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Romeo-Cardeillac C, Trovero MF, Radío S, Smircich P, Rodríguez-Casuriaga R, Geisinger A, Sotelo-Silveira J. Uncovering a multitude of stage-specific splice variants and putative protein isoforms generated along mouse spermatogenesis. BMC Genomics 2024; 25:295. [PMID: 38509455 PMCID: PMC10953240 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-024-10170-z] [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: 10/02/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mammalian testis is a highly complex and heterogeneous tissue. This complexity, which mostly derives from spermatogenic cells, is reflected at the transcriptional level, with the largest number of tissue-specific genes and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) compared to other tissues, and one of the highest rates of alternative splicing. Although it is known that adequate alternative-splicing patterns and stage-specific isoforms are critical for successful spermatogenesis, so far only a very limited number of reports have addressed a detailed study of alternative splicing and isoforms along the different spermatogenic stages. RESULTS In the present work, using highly purified stage-specific testicular cell populations, we detected 33,002 transcripts expressed throughout mouse spermatogenesis not annotated so far. These include both splice variants of already annotated genes, and of hitherto unannotated genes. Using conservative criteria, we uncovered 13,471 spermatogenic lncRNAs, which reflects the still incomplete annotation of lncRNAs. A distinctive feature of lncRNAs was their lower number of splice variants compared to protein-coding ones, adding to the conclusion that lncRNAs are, in general, less complex than mRNAs. Besides, we identified 2,794 unannotated transcripts with high coding potential (including some arising from yet unannotated genes), many of which encode unnoticed putative testis-specific proteins. Some of the most interesting coding splice variants were chosen, and validated through RT-PCR. Remarkably, the largest number of stage-specific unannotated transcripts are expressed during early meiotic prophase stages, whose study has been scarcely addressed in former transcriptomic analyses. CONCLUSIONS We detected a high number of yet unannotated genes and alternatively spliced transcripts along mouse spermatogenesis, hence showing that the transcriptomic diversity of the testis is considerably higher than previously reported. This is especially prominent for specific, underrepresented stages such as those of early meiotic prophase, and its unveiling may constitute a step towards the understanding of their key events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos Romeo-Cardeillac
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Reproduction, Department of Molecular Biology, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable (IIBCE), 11,600, Montevideo, Uruguay
- Department of Genomics, IIBCE, 11,600, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - María Fernanda Trovero
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Reproduction, Department of Molecular Biology, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable (IIBCE), 11,600, Montevideo, Uruguay
- Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Santiago Radío
- Department of Genomics, IIBCE, 11,600, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Pablo Smircich
- Department of Genomics, IIBCE, 11,600, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Rosana Rodríguez-Casuriaga
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Reproduction, Department of Molecular Biology, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable (IIBCE), 11,600, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Adriana Geisinger
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Reproduction, Department of Molecular Biology, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable (IIBCE), 11,600, Montevideo, Uruguay.
- Biochemistry-Molecular Biology, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República (UdelaR), 11,400, Montevideo, Uruguay.
| | - José Sotelo-Silveira
- Department of Genomics, IIBCE, 11,600, Montevideo, Uruguay.
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Facultad de Ciencias, UdelaR, 11,400, Montevideo, Uruguay.
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Rivara-Espasandín M, Palumbo MC, Sosa EJ, Radío S, Turjanski AG, Sotelo-Silveira J, Fernandez Do Porto D, Smircich P. Omics data integration facilitates target selection for new antiparasitic drugs against TriTryp infections. Front Pharmacol 2023; 14:1136321. [PMID: 37089958 PMCID: PMC10115950 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1136321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2023] [Indexed: 04/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction:Trypanosoma cruzi, Trypanosoma brucei, and Leishmania spp., commonly referred to as TriTryps, are a group of protozoan parasites that cause important human diseases affecting millions of people belonging to the most vulnerable populations worldwide. Current treatments have limited efficiencies and can cause serious side effects, so there is an urgent need to develop new control strategies. Presently, the identification and prioritization of appropriate targets can be aided by integrative genomic and computational approaches.Methods: In this work, we conducted a genome-wide multidimensional data integration strategy to prioritize drug targets. We included genomic, transcriptomic, metabolic, and protein structural data sources, to delineate candidate proteins with relevant features for target selection in drug development.Results and Discussion: Our final ranked list includes proteins shared by TriTryps and covers a range of biological functions including essential proteins for parasite survival or growth, oxidative stress-related enzymes, virulence factors, and proteins that are exclusive to these parasites. Our strategy found previously described candidates, which validates our approach as well as new proteins that can be attractive targets to consider during the initial steps of drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Rivara-Espasandín
- Departamento de Genómica, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Montevideo, Uruguay
- Departamento de Genética, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Miranda Clara Palumbo
- Instituto de Cálculo, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Departamento de Química Biológica, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Ezequiel J. Sosa
- Departamento de Química Biológica, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (IQUIBICEN) CONICET, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Santiago Radío
- Departamento de Genómica, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Adrián G. Turjanski
- Departamento de Química Biológica, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (IQUIBICEN) CONICET, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - José Sotelo-Silveira
- Departamento de Genómica, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Montevideo, Uruguay
- Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Dario Fernandez Do Porto
- Instituto de Cálculo, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Departamento de Química Biológica, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- *Correspondence: Dario Fernandez Do Porto, ; Pablo Smircich,
| | - Pablo Smircich
- Departamento de Genómica, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Montevideo, Uruguay
- Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
- *Correspondence: Dario Fernandez Do Porto, ; Pablo Smircich,
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Green L, Coronado-Zamora M, Radío S, Rech GE, Salces-Ortiz J, González J. The genomic basis of copper tolerance in Drosophila is shaped by a complex interplay of regulatory and environmental factors. BMC Biol 2022; 20:275. [PMID: 36482348 PMCID: PMC9733279 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-022-01479-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Escalation in industrialization and anthropogenic activity have resulted in an increase of pollutants released into the environment. Of these pollutants, heavy metals such as copper are particularly concerning due to their bio-accumulative nature. Due to its highly heterogeneous distribution and its dual nature as an essential micronutrient and toxic element, the genetic basis of copper tolerance is likely shaped by a complex interplay of genetic and environmental factors. RESULTS In this study, we utilized the natural variation present in multiple populations of Drosophila melanogaster collected across Europe to screen for variation in copper tolerance. We found that latitude and the degree of urbanization at the collection sites, rather than any other combination of environmental factors, were linked to copper tolerance. While previously identified copper-related genes were not differentially expressed in tolerant vs. sensitive strains, genes involved in metabolism, reproduction, and protease induction contributed to the differential stress response. Additionally, the greatest transcriptomic and physiological responses to copper toxicity were seen in the midgut, where we found that preservation of gut acidity is strongly linked to greater tolerance. Finally, we identified transposable element insertions likely to play a role in copper stress response. CONCLUSIONS Overall, by combining genome-wide approaches with environmental association analysis, and functional analysis of candidate genes, our study provides a unique perspective on the genetic and environmental factors that shape copper tolerance in natural D. melanogaster populations and identifies new genes, transposable elements, and physiological traits involved in this complex phenotype.
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Affiliation(s)
- Llewellyn Green
- grid.5612.00000 0001 2172 2676Institute of Evolutionary Biology, CSIC, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marta Coronado-Zamora
- grid.5612.00000 0001 2172 2676Institute of Evolutionary Biology, CSIC, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Santiago Radío
- grid.5612.00000 0001 2172 2676Institute of Evolutionary Biology, CSIC, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Gabriel E. Rech
- grid.5612.00000 0001 2172 2676Institute of Evolutionary Biology, CSIC, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Judit Salces-Ortiz
- grid.5612.00000 0001 2172 2676Institute of Evolutionary Biology, CSIC, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Josefa González
- grid.5612.00000 0001 2172 2676Institute of Evolutionary Biology, CSIC, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
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Rech GE, Radío S, Guirao-Rico S, Aguilera L, Horvath V, Green L, Lindstadt H, Jamilloux V, Quesneville H, González J. Population-scale long-read sequencing uncovers transposable elements associated with gene expression variation and adaptive signatures in Drosophila. Nat Commun 2022; 13:1948. [PMID: 35413957 PMCID: PMC9005704 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29518-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.5] [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: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
High quality reference genomes are crucial to understanding genome function, structure and evolution. The availability of reference genomes has allowed us to start inferring the role of genetic variation in biology, disease, and biodiversity conservation. However, analyses across organisms demonstrate that a single reference genome is not enough to capture the global genetic diversity present in populations. In this work, we generate 32 high-quality reference genomes for the well-known model species D. melanogaster and focus on the identification and analysis of transposable element variation as they are the most common type of structural variant. We show that integrating the genetic variation across natural populations from five climatic regions increases the number of detected insertions by 58%. Moreover, 26% to 57% of the insertions identified using long-reads were missed by short-reads methods. We also identify hundreds of transposable elements associated with gene expression variation and new TE variants likely to contribute to adaptive evolution in this species. Our results highlight the importance of incorporating the genetic variation present in natural populations to genomic studies, which is essential if we are to understand how genomes function and evolve. Even in well-studied species, there is still substantial natural genetic variation that has not been characterized. Here, the authors use long read sequencing to discover transposable elements in the Drosophila genome not detected by short read sequencing, and link them to gene expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel E Rech
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Santiago Radío
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sara Guirao-Rico
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Laura Aguilera
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Vivien Horvath
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Llewellyn Green
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Hannah Lindstadt
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | | | - Josefa González
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), 08003, Barcelona, Spain.
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Rodríguez-Decuadro S, da Rosa G, Radío S, Barraco-Vega M, Benko-Iseppon AM, Dans PD, Smircich P, Cecchetto G. Antimicrobial peptides in the seedling transcriptome of the tree legume Peltophorum dubium. Biochimie 2020; 180:229-242. [PMID: 33197551 DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2020.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2020] [Revised: 09/14/2020] [Accepted: 11/03/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) play an essential role in plant defense against invading pathogens. Due to their biological properties, these molecules have been considered useful for drug development, as novel agents in disease therapeutics, applicable to both agriculture and medicine. New technologies of massive sequencing open opportunities to discover novel AMP encoding genes in wild plant species. This work aimed to identify cysteine-rich AMPs from Peltophorum dubium, a legume tree from South America. We performed whole-transcriptome sequencing of P. dubium seedlings followed by de novo transcriptome assembly, uncovering 78 AMP transcripts classified into five families: hevein-like, lipid-transfer proteins (LTPs), alpha hairpinins, defensins, and snakin/GASA (Giberellic Acid Stimulated in Arabidopsis) peptides. No transcripts with similarity to cyclotide or thionin genes were identified. Genomic DNA analysis by PCR confirmed the presence of 18 genes encoding six putative defensins and 12 snakin/GASA peptides and allowed the characterization of their exon-intron structure. The present work demonstrates that AMP prediction from a wild species is possible using RNA sequencing and de novo transcriptome assembly, regarding a starting point for studies focused on AMP gene evolution and expression. Moreover, this study allowed the detection of strong AMP candidates for drug development and novel biotechnological products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susana Rodríguez-Decuadro
- Departamento de Biología Vegetal, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de la República, Garzón 780, Montevideo 12900, Uruguay.
| | - Gabriela da Rosa
- Departamento de Biociencias, Facultad de Química, Universidad de la República, General Flores 2124, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay.
| | - Santiago Radío
- Departamento de Genómica, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable. MEC - Laboratorio de Interacciones Moleculares, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Iguá 4225, Montevideo, 11400, Uruguay.
| | - Mariana Barraco-Vega
- Departamento de Biociencias, Facultad de Química, Universidad de la República, General Flores 2124, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay.
| | - Ana Maria Benko-Iseppon
- Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Centro de Biociências, Av. Prof. Moraes Rego, 1235. CEP 50.670-420, Recife, PE, Brazil.
| | - Pablo D Dans
- Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, CENUR Litoral Norte, Universidad de la República. General Fructuoso Rivera 1350, Laboratorio Genética Funcional, Institut Pasteur de Montevideo. Mataojo 2020, Salto 50000, Montevideo, 11400, Uruguay.
| | - Pablo Smircich
- Departamento de Genómica, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable. MEC - Laboratorio de Interacciones Moleculares, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Iguá 4225, Montevideo, 11400, Uruguay.
| | - Gianna Cecchetto
- Departamento de Biociencias, Facultad de Química, Universidad de la República, General Flores 2124, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay; Instituto de Química Biológica, Facultad de Ciencias - Facultad de Química, Universidad de la República, General Flores 2124, Montevideo, 11800, Uruguay.
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Radío S, Garat B, Sotelo-Silveira J, Smircich P. Upstream ORFs Influence Translation Efficiency in the Parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. Front Genet 2020; 11:166. [PMID: 32180802 PMCID: PMC7059621 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2020.00166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [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: 12/06/2019] [Accepted: 02/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
It is generally accepted that the presence of ORFs in the 5' untranslated region of eukaryotic transcripts modulates the production of proteins by controlling the translation initiation rate of the main CDS. In trypanosomatid parasites, which almost exclusively depend on post-transcriptional mechanisms to regulate gene expression, translation has been identified as a key step. However, the mechanisms of control of translation are not fully understood. In the present work, we have annotated the 5'UTRs of the Trypanosoma cruzi genome both in epimastigotes and metacyclic trypomastigotes and, using a stringent classification approach, we identified putative regulatory uORFs in about 9% of the analyzed 5'UTRs. The translation efficiency (TE) and translational levels of transcripts containing putative repressive uORFs were found to be significantly reduced. These findings are supported by the fact that proteomic methods only identify a low number of proteins coded by transcripts containing repressive uORF. We additionally show that AUG is the main translation initiator codon of repressive uORFs in T. cruzi. Interestingly, the decrease in TE is more pronounced when the uORFs overlaps the main CDS. In conclusion, we show that the presence of the uORF and features such as initiation codon and/or location of the uORFs may be acting to fine tune translation levels in these parasites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Santiago Radío
- Department of Genomics, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Ministerio de Educación y Cultura, Montevideo, Uruguay.,Laboratory of Molecular Interactions, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Beatriz Garat
- Laboratory of Molecular Interactions, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - José Sotelo-Silveira
- Department of Genomics, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Ministerio de Educación y Cultura, Montevideo, Uruguay.,Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Pablo Smircich
- Department of Genomics, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Ministerio de Educación y Cultura, Montevideo, Uruguay.,Laboratory of Molecular Interactions, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
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Radío S, Fort RS, Garat B, Sotelo-Silveira J, Smircich P. UTRme: A Scoring-Based Tool to Annotate Untranslated Regions in Trypanosomatid Genomes. Front Genet 2018; 9:671. [PMID: 30619487 PMCID: PMC6305552 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2018.00671] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [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: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 12/04/2018] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Most signals involved in post-transcriptional regulatory networks are located in the untranslated regions (UTRs) of the mRNAs. Therefore, to deepen our understanding of gene expression regulation, delimitation of these regions with high accuracy is needed. The trypanosomatid lineage includes a variety of parasitic protozoans causing a significant worldwide burden on human health. Given their peculiar mechanisms of gene expression, these organisms depend on post-transcriptional regulation as the main level of gene expression control. In this context, the definition of the UTR regions becomes of key importance. We have developed UTR-mini-exon (UTRme), a graphical user interface (GUI) stand-alone application to identify and annotate 5′ and 3′ UTR regions in a highly accurate way. UTRme implements a multiple scoring system tailored to address the issue of false positive UTR assignment that frequently arise because of the characteristics of the intergenic regions. Even though it was developed for trypanosomatids, the tool can be used to predict 3′ sites in any eukaryote and 5′ UTRs in any organism where trans-splicing occurs (such as the model organism C. elegans). UTRme offers a way for non-bioinformaticians to precisely determine UTRs from transcriptomic data. The tool is freely available via the conda and github repositories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Santiago Radío
- Department of Genomics, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, MEC, Montevideo, Uruguay.,Laboratory of Molecular Interactions, Facultad de Ciencias. Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Rafael Sebastián Fort
- Department of Genomics, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, MEC, Montevideo, Uruguay.,Laboratory of Molecular Interactions, Facultad de Ciencias. Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Beatriz Garat
- Laboratory of Molecular Interactions, Facultad de Ciencias. Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - José Sotelo-Silveira
- Department of Genomics, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, MEC, Montevideo, Uruguay.,Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Pablo Smircich
- Department of Genomics, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, MEC, Montevideo, Uruguay.,Laboratory of Molecular Interactions, Facultad de Ciencias. Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
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