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Sims L, Wright C, Crombie AT, Dawson R, Lockwood C, Le Brun NE, Lehtovirta‐Morley L, Murrell JC. Whole-cell studies of substrate and inhibitor specificity of isoprene monooxygenase and related enzymes. Environ Microbiol Rep 2023; 15:809-819. [PMID: 37935632 PMCID: PMC10667655 DOI: 10.1111/1758-2229.13212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2023] [Accepted: 10/26/2023] [Indexed: 11/09/2023]
Abstract
Co-oxidation of a range of alkenes, dienes, and aromatic compounds by whole cells of the isoprene-degrading bacterium Rhodococcus sp. AD45 expressing isoprene monooxygenase was investigated, revealing a relatively broad substrate specificity for this soluble diiron centre monooxygenase. A range of 1-alkynes (C2 -C8 ) were tested as potential inhibitors. Acetylene, a potent inhibitor of the related enzyme soluble methane monooxygenase, had little inhibitory effect, whereas 1-octyne was a potent inhibitor of isoprene monooxygenase, indicating that 1-octyne could potentially be used as a specific inhibitor to differentiate between isoprene consumption by bona fide isoprene degraders and co-oxidation of isoprene by other oxygenase-containing bacteria, such as methanotrophs, in environmental samples. The isoprene oxidation kinetics of a variety of monooxygenase-expressing bacteria were also investigated, revealing that alkene monooxygenase from Xanthobacter and soluble methane monooxygenases from Methylococcus and Methylocella, but not particulate methane monooxygenases from Methylococcus or Methylomicrobium, could co-oxidise isoprene at appreciable rates. Interestingly the ammonia monooxygenase from the nitrifier Nitrosomonas europaea could also co-oxidise isoprene at relatively high rates, suggesting that co-oxidation of isoprene by additional groups of bacteria, under the right conditions, might occur in the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leanne Sims
- School of Environmental SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
- Present address:
Quadram Institute BiosciencesNorwich Research ParkNorwichUK
| | - Chloe Wright
- School of Environmental SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
- School of Biological SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
| | - Andrew T. Crombie
- School of Environmental SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
- School of Biological SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
| | - Robin Dawson
- School of Environmental SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
- School of Biological SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
| | - Colin Lockwood
- School of Environmental SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
- School of ChemistryUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
| | | | | | - J. Colin Murrell
- School of Environmental SciencesUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK
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2
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Smolander J, Junttila S, Elo LL. Cell-connectivity-guided trajectory inference from single-cell data. Bioinformatics 2023; 39:btad515. [PMID: 37624916 PMCID: PMC10474950 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btad515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2022] [Revised: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/23/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
MOTIVATION Single-cell RNA-sequencing enables cell-level investigation of cell differentiation, which can be modelled using trajectory inference methods. While tremendous effort has been put into designing these methods, inferring accurate trajectories automatically remains difficult. Therefore, the standard approach involves testing different trajectory inference methods and picking the trajectory giving the most biologically sensible model. As the default parameters are often suboptimal, their tuning requires methodological expertise. RESULTS We introduce Totem, an open-source, easy-to-use R package designed to facilitate inference of tree-shaped trajectories from single-cell data. Totem generates a large number of clustering results, estimates their topologies as minimum spanning trees, and uses them to measure the connectivity of the cells. Besides automatic selection of an appropriate trajectory, cell connectivity enables to visually pinpoint branching points and milestones relevant to the trajectory. Furthermore, testing different trajectories with Totem is fast, easy, and does not require in-depth methodological knowledge. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION Totem is available as an R package at https://github.com/elolab/Totem.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Smolander
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
| | - Sini Junttila
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
| | - Laura L Elo
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
- Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku, 20520 Turku, Finland
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Harvey C, de Croon G, Taylor GK, Bomphrey RJ. Lessons from natural flight for aviation: then, now and tomorrow. J Exp Biol 2023; 226:307084. [PMID: 37066792 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.245409] [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] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/18/2023]
Abstract
Powered flight was once a capability limited only to animals, but by identifying useful attributes of animal flight and building on these with technological advances, engineers have pushed the frontiers of flight beyond our predecessors' wildest imaginations. Yet, there remain many key characteristics of biological flight that elude current aircraft design, motivating a careful re-analysis of what we have learned from animals already, and how this has been revealed experimentally, as well as a specific focus on identifying what remains unknown. Here, we review the literature to identify key contributions that began in biology and have since been translated into aeronautical devices or capabilities. We identify central areas for future research and highlight the importance of maintaining an open line of two-way communication between biologists and engineers. Such interdisciplinary, bio-informed analyses continue to push forward the frontiers of aeronautics and experimental biology alike.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina Harvey
- Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Guido de Croon
- Micro Air Vehicle Laboratory, Control and Simulation, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HS Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Graham K Taylor
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3SZ, UK
| | - Richard J Bomphrey
- Structure and Motion Laboratory, Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, Royal Veterinary College, Hatfield AL9 7TA, UK
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Starskaia I, Laajala E, Grönroos T, Härkönen T, Junttila S, Kattelus R, Kallionpää H, Laiho A, Suni V, Tillmann V, Lund R, Elo LL, Lähdesmäki H, Knip M, Kalim UU, Lahesmaa R. Early DNA methylation changes in children developing beta cell autoimmunity at a young age. Diabetologia 2022; 65:844-860. [PMID: 35142878 PMCID: PMC8960578 DOI: 10.1007/s00125-022-05657-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2021] [Accepted: 11/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
AIMS/HYPOTHESIS Type 1 diabetes is a chronic autoimmune disease of complex aetiology, including a potential role for epigenetic regulation. Previous epigenomic studies focused mainly on clinically diagnosed individuals. The aim of the study was to assess early DNA methylation changes associated with type 1 diabetes already before the diagnosis or even before the appearance of autoantibodies. METHODS Reduced representation bisulphite sequencing (RRBS) was applied to study DNA methylation in purified CD4+ T cell, CD8+ T cell and CD4-CD8- cell fractions of 226 peripheral blood mononuclear cell samples longitudinally collected from seven type 1 diabetes-specific autoantibody-positive individuals and control individuals matched for age, sex, HLA risk and place of birth. We also explored correlations between DNA methylation and gene expression using RNA sequencing data from the same samples. Technical validation of RRBS results was performed using pyrosequencing. RESULTS We identified 79, 56 and 45 differentially methylated regions in CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells and CD4-CD8- cell fractions, respectively, between type 1 diabetes-specific autoantibody-positive individuals and control participants. The analysis of pre-seroconversion samples identified DNA methylation signatures at the very early stage of disease, including differential methylation at the promoter of IRF5 in CD4+ T cells. Further, we validated RRBS results using pyrosequencing at the following CpG sites: chr19:18118304 in the promoter of ARRDC2; chr21:47307815 in the intron of PCBP3; and chr14:81128398 in the intergenic region near TRAF3 in CD4+ T cells. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION These preliminary results provide novel insights into cell type-specific differential epigenetic regulation of genes, which may contribute to type 1 diabetes pathogenesis at the very early stage of disease development. Should these findings be validated, they may serve as a potential signature useful for disease prediction and management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inna Starskaia
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- Turku Doctoral Programme of Molecular Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Essi Laajala
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- Turku Doctoral Programme of Molecular Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- Department of Computer Science, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
| | - Toni Grönroos
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Taina Härkönen
- Pediatric Research Center, Children's Hospital, University of Helsinki, and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
- Research Program for Clinical and Molecular Metabolism, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Sini Junttila
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Roosa Kattelus
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Henna Kallionpää
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Asta Laiho
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Veronika Suni
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Vallo Tillmann
- Children's Clinic of Tartu University Hospital, Tartu, Estonia
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Riikka Lund
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Laura L Elo
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Harri Lähdesmäki
- Department of Computer Science, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
| | - Mikael Knip
- Pediatric Research Center, Children's Hospital, University of Helsinki, and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
- Research Program for Clinical and Molecular Metabolism, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Tampere Center for Child Health Research, Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland
| | - Ubaid Ullah Kalim
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland.
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.
| | - Riitta Lahesmaa
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland.
- InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.
- Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.
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Puchta H, Jiang J, Wang K, Zhao Y. Updates on gene editing and its applications. Plant Physiol 2022; 188:1725-1730. [PMID: 35225345 PMCID: PMC8968428 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiac032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Holger Puchta
- Botanical Institute, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany
| | - Jiming Jiang
- Department of Plant Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
- Department of Horticulture, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
| | - Kan Wang
- Department of Agronomy, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA
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Gehrke F, Schindele A, Puchta H. Nonhomologous end joining as key to CRISPR/Cas-mediated plant chromosome engineering. Plant Physiol 2022; 188:1769-1779. [PMID: 34893907 PMCID: PMC8968298 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiab572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Although clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein (Cas)-mediated gene editing has revolutionized biology and plant breeding, large-scale, heritable restructuring of plant chromosomes is still in its infancy. Duplications and inversions within a chromosome, and also translocations between chromosomes, can now be achieved. Subsequently, genetic linkages can be broken or can be newly created. Also, the order of genes on a chromosome can be changed. While natural chromosomal recombination occurs by homologous recombination during meiosis, CRISPR/Cas-mediated chromosomal rearrangements can be obtained best by harnessing nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ) pathways in somatic cells. NHEJ can be subdivided into the classical (cNHEJ) and alternative NHEJ (aNHEJ) pathways, which partially operate antagonistically. The cNHEJ pathway not only protects broken DNA ends from degradation but also suppresses the joining of previously unlinked broken ends. Hence, in the absence of cNHEJ, more inversions or translocations can be obtained which can be ascribed to the unrestricted use of the aNHEJ pathway for double-strand break (DSB) repair. In contrast to inversions or translocations, short tandem duplications can be produced by paired single-strand breaks via a Cas9 nickase. Interestingly, the cNHEJ pathway is essential for these kinds of duplications, whereas aNHEJ is required for patch insertions that can also be formed during DSB repair. As chromosome engineering has not only been accomplished in the model plant Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) but also in the crop maize (Zea mays), we expect that this technology will soon transform the breeding process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabienne Gehrke
- Botanical Institute, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe 76131, Germany
| | - Angelina Schindele
- Botanical Institute, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe 76131, Germany
| | - Holger Puchta
- Botanical Institute, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe 76131, Germany
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Wang C, Richter‐Dennerlein R, Pacheu‐Grau D, Liu F, Zhu Y, Dennerlein S, Rehling P. MITRAC15/COA1 promotes mitochondrial translation in a ND2 ribosome-nascent chain complex. EMBO Rep 2020; 21:e48833. [PMID: 31721420 PMCID: PMC6945058 DOI: 10.15252/embr.201948833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [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: 07/08/2019] [Revised: 10/28/2019] [Accepted: 10/29/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The mitochondrial genome encodes for thirteen core subunits of the oxidative phosphorylation system. These proteins assemble with imported proteins in a modular manner into stoichiometric enzyme complexes. Assembly factors assist in these biogenesis processes by providing co-factors or stabilizing transient assembly stages. However, how expression of the mitochondrial-encoded subunits is regulated to match the availability of nuclear-encoded subunits is still unresolved. Here, we address the function of MITRAC15/COA1, a protein that participates in complex I biogenesis and complex IV biogenesis. Our analyses of a MITRAC15 knockout mutant reveal that MITRAC15 is required for translation of the mitochondrial-encoded complex I subunit ND2. We find that MITRAC15 is a constituent of a ribosome-nascent chain complex during ND2 translation. Chemical crosslinking analyses demonstrate that binding of the ND2-specific assembly factor ACAD9 to the ND2 polypeptide occurs at the C-terminus and thus downstream of MITRAC15. Our analyses demonstrate that expression of the founder subunit ND2 of complex I undergoes regulation. Moreover, a ribosome-nascent chain complex with MITRAC15 is at the heart of this process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cong Wang
- Department of Cellular BiochemistryUniversity Medical Center GöttingenGöttingenGermany
- Cluster of Excellence “Multiscale Bioimaging: from Molecular Machines to Networks of Excitable Cells” (MBExC)University of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
| | - Ricarda Richter‐Dennerlein
- Department of Cellular BiochemistryUniversity Medical Center GöttingenGöttingenGermany
- Cluster of Excellence “Multiscale Bioimaging: from Molecular Machines to Networks of Excitable Cells” (MBExC)University of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
| | - David Pacheu‐Grau
- Department of Cellular BiochemistryUniversity Medical Center GöttingenGöttingenGermany
| | - Fan Liu
- Leibniz‐Forschungsinstitut for Molecular Pharmacology (FMP)BerlinGermany
| | - Ying Zhu
- Leibniz‐Forschungsinstitut for Molecular Pharmacology (FMP)BerlinGermany
| | - Sven Dennerlein
- Department of Cellular BiochemistryUniversity Medical Center GöttingenGöttingenGermany
| | - Peter Rehling
- Department of Cellular BiochemistryUniversity Medical Center GöttingenGöttingenGermany
- Cluster of Excellence “Multiscale Bioimaging: from Molecular Machines to Networks of Excitable Cells” (MBExC)University of GoettingenGoettingenGermany
- Max Planck Institute for Biophysical ChemistryGöttingenGermany
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Farkhatdinov I, Michalska H, Berthoz A, Hayward V. Gravito-inertial ambiguity resolved through head stabilization. Proc Math Phys Eng Sci 2019; 475:20180010. [PMID: 31007539 PMCID: PMC6451982 DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2018.0010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2018] [Accepted: 02/25/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
It has been frequently observed that humans and animals spontaneously stabilize their heads with respect to the gravitational vertical during body movements even in the absence of vision. The interpretations of this intriguing behaviour have so far not included the need, for survival, to robustly estimate verticality. Here we use a mechanistic model of the head/otolith organ to analyse the possibility for this system to render verticality 'observable', a fundamental prerequisite to the determination of the angular position and acceleration of the head from idiothetic, inertial measurements. The intrinsically nonlinear head-vestibular dynamics is shown to generally lack observability unless the head is stabilized in orientation by feedback. Thus, our study supports the hypothesis that a central function of the physiologically costly head stabilization strategy is to enable an organism to estimate the gravitational vertical and head acceleration during locomotion. Moreover, our result exhibits a rare peculiarity of certain nonlinear systems to fortuitously alter their observability properties when feedback is applied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ildar Farkhatdinov
- School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, South Kensington, London, UK
| | - Hannah Michalska
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, McGill University, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Alain Berthoz
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Biologie (CIRB), Collége de France, 11 Place Marcelin Berthelot, Paris 75005, France
| | - Vincent Hayward
- Sorbonne Universités, Institut des Systèmes Intelligents et de Robotique (ISIR), Paris F-75005, France
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