the interference machinery as well as target degradation upon attack. Cas7 family proteins are central to the type I and type III interference machineries as they constitute the backbone of the large interference complexes. Here we report the crystal structure of Thermofilum pendens Csc2, a Cas7 family protein of type I-D. We found that Csc2 forms a core RRM-like domain, flanked by three peripheral insertion domains: a lid domain, a Zinc-binding domain and a helical domain. Comparison with other Cas7 family proteins reveals a set of similar structural features both in the core and in the peripheral domains, despite the absence of significant sequence similarity. T. pendens Csc2 binds single-stranded RNA in vitro in a sequence-independent manner. Using a crosslinking - mass-spectrometry approach, we mapped the RNA-binding surface to a positively charged surface patch on T. pendens Csc2. Thus our analysis of the key structural and functional features of T. pendens Csc2 highlights recurring themes and evolutionary relationships in type I and type III Cas proteins.
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Key Words
- CRISPR
- CRISPR, Clustered regulatory short interspaced palindromic repeats
- Cas, CRISPR-associated
- Cas7
- H1 and H2 and H1-2, β-hairpins of insertion domain 1 (or lid domain)
- Mk, Methanopyrus kandleri
- RAMP, Repeat associated mysterious protein
- RNA binding
- RNAi, RNA interference
- RRM domain
- RRM, RNA recognition motif
- Rmsd, Root mean square deviation
- SAD, Single-wavelength anomalous dispersion
- Ss, Sulfolobus solfataricus
- Tp, Thermofilum pendens
- crRNA, CRISPR RNA
- dCASCADE, interference complex subtype I-D
- eCASCADE, interference complex subtype I-E
- prokaryotic immune system
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Affiliation(s)
- Ajla Hrle
- a Structural Cell Biology Department; Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry ; Martinsried , Germany
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31
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Sharma K, Hrle A, Kramer K, Sachsenberg T, Staals RHJ, Randau L, Marchfelder A, van der Oost J, Kohlbacher O, Conti E, Urlaub H. Analysis of protein-RNA interactions in CRISPR proteins and effector complexes by UV-induced cross-linking and mass spectrometry. Methods 2015; 89:138-48. [PMID: 26071038 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2015.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [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: 02/16/2015] [Revised: 05/19/2015] [Accepted: 06/04/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complexes play important roles in the cell by mediating basic cellular processes, including gene expression and its regulation. Understanding the molecular details of these processes requires the identification and characterization of protein-RNA interactions. Over the years various approaches have been used to investigate these interactions, including computational analyses to look for RNA binding domains, gel-shift mobility assays on recombinant and mutant proteins as well as co-crystallization and NMR studies for structure elucidation. Here we report a more specialized and direct approach using UV-induced cross-linking coupled with mass spectrometry. This approach permits the identification of cross-linked peptides and RNA moieties and can also pin-point exact RNA contact sites within the protein. The power of this method is illustrated by the application to different single- and multi-subunit RNP complexes belonging to the prokaryotic adaptive immune system, CRISPR-Cas (CRISPR: clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats; Cas: CRISPR associated). In particular, we identified the RNA-binding sites within three Cas7 protein homologs and mapped the cross-linking results to reveal structurally conserved Cas7 - RNA binding interfaces. These results demonstrate the strong potential of UV-induced cross-linking coupled with mass spectrometry analysis to identify RNA interaction sites on the RNA binding proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kundan Sharma
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Ajla Hrle
- Structural Cell Biology Department, Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Katharina Kramer
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany; Plant Proteomics Group, Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research, Cologne, Germany
| | - Timo Sachsenberg
- Center for Bioinformatics, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; Department of Computer Science, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Raymond H J Staals
- Laboratory of Microbiology, Department of Agrotechnology and Food Sciences, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Lennart Randau
- Prokaryotic Small RNA Biology, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | | | - John van der Oost
- Laboratory of Microbiology, Department of Agrotechnology and Food Sciences, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Oliver Kohlbacher
- Center for Bioinformatics, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; Department of Computer Science, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; Quantitative Biology Center, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; Faculty of Medicine, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Elena Conti
- Structural Cell Biology Department, Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Henning Urlaub
- Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany; Bioanalytics Research Group, Department of Clinical Chemistry, University Medical Center, Göttingen, Germany
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32
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Abstract
To fight off invading genetic elements, prokaryotes have developed an elaborate defence system that is both adaptable and heritable—the CRISPR-Cas system (CRISPR is short for: clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats and Cas: CRISPR associated). Comprised of proteins and multiple small RNAs, this prokaryotic defence system is present in 90% of archaeal and 40% of bacterial species, and enables foreign intruders to be eliminated in a sequence-specific manner. There are three major types (I–III) and at least 14 subtypes of this system, with only some of the subtypes having been analysed in detail, and many aspects of the defence reaction remaining to be elucidated. Few archaeal examples have so far been analysed. Here we summarize the characteristics of the CRISPR-Cas system of Haloferax volcanii, an extremely halophilic archaeon originally isolated from the Dead Sea. It carries a single CRISPR-Cas system of type I-B, with a Cascade like complex composed of Cas proteins Cas5, Cas6b and Cas7. Cas6b is essential for CRISPR RNA (crRNA) maturation but is otherwise not required for the defence reaction. A systematic search revealed that six protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) sequences are recognised by the Haloferax defence system. For successful invader recognition, a non-contiguous seed sequence of 10 base-pairs between the crRNA and the invader is required.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mike Dyall-Smith
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Charles Sturt University, 2650 NSW, Australia.
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33
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Maier LK, Stachler AE, Saunders SJ, Backofen R, Marchfelder A. An active immune defense with a minimal CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) RNA and without the Cas6 protein. J Biol Chem 2014; 290:4192-201. [PMID: 25512373 PMCID: PMC4326828 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m114.617506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The prokaryotic immune system CRISPR-Cas (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-CRISPR-associated) is a defense system that protects prokaryotes against foreign DNA. The short CRISPR RNAs (crRNAs) are central components of this immune system. In CRISPR-Cas systems type I and III, crRNAs are generated by the endonuclease Cas6. We developed a Cas6b-independent crRNA maturation pathway for the Haloferax type I-B system in vivo that expresses a functional crRNA, which we termed independently generated crRNA (icrRNA). The icrRNA is effective in triggering degradation of an invader plasmid carrying the matching protospacer sequence. The Cas6b-independent maturation of the icrRNA allowed mutation of the repeat sequence without interfering with signals important for Cas6b processing. We generated 23 variants of the icrRNA and analyzed them for activity in the interference reaction. icrRNAs with deletions or mutations of the 3′ handle are still active in triggering an interference reaction. The complete 3′ handle could be removed without loss of activity. However, manipulations of the 5′ handle mostly led to loss of interference activity. Furthermore, we could show that in the presence of an icrRNA a strain without Cas6b (Δcas6b) is still active in interference.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sita J Saunders
- the Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Georges-Köhler-Allee 106, 79110 Freiburg, and
| | - Rolf Backofen
- the Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Georges-Köhler-Allee 106, 79110 Freiburg, and the BIOSS Centre for Biological Signalling Studies, Cluster of Excellence, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Schänzlestrasse 18, 79104 Freiburg, Germany
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34
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Abstract
Prokaryotes have developed several strategies to defend themselves against foreign genetic elements. One of those defense mechanisms is the recently identified CRISPR/Cas system, which is used by approximately half of all bacterial and almost all archaeal organisms. The CRISPR/Cas system differs from the other defense strategies because it is adaptive, hereditary and it recognizes the invader by a sequence specific mechanism. To identify the invading foreign nucleic acid, a crRNA that matches the invader DNA is required, as well as a short sequence motif called protospacer adjacent motif (PAM). We recently identified the PAM sequences for the halophilic archaeon Haloferax volcanii, and found that several motifs were active in triggering the defense reaction. In contrast, selection of protospacers from the invader seems to be based on fewer PAM sequences, as evidenced by comparative sequence data. This suggests that the selection of protospacers has stricter requirements than the defense reaction. Comparison of CRISPR-repeat sequences carried by sequenced haloarchaea revealed that in more than half of the species, the repeat sequence is conserved and that they have the same CRISPR/Cas type.
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35
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Babski J, Maier LK, Heyer R, Jaschinski K, Prasse D, Jäger D, Randau L, Schmitz RA, Marchfelder A, Soppa J. Small regulatory RNAs in Archaea. RNA Biol 2014; 11:484-93. [PMID: 24755959 PMCID: PMC4152357 DOI: 10.4161/rna.28452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) are universally distributed in all three domains of life, Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukaryotes. In bacteria, sRNAs typically function by binding near the translation start site of their target mRNAs and thereby inhibit or activate translation. In eukaryotes, miRNAs and siRNAs typically bind to the 3′-untranslated region (3′-UTR) of their target mRNAs and influence translation efficiency and/or mRNA stability. In archaea, sRNAs have been identified in all species investigated using bioinformatic approaches, RNomics, and RNA-Seq. Their size can vary significantly between less than 50 to more than 500 nucleotides. Differential expression of sRNA genes has been studied using northern blot analysis, microarrays, and RNA-Seq. In addition, biological functions have been unraveled by genetic approaches, i.e., by characterization of designed mutants. As in bacteria, it was revealed that archaeal sRNAs are involved in many biological processes, including metabolic regulation, adaptation to extreme conditions, stress responses, and even in regulation of morphology and cellular behavior. Recently, the first target mRNAs were identified in archaea, including one sRNA that binds to the 5′-region of two mRNAs in Methanosarcina mazei Gö1 and a few sRNAs that bind to 3′-UTRs in Sulfolobus solfataricus, three Pyrobaculum species, and Haloferax volcanii, indicating that archaeal sRNAs appear to be able to target both the 5′-UTR or the 3′-UTRs of their respective target mRNAs. In addition, archaea contain tRNA-derived fragments (tRFs), and one tRF has been identified as a major ribosome-binding sRNA in H. volcanii, which downregulates translation in response to stress. Besides regulatory sRNAs, archaea contain further classes of sRNAs, e.g., CRISPR RNAs (crRNAs) and snoRNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Babski
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences; Biocentre; Goethe University; Frankfurt, Germany
| | | | - Ruth Heyer
- Biology II; Ulm University; Ulm, Germany
| | - Katharina Jaschinski
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences; Biocentre; Goethe University; Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Daniela Prasse
- Institute for Microbiology; Christian-Albrechts-University; Kiel, Germany
| | - Dominik Jäger
- Institute for Microbiology; Christian-Albrechts-University; Kiel, Germany
| | - Lennart Randau
- Prokaryotic Small RNA Biology Group; Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology; Marburg, Germany
| | - Ruth A Schmitz
- Institute for Microbiology; Christian-Albrechts-University; Kiel, Germany
| | | | - Jörg Soppa
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences; Biocentre; Goethe University; Frankfurt, Germany
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Brendel J, Stoll B, Lange SJ, Sharma K, Lenz C, Stachler AE, Maier LK, Richter H, Nickel L, Schmitz RA, Randau L, Allers T, Urlaub H, Backofen R, Marchfelder A. A complex of Cas proteins 5, 6, and 7 is required for the biogenesis and stability of clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (crispr)-derived rnas (crrnas) in Haloferax volcanii. J Biol Chem 2014; 289:7164-7177. [PMID: 24459147 PMCID: PMC3945376 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m113.508184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated (CRISPR-Cas) system is a prokaryotic defense mechanism against foreign genetic elements. A plethora of CRISPR-Cas versions exist, with more than 40 different Cas protein families and several different molecular approaches to fight the invading DNA. One of the key players in the system is the CRISPR-derived RNA (crRNA), which directs the invader-degrading Cas protein complex to the invader. The CRISPR-Cas types I and III use the Cas6 protein to generate mature crRNAs. Here, we show that the Cas6 protein is necessary for crRNA production but that additional Cas proteins that form a CRISPR-associated complex for antiviral defense (Cascade)-like complex are needed for crRNA stability in the CRISPR-Cas type I-B system in Haloferax volcanii in vivo. Deletion of the cas6 gene results in the loss of mature crRNAs and interference. However, cells that have the complete cas gene cluster (cas1–8b) removed and are transformed with the cas6 gene are not able to produce and stably maintain mature crRNAs. crRNA production and stability is rescued only if cas5, -6, and -7 are present. Mutational analysis of the cas6 gene reveals three amino acids (His-41, Gly-256, and Gly-258) that are essential for pre-crRNA cleavage, whereas the mutation of two amino acids (Ser-115 and Ser-224) leads to an increase of crRNA amounts. This is the first systematic in vivo analysis of Cas6 protein variants. In addition, we show that the H. volcanii I-B system contains a Cascade-like complex with a Cas7, Cas5, and Cas6 core that protects the crRNA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jutta Brendel
- Department of Biology II, Ulm University, 89069 Ulm, Germany
| | - Britta Stoll
- Department of Biology II, Ulm University, 89069 Ulm, Germany
| | - Sita J Lange
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Freiburg, Georges-Köhler-Allee 106, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
| | - Kundan Sharma
- Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Christof Lenz
- Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077 Göttingen, Germany; Bioanalytics, Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Medical Center Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
| | | | | | - Hagen Richter
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Karl-von-Frisch-Strasse 10, 35043 Marburg, Germany
| | - Lisa Nickel
- Institute for General Microbiology, Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Ruth A Schmitz
- Institute for General Microbiology, Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Lennart Randau
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Karl-von-Frisch-Strasse 10, 35043 Marburg, Germany
| | - Thorsten Allers
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham NG7 2UH, United Kingdom
| | - Henning Urlaub
- Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077 Göttingen, Germany; Bioanalytics, Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Medical Center Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Rolf Backofen
- Bioinformatics Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Freiburg, Georges-Köhler-Allee 106, 79110 Freiburg, Germany; Centre for Biological Signalling Studies (BIOSS), Cluster of Excellence, University of Freiburg, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
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37
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Skowronek E, Grzechnik P, Späth B, Marchfelder A, Kufel J. tRNA 3' processing in yeast involves tRNase Z, Rex1, and Rrp6. RNA 2014; 20:115-30. [PMID: 24249226 PMCID: PMC3866640 DOI: 10.1261/rna.041467.113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2013] [Accepted: 10/24/2013] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Mature tRNA 3' ends in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae are generated by two pathways: endonucleolytic and exonucleolytic. Although two exonucleases, Rex1 and Rrp6, have been shown to be responsible for the exonucleolytic trimming, the identity of the endonuclease has been inferred from other systems but not confirmed in vivo. Here, we show that the yeast tRNA 3' endonuclease tRNase Z, Trz1, is catalyzing endonucleolytic tRNA 3' processing. The majority of analyzed tRNAs utilize both pathways, with a preference for the endonucleolytic one. However, 3'-end processing of precursors with long 3' trailers depends to a greater extent on Trz1. In addition to its function in the nucleus, Trz1 processes the 3' ends of mitochondrial tRNAs, contributing to the general RNA metabolism in this organelle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ewa Skowronek
- Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 02-106 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Pawel Grzechnik
- Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 02-106 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Bettina Späth
- Molekulare Botanik, Universität Ulm, 89069 Ulm, Germany
| | | | - Joanna Kufel
- Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 02-106 Warsaw, Poland
- Corresponding authorE-mail
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38
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Schnattinger T, Schöning U, Marchfelder A, Kestler HA. RNA-Pareto: interactive analysis of Pareto-optimal RNA sequence-structure alignments. Bioinformatics 2013; 29:3102-4. [PMID: 24045774 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btt536] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Incorporating secondary structure information into the alignment process improves the quality of RNA sequence alignments. Instead of using fixed weighting parameters, sequence and structure components can be treated as different objectives and optimized simultaneously. The result is not a single, but a Pareto-set of equally optimal solutions, which all represent different possible weighting parameters. We now provide the interactive graphical software tool RNA-Pareto, which allows a direct inspection of all feasible results to the pairwise RNA sequence-structure alignment problem and greatly facilitates the exploration of the optimal solution set.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Schnattinger
- Institute of Theoretical Computer Science, Medical Systems Biology and Biology II, Ulm University, D-89069 Ulm, Germany
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39
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40
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Maier LK, Lange SJ, Stoll B, Haas KA, Fischer S, Fischer E, Duchardt-Ferner E, Wöhnert J, Backofen R, Marchfelder A. Essential requirements for the detection and degradation of invaders by the Haloferax volcanii CRISPR/Cas system I-B. RNA Biol 2013; 10:865-74. [PMID: 23594992 PMCID: PMC3737343 DOI: 10.4161/rna.24282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
To fend off foreign genetic elements, prokaryotes have developed several defense systems. The most recently discovered defense system, CRISPR/Cas, is sequence-specific, adaptive and heritable. The two central components of this system are the Cas proteins and the CRISPR RNA. The latter consists of repeat sequences that are interspersed with spacer sequences. The CRISPR locus is transcribed into a precursor RNA that is subsequently processed into short crRNAs. CRISPR/Cas systems have been identified in bacteria and archaea, and data show that many variations of this system exist. We analyzed the requirements for a successful defense reaction in the halophilic archaeon Haloferax volcanii. Haloferax encodes a CRISPR/Cas system of the I-B subtype, about which very little is known. Analysis of the mature crRNAs revealed that they contain a spacer as their central element, which is preceded by an eight-nucleotide-long 5′ handle that originates from the upstream repeat. The repeat sequences have the potential to fold into a minimal stem loop. Sequencing of the crRNA population indicated that not all of the spacers that are encoded by the three CRISPR loci are present in the same abundance. By challenging Haloferax with an invader plasmid, we demonstrated that the interaction of the crRNA with the invader DNA requires a 10-nucleotide-long seed sequence. In addition, we found that not all of the crRNAs from the three CRISPR loci are effective at triggering the degradation of invader plasmids. The interference does not seem to be influenced by the copy number of the invader plasmid.
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Fischer S, Maier LK, Stoll B, Brendel J, Fischer E, Pfeiffer F, Dyall-Smith M, Marchfelder A. An archaeal immune system can detect multiple protospacer adjacent motifs (PAMs) to target invader DNA. J Biol Chem 2012; 287:33351-63. [PMID: 22767603 PMCID: PMC3460438 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m112.377002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated (Cas) system provides adaptive and heritable immunity against foreign genetic elements in most archaea and many bacteria. Although this system is widespread and diverse with many subtypes, only a few species have been investigated to elucidate the precise mechanisms for the defense of viruses or plasmids. Approximately 90% of all sequenced archaea encode CRISPR/Cas systems, but their molecular details have so far only been examined in three archaeal species: Sulfolobus solfataricus, Sulfolobus islandicus, and Pyrococcus furiosus. Here, we analyzed the CRISPR/Cas system of Haloferax volcanii using a plasmid-based invader assay. Haloferax encodes a type I-B CRISPR/Cas system with eight Cas proteins and three CRISPR loci for which the identity of protospacer adjacent motifs (PAMs) was unknown until now. We identified six different PAM sequences that are required upstream of the protospacer to permit target DNA recognition. This is only the second archaeon for which PAM sequences have been determined, and the first CRISPR group with such a high number of PAM sequences. Cells could survive the plasmid challenge if their CRISPR/Cas system was altered or defective, e.g. by deletion of the cas gene cassette. Experimental PAM data were supplemented with bioinformatics data on Haloferax and Haloquadratum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susan Fischer
- Department of Biology II, Ulm University, 89069 Ulm, Germany
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Heyer R, Dörr M, Jellen-Ritter A, Späth B, Babski J, Jaschinski K, Soppa J, Marchfelder A. High throughput sequencing reveals a plethora of small RNAs including tRNA derived fragments in Haloferax volcanii. RNA Biol 2012; 9:1011-8. [PMID: 22767255 PMCID: PMC3495736 DOI: 10.4161/rna.20826] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
To define the complete sRNA population of the halophilic archaeon Haloferax volcanii, we employed high throughput sequencing. cDNAs were generated from RNA ranging in size from 17 to 500 nucleotides isolated from cells grown at three different conditions to exponential and stationary phase, respectively. Altogether, 145 intergenic and 45 antisense sRNAs were identified. Comparison of the expression profile showed different numbers of reads at the six different conditions for the majority of sRNAs. A striking difference in the number of sRNA reads was observed between cells grown under standard vs. low salt conditions. Furthermore, the six highest numbers of reads were found for low salt conditions. In contrast, only slight differences between sRNA reads at different growth temperatures were detected. Attempts to delete four sRNA genes revealed that one sRNA gene is essential. The three viable sRNA gene deletion mutants possessed distinct phenotypes. According to microarray analyses, the removal of the sRNA gene resulted in a profound change of the transcriptome when compared with the wild type. High throughput sequencing also showed the presence of high concentrations of tRNA derived fragments in H. volcanii. These tRF molecules were shown to have different amounts of reads at the six conditions analyzed. Northern analysis was used to confirm the presence of the tRNA-derived fragments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Heyer
- Biology II, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
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43
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Peters K, Niessen M, Peterhänsel C, Späth B, Hölzle A, Binder S, Marchfelder A, Braun HP. Complex I-complex II ratio strongly differs in various organs of Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Mol Biol 2012; 79:273-84. [PMID: 22527752 DOI: 10.1007/s11103-012-9911-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2011] [Accepted: 03/30/2012] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
In most studies, amounts of protein complexes of the oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) system in different organs or tissues are quantified on the basis of isolated mitochondrial fractions. However, yield of mitochondrial isolations might differ with respect to tissue type due to varying efficiencies of cell disruption during organelle isolation procedures or due to tissue-specific properties of organelles. Here we report an immunological investigation on the ratio of the OXPHOS complexes in different tissues of Arabidopsis thaliana which is based on total protein fractions isolated from five Arabidopsis organs (leaves, stems, flowers, roots and seeds) and from callus. Antibodies were generated against one surface exposed subunit of each of the five OXPHOS complexes and used for systematic immunoblotting experiments. Amounts of all complexes are highest in flowers (likewise with respect to organ fresh weight or total protein content of the flower fraction). Relative amounts of protein complexes in all other fractions were determined with respect to their amounts in flowers. Our investigation reveals high relative amounts of complex I in green organs (leaves and stems) but much lower amounts in non-green organs (roots, callus tissue). In contrast, complex II only is represented by low relative amounts in green organs but by significantly higher amounts in non-green organs, especially in seeds. In fact, the complex I-complex II ratio differs by factor 37 between callus and leaf, indicating drastic differences in electron entry into the respiratory chain in these two fractions. Variation in amounts concerning complexes III, IV and V was less pronounced in different Arabidopsis tissues (quantification of complex V in leaves was not meaningful due to a cross-reaction of the antibody with the chloroplast form of this enzyme). Analyses were complemented by in gel activity measurements for the protein complexes of the OXPHOS system and comparative 2D blue native/SDS PAGE analyses using isolated mitochondria. We suggest that complex I has an especially important role in the context of photosynthesis which might be due to its indirect involvement in photorespiration and its numerous enzymatic side activities in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katrin Peters
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Institute of Plant Genetics, Leibniz Universität Hannover, 30419 Hannover, Germany
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Hölzle A, Stoll B, Schnattinger T, Schöning U, Tjaden B, Marchfelder A. tRNA-like elements in Haloferax volcanii. Biochimie 2011; 94:940-6. [PMID: 22178322 DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2011.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2011] [Accepted: 12/01/2011] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
All functional RNAs are generated from precursor molecules by a plethora of processing steps. The generation of mature RNA molecules by processing is an important layer of gene expression regulation catalysed by ribonucleases. Here, we analysed 5S rRNA processing in the halophilic Archaeon Haloferax volcanii. Earlier experiments showed that the 5S rRNA is cleaved at its 5' end by the endonuclease tRNase Z. Interestingly, a tRNA-like structure was identified upstream of the 5S rRNA that might be used as a processing signal. Here, we show that this tRNA-like element is indeed recognised as a processing signal by tRNase Z. Substrates containing mutations in the tRNA-like sequence are no longer processed, whereas a substrate containing a deletion in the 5S rRNA sequence is still cleaved. Therefore, an intact 5S rRNA structure is not required for processing. Further, we used bioinformatics analyses to identify additional sequences in Haloferax containing tRNA-like structures. This search resulted in the identification of all tRNAs, the tRNA-like structure upstream of the 5S RNA and 47 new tRNA-like structural elements. However, the in vitro processing of selected examples showed no cleavage of these newly identified elements. Thus, tRNA-like elements are not a general processing signal in Haloferax.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annette Hölzle
- Biology II, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89069 Ulm, Germany
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45
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Babski J, Tjaden B, Voss B, Jellen-Ritter A, Marchfelder A, Hess WR, Soppa J. Bioinformatic prediction and experimental verification of sRNAs in the haloarchaeon Haloferax volcanii. RNA Biol 2011; 8:806-16. [PMID: 21712649 DOI: 10.4161/rna.8.5.16039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently a small-scale RNomics study led to the experimental identification of 21 intergenic and 18 antisense sRNA genes in the haloarchaeon Haloferax volcanii. To broaden the knowledge about sRNAs in haloarchaea, two bioinformatic approaches were used to predict sRNA genes in the genome of H. volcanii. More than 120 putative intergenic sRNA genes were identified by these comparative genomic approaches. The expression of 61 of the predicted genes was analyzed using DNA microarrays, and 37 were found to be expressed under at least one of three conditions tested. Using the results of Northern blot analyses and of a high throughput sequencing study the number of expressed genes was raised to 54 and the small size was verified for 26 predicted sRNAs. An analysis of the coding capacity revealed that the set of predicted sRNAs most likely does not encode proteins or peptides. In two cases it turned out that the predictions had not identified bona fide sRNAs but conserved regions in UTRs of large protein-encoding transcripts. Taken together, the combination of bioinformatic prediction and experimental verification has more than tripled the number of known haloarchaeal sRNAs, underscoring the importance of regulatory RNAs in the third domain of life, the archaea. Further analyses of the biological functions of selected sRNAs, including the construction of deletion mutants, are currently under way.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Babski
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences, Biocentre, Goethe-University, Frankfurt, Germany
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Fischer S, Benz J, Späth B, Maier LK, Straub J, Granzow M, Raabe M, Urlaub H, Hoffmann J, Brutschy B, Allers T, Soppa J, Marchfelder A. The archaeal Lsm protein binds to small RNAs. J Biol Chem 2010; 285:34429-38. [PMID: 20826804 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m110.118950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Proteins of the Lsm family, including eukaryotic Sm proteins and bacterial Hfq, are key players in RNA metabolism. Little is known about the archaeal homologues of these proteins. Therefore, we characterized the Lsm protein from the haloarchaeon Haloferax volcanii using in vitro and in vivo approaches. H. volcanii encodes a single Lsm protein, which belongs to the Lsm1 subfamily. The lsm gene is co-transcribed and overlaps with the gene for the ribosomal protein L37e. Northern blot analysis shows that the lsm gene is differentially transcribed. The Lsm protein forms homoheptameric complexes and has a copy number of 4000 molecules/cell. In vitro analyses using electrophoretic mobility shift assays and ultrasoft mass spectrometry (laser-induced liquid bead ion desorption) showed a complex formation of the recombinant Lsm protein with oligo(U)-RNA, tRNAs, and an small RNA. Co-immunoprecipitation with a FLAG-tagged Lsm protein produced in vivo confirmed that the protein binds to small RNAs. Furthermore, the co-immunoprecipitation revealed several protein interaction partners, suggesting its involvement in different cellular pathways. The deletion of the lsm gene is viable, resulting in a pleiotropic phenotype, indicating that the haloarchaeal Lsm is involved in many cellular processes, which is in congruence with the number of protein interaction partners.
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Straub J, Brenneis M, Jellen-Ritter A, Heyer R, Soppa J, Marchfelder A. Small RNAs in haloarchaea: identification, differential expression and biological function. RNA Biol 2009; 6:281-92. [PMID: 19333006 DOI: 10.4161/rna.6.3.8357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
To elucidate the role of small noncoding RNAs (sRNAs) in archaea we applied RNomics to identify sRNAs in the halophilic archaeon Haloferax volcanii. Using a size-selected cDNA library, 39 different previously uncharacterized sRNAs were identified ranging in size from 130 to 460 nucleotides. Twenty-one of these sRNAs are located in intergenic regions and 18 in antisense orientation. One of the intergenic sRNAs codes for a peptide. Only a minor fraction of sRNA genes were preceded by promoter elements (15 of 39), indicating that the majority might be generated by processing from larger precursors. Northern blot analyses of the intergenic sRNAs revealed differential expression for several sRNAs. Deletion mutants of two sRNAs were constructed, demonstrating that this approach is suitable to elucidate their biological function. Both mutant strains showed a defined phenotype: sRNA(30) gene deletion mutant was less resistant to higher temperatures and sRNA(63) gene deletion mutant resulted in a severe growth defect at low salt concentrations. Proteome analyses revealed clear differences between wildtype and deletion strains. These results represent the first reported examples of experimentally characterizing the function of sRNAs, excepting snoRNAs, in archaea. Taken together, we showed that haloarchaea encode sRNAs, some of which are differentially expressed and which have the potential to fulfil important biological functions in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Straub
- Institute of Molecular Biosciences, Goethe-University, Frankfurt, Germany
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48
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Barbezier N, Canino G, Rodor J, Jobet E, Saez-Vasquez J, Marchfelder A, Echeverría M. Processing of a dicistronic tRNA-snoRNA precursor: combined analysis in vitro and in vivo reveals alternate pathways and coupling to assembly of snoRNP. Plant Physiol 2009; 150:1598-610. [PMID: 19420328 PMCID: PMC2705039 DOI: 10.1104/pp.109.137968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
The C/D box small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) represent an essential class of small nucleolar RNAs that guide 2'-O-Rib methylation of ribosomal RNAs and other RNAs in eukaryotes. In Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), >100 C/D snoRNAs have been identified, most of them encoded by polycistronic gene clusters, but little is known on the factors controlling their biogenesis. Here, we focus on the identification of factors controlling the processing of tRNA-snoRNA dicistronic precursors (pre-tsnoRNA) synthesized by RNA polymerase III and producing tRNA(Gly) and C/D snoR43. We produced radiolabeled RNA probes corresponding to different pre-tsnoRNA mutants to test their impact on processing in vitro by a recombinant tRNAse Z, the Arabidopsis endonuclease that processes the 3'end of tRNAs, and by nuclear extracts from cauliflower (Brassica oleracea) inflorescences that accurately process the pre-tsnoRNA. This was coupled to an in vivo analysis of the processing of tagged pre-tsnoRNA mutants expressed in Arabidopsis. Our results strongly implicate tRNase Z in endonucleolytic cleavage of the pre-tsnoRNA. In addition, they reveal an alternate pathway that could depend on a tRNA decay surveillance mechanism. Finally, we provide arguments showing that processing of pre-tsnoRNA, both in planta and by nuclear extracts, is coupled to the assembly of snoRNA with core proteins forming the functional snoRNP (for small nucleolar ribonucleoprotein complex).
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Barbezier
- Laboratoire Génome et Développement des Plantes, Unité Mixte de Recherche 5096, Université de Perpignan Via Domitia-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, 66860 Perpignan cedex, France
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49
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Abstract
Functional transfer RNA (tRNA) molecules are a prerequisite for protein biosynthesis. Several processing steps are required to generate the mature functional tRNA from precursor molecules. Two of the early processing steps involve cleavage at the tRNA 5' end and the tRNA 3' end. While processing at the tRNA 5' end is performed by RNase P, cleavage at the 3' end is catalyzed by the endonuclease tRNase Z. In eukaryotes, tRNase Z enzymes are found in two versions: a short form of about 250 to 300 amino acids and a long form of about 700 to 900 amino acids. All eukaryotic genomes analyzed to date encode at least one long tRNase Z protein. Of those, Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) is the only organism that encodes four tRNase Z proteins, two short forms and two long forms. We show here that the four proteins are distributed to different subcellular compartments in the plant cell: the nucleus, the cytoplasm, the mitochondrion, and the chloroplast. One tRNase Z is present only in the cytoplasm, one protein is found exclusively in mitochondria, while the third one has dual locations: nucleus and mitochondria. None of these three tRNase Z proteins is essential. The fourth tRNase Z protein is present in chloroplasts, and deletion of its gene results in an embryo-lethal phenotype. In vitro analysis with the recombinant proteins showed that all four tRNase Z enzymes have tRNA 3' processing activity. In addition, the mitochondrial tRNase Z proteins cleave tRNA-like elements that serve as processing signals in mitochondrial mRNA maturation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giusy Canino
- Molekulare Botanik, Universität Ulm, 89069 Ulm, Germany
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50
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Abstract
Transfer-RNA (tRNA) molecules are essential players in protein biosynthesis. They are transcribed as precursors, which have to be extensively processed at both ends to become functional adaptors in protein synthesis. Two endonucleases that directly interact with the tRNA moiety, RNase P and tRNase Z, remove extraneous nucleotides on the molecule's 5'- and 3'-side, respectively. The ribonucleoprotein enzyme RNase P was identified almost 40 years ago and is considered a vestige from the "RNA world". Here, we present the state of affairs on prokaryotic RNase P, with a focus on recent findings on its role in RNA metabolism. tRNase Z was only identified 6 years ago, and we do not yet have a comprehensive understanding of its function. The current knowledge on prokaryotic tRNase Z in tRNA 3'-processing is reviewed here. A second, tRNase Z-independent pathway of tRNA 3'-end maturation involving 3'-exonucleases will also be discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roland K Hartmann
- Philipps-Universität Marburg, Institut für Pharmazeutische Chemie, Marbacher Weg 6, D-35037 Marburg, Germany
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