A phosphate-regulated promoter for fine-tuned and reversible overexpression in Ostreococcus: application to circadian clock functional analysis

BACKGROUND: The green picoalga Ostreococcus tauri (Prasinophyceae), which has been described as the smallest free-living eukaryotic organism, has minimal cellular ultra-structure and a very small genome. In recent years, O. tauri has emerged as a novel model organism for systems biology approaches that combine functional genomics and mathematical modeling, with a strong emphasis on light regulated processes and circadian clock. These approaches were made possible through the implementation of a minimal molecular toolbox for gene functional analysis including overexpression and knockdown strategies. We have previously shown that the promoter of the High Affinity Phosphate Transporter (HAPT) gene drives the expression of a luciferase reporter at high and constitutive levels under constant light. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here we report, using a luciferase reporter construct, that the HAPT promoter can be finely and reversibly tuned by modulating the level and nature of phosphate in culture medium. This HAPT regulation was additionally used to analyze the circadian clock gene Time of Cab expression 1 (TOC1). The phenotype of a TOC1ox/CCA1:Luc line was reverted from arrhythmic to rhythmic simply by adding phosphate to the culture medium. Furthermore, since the time of phosphate injection had no effect on the phase of CCA1:Luc expression, this study suggests further that TOC1 is a central clock gene in Ostreococcus. CONCLUSIONS/PERSPECTIVES: We have developed a phosphate-regulated expression system that allows fine gene function analysis in Ostreococcus. Recently, there has been a growing interest in microalgae as cell factories. This non-toxic phosphate-regulated system may prove useful in tuning protein expression levels quantitatively and temporally for biotechnological applications.     

Circadian Clock-Regulated Expression of Phytochrome and Cryptochrome Genes in Arabidopsis

Many physiological and biochemical processes in plants exhibit endogenous rhythms with a period of about 24 h. Endogenous oscillators called circadian clocks regulate these rhythms. The circadian clocks are synchronized to the periodic environmental changes (e.g. day/night cycles) by specific stimuli; among these, the most important is the light. Photoreceptors, phytochromes, and cryptochromes are involved in setting the clock by transducing the light signal to the central oscillator. In this work, we analyzed the spatial, temporal, and long-term light-regulated expression patterns of the Arabidopsis phytochrome (PHYA to PHYE) and cryptochrome (CRY1 and CRY2) promoters fused to the luciferase (LUC(+)) reporter gene. The results revealed new details of the tissue-specific expression and light regulation of the PHYC and CRY1 and 2 promoters. More importantly, the data obtained demonstrate that the activities of the promoter::LUC(+) constructs, with the exception of PHYC::LUC(+), display circadian oscillations under constant conditions. In addition, it is shown by measuring the mRNA abundance of PHY and CRY genes under constant light conditions that the circadian control is also maintained at the level of mRNA accumulation. These observations indicate that the plant circadian clock controls the expression of these photoreceptors, revealing the formation of a new regulatory loop that could modulate gating and resetting of the circadian clock.     

大鼠GluR2基因启动子控制的萤火虫荧光素酶表达载体的构建

目的构建大鼠GluR2基因启动子控制的萤火虫荧光素酶表达载体,并检测其在神经元中的表达。方法采用PCR方法获得GluR2基因启动子区目的片段（-298～＋283）,双酶切后插入到pGL3-Basic载体中构成重组表达载体,使萤火虫荧光素酶报告基因的表达受GluR2启动子控制。将构建的重组表达载体或pGL3-Basic载体分别与内参质粒pRL—CMV（表达海肾荧光素酶）共转染原代培养皮质神经元,24h后用双荧光检测试剂盒测定萤火虫荧光素酶及海肾荧光素酶活性。结果重组表达载体经双酶切及测序鉴定证明构建正确,该重组表达载体在神经元中特异性高表达萤火虫荧光素酶。结论成功构建大鼠GluR2基因启动子控制的萤火虫荧光素酶表达载体,并检测到该载体在神经元中的特异性表达。     

Thrombomodulin is a clock-controlled gene in vascular endothelial cells

Cardiovascular diseases are closely related to circadian rhythm, which is under the control of an internal biological clock mechanism. Although a biological clock exists not only in the hypothalamus but also in each peripheral tissue, the biological relevance of the peripheral clock remains to be elucidated. In this study we searched for clock-controlled genes in vascular endothelial cells using microarray technology. The expression of a total of 229 genes was up-regulated by CLOCK/BMAL2. Among the genes that we identified, we examined the thrombomodulin (TM) gene further, because TM is an integral membrane glycoprotein that is expressed primarily in vascular endothelial cells and plays a major role in the regulation of intravascular coagulation. TM mRNA and protein expression showed a clear circadian oscillation in the mouse lung and heart. Reporter analyses, gel shift assays, and chromatin immunoprecipitation analyses using the TM promoter revealed that a heterodimer of CLOCK and BMAL2 binds directly to the E-box of the TM promoter, resulting in TM promoter transactivation. Indeed, the oscillation of TM gene expression was abolished in clock mutant mice, suggesting that TM expression is regulated by the clock gene in vivo. Finally, the phase of circadian oscillation of TM mRNA expression was altered by temporal feeding restriction, suggesting TM gene expression is regulated by the peripheral clock system. In conclusion, these data suggest that the peripheral clock in vascular endothelial cells regulates TM gene expression and that the oscillation of TM expression may contribute to the circadian variation of cardiovascular events.     

Thyroid hormone regulation of alpha-myosin heavy chain promoter activity assessed by in vivo DNA transfer in rat heart

We have studied the thyroid-hormone responsiveness of the alpha-myosin heavy chain (MHC) gene in vivo by directly injecting an expression vector containing the alpha-MHC 5' regulatory sequences (-613 to +421 base pairs) into the rat heart. In the expression vector pAM1Luc the alpha-MHC promoter elements direct the synthesis of firefly luciferase. Although thyroxine administration of both euthyroid and thyroidectomized rats for 5 days increased alpha-MHC promoter activity, the pAM1Luc gene construct did not mimic expression of the endogenous gene. These studies of direct gene transfer into mammalian myocardium suggest that additional cis-acting elements necessary for the in vivo response to thyroid hormone reside outside the -613 to +421 region.     

凝血因子FXIII A链基因第1内含子内顺式调节元件的鉴定

探讨FⅩⅢ A基因表达的分子机制.凝胶阻滞实验（EMSA）结果证明,FⅩⅢ A基因第1内含子5′区的前12碱基与转录因子结合并由此调控基因表达.FⅩⅢ A基因第1内含子第12位碱基由C突变为A(内含子1 (+12)C→A)导致与转录因子结合能力降低.构建不同的荧光素酶表达质粒Luc 1、Luc 2、Luc 3、Luc 4、Luc 5、Luc 6,并转染U937细胞和HepG2细胞.结果显示,如果Luc 5（具有最高表达活性）的内含子1(+12)由C突变为A,启动子活性显著降低.与Luc 5相比,突变后的Luc 5的活性分别下降了52.9％（U937, P＜0.01）和47.6％（HepG2, P＜0.01）.将Luc 5与PN3 Sp1共同转染U937细胞和HepG2细胞后,Luc 5的荧光素酶活性分别提高了42.4％（U937,与Luc 5单独转染比较P＜0.01）和54.9％（HepG2, 与Luc 5单独转染比较P＜0.01）,而突变后的Luc 5（Mut）与PN3 Sp1共同转染则没有明显的改变.表明转录因子Sp1在FⅩⅢ A基因表达的重要性.这些结果也表明,内含子在FⅩⅢ A基因表达过程中起重要作用,为遗传性凝血因子发病机理的研究提供了新的证据.     

Non-destructive detection of firefly luciferase (LUC) activity in single plant cells using a cooled, slow-scan CCD camera and an optimized assay

A flexible, comparatively inexpensive system based on a liquid nitrogen-cooled slow-scan CCD (charge coupled device) camera is presented, which can be employed for quantitative low-light (bioluminescence, chemiluminescence or fluorescence) imaging. Using this camera system and the firefly luciferase (LUC) as a screenable marker, transgenic tobacco lines have been produced by direct gene transfer. Bioluminescence emitted from single tobacco cells transiently expressing the firefly luciferase gene (Luc) as well as from stably transformed calli, regenerated shoots, plantlets and T₁ seedlings could be monitored in vivo with no effect on the viability of the material analysed. The patterns of light emission from sections through Luc -expressing leaves and bioluminescent single protoplasts isolated from such leaves were also imaged microscopically. The assay used to detect in vivo LUC activity was optimized by quantifying bioluminescence emitted from Luc -expressing tobacco protoplasts and leaves incubated in different substrate solutions and determining the kinetics of light emission during incubation in the substrate solution.     

骨形成蛋白诱导型真核载体的构建及其表达

成骨分化相关基因骨钙素 (OC)等的启动子内均含有成骨特异性转录因子Cbfa1特异性作用元件 ,而骨形成蛋白 (bonemorphogeneticprotein ,BMP)的促成骨分化作用正是通过其首先引起Cbfa1的升高 ,而后Cbfa1激活这些基因的表达 ,最终出现成骨分化表型 .为解决BMP没有理想的活性测定方法的问题 ,在RT PCR结果证实BMP 2可促进NIH3T3和C2C12细胞Cbfa1表达后 ,构建了串联6个Cbfa1作用元件的小鼠OC部分启动子 (6OCP)控制萤光素酶 (luciferase)报告基因的真核表达质粒 ,以期来放大BMP诱导报告基因表达的作用效果 .即通过细胞转染、rhBMP 2刺激后检测萤光素酶活性变化 ,从而间接定量测定rhBMP 2的生物学活性 .结果表明 ,pcDNA3 6OCP Luc转染细胞后其报告基因的基础活性较pcDNA3 Luc大为降低 ;而且在一定剂量范围内 ,转染细胞的萤光素酶活性 (荧光值 )随rhBMP 2剂量增加而升高 ,并呈线性正相关 ,为建立BMP活性定量测定的方法打下基础