可变剪接与细胞调亡调控

细胞凋亡 (ａｐｏｐｔｏｓｉｓ)是多细胞生物的一种基本生命活动 ,在机体的生长发育、免疫调节及维持内环境稳定等各方面扮演着重要的角色。遗传和生化研究表明 ,细胞凋亡受到复杂而精细的调控。转录水平、翻译后水平等各种层次的调控 ,构成了一个复杂的凋亡调控网络。真核生物中 ,绝大多数蛋白质基因的初始转录产物ｐｒｅ ｍＲＮＡ必须经过剪接等加工过程 ,才能形成成熟的ｍＲＮＡ。可变剪接 (ａｌｔｅｒｎａｔｉｖｅｓｐｌｉｃｉｎｇ)是指同一种ｐｒｅ ｍＲＮＡ具有多种剪接程序 ,能形成不同的ｍＲＮＡ。可变剪接是ｐｒｅ ｍＲ ＮＡ加工过…     

蛋白质的自剪接

1990年,Ｈｉｒａｔａ等在酵母液泡膜Ｈ -ＡＴＰａｓｅ的α亚基(ＶＭＡ1)中首次发现了蛋白质自剪接(ｐｒｏｔｅｉｎｓｅｌｆｓｐｌｉｃｉｎｇ)现象。此后,蛋白质剪接现象陆续在古细菌、真细菌及真核细胞中被发现。1994年Ｐｅｌｅｒ等对蛋白质自剪接进行了规范化定义和命名:(1)将按正确阅读框架插入到前体蛋白氨基酸序列中,但在蛋白剪接成熟过程中被切除的序列称为蛋白内含肽(ｉｎｔｅｉｎ)。处于ｉｎｔｅｉｎ两侧,相互首尾相连以产生成熟蛋白产物的蛋白序列称为蛋白外显肽(ｅｘｔｅｉｎ)。(2)蛋白质剪接是在蛋白质水平上,而不是在ＲＮＡ水平…     

mRNA前体的选择性剪接

人类基因组草图已基本完成 ,预测人类约有 350 0 0个编码蛋白质的基因 ,只是线虫或果蝇的 2倍[1] 。人类是怎样完成其复杂的生物功能 ?越来越多的证据表明选择性剪接在扩大蛋白质的多样性中发挥重要作用 ,并且有助于解释基因数目与生物复杂程度两者的不一致性。选择性剪接能够从一个基因产生多个转录本 ,从而产生远多于基因数目的蛋白质 ,完成机体的复杂功能及精细调节。1 .ｍＲＮＡ选择性剪接的普遍性目前根据ＥＳＴｓ分析 ,在人类 350 0 0个基因中大约有 40 %的基因具有选择性剪接的形式[1] 。尽管这个数目让人惊讶 ,但这个数目可能比实际…     

AT—AC内含子及其剪接机理的研究进展

ＡＴ┐ＡＣ内含子及其剪接机理的研究进展滕胜明镇寰（杭州大学生命科学学院,杭州３１００１２）关键词ＡＴ－ＡＣ内含子剪接机理最近发现了一种新类型的内含子,它在ｍＲＮＡ前体中存在的比例不到０．１％,其剪接位点高度保守的双核苷酸为ＡＴ和ＡＣ（ＡＴ－ＡＣ内含子...     

前体mRNA剪接及剪接调节因子SR蛋白和Tra2蛋白

在高等真核生物中,前体mRNA的剪接及其调节是一个复杂的、由多因子参与的过程,它对基因的正常功能的发挥起着重要的作用,任何一种剪接调节因子的异常变化均有可能导致疾病的发生。因此,研究参与前体mRNA剪接调控的相关因子的功能及作用机制,对前体mRNA剪接机制的阐明,无疑是相当必要的。本文着重介绍了两类重要的mRNA剪接调节蛋白——SR蛋白和Tra2蛋白的研究近况,以期对前体mRNA剪接机制的研究的重要性和复杂性有更多的了解。     

选择剪接：一种基因表达的调控方式

选择剪接是一种在转录后水平直接调节基因表达的调控方式,既可以直接在ＲＮＡ水平上调节基因的表达过程,也可以改变基因的表达产物,对蛋白质的功能和活性进行调节。选择剪接在生物体发育过程中也起着重要的调控作用。     

反义寡核苷酸的非反义作用

反义核酸作为一种调控特定基因表达的手段,是通过与特异ｍＲＮＡ分子上５′翻译区、ｍＲＮＡ启动－编码重叠区、核内ｈｎＲＮＡ剪接供点结合抑制ｍＲＮＡ的翻译、剪接、转运或通过形成ＲＮＡ－ＤＮＡ杂合双链,激活ＲＮａｓｅＨ,降解ｍＲＮＡ来达到抑制靶基因表达的目的...     

Tra2β1蛋白在神经特异性的基因剪接中的功能

体外(in vitro)生化研究已证明哺乳动物Tra2蛋白是前体mRNA剪接的重要调控因子,但是,对该蛋白在in vivo条件下的剪接功能,尤其是在神经特异性基因剪接中的功能及其细胞特异性,目前所知甚少。本文采用in vivo分析模型,在COS-1和PFSK两种不同类型的细胞中,研究了两个神经特异性基因(GluR-B,SMN2)剪接的细胞特异性,同时分析了Tra2β1在这两个基因剪接中的功能及其细胞特异性。结果表明,在研究的两种细胞中,GluR-B和SMN2“小基因”的剪接均具有明显的细胞特异性;而Tra2β1蛋白的过量表达在这两种不同的细胞中对“小基因”的剪接有显著的相同倾向的调节作用,提示Tra2β1蛋白对该两个基因剪接的调节作用可能没有细胞特异性。     

果蝇非经典剪接位点的生物信息学预测

目的:计算识别果蝇中新的非经典剪接位点,以探索未知的剪接机制。方法:基于黑腹果蝇表达序列标签(EST)与其基因组序列比对数据重构基因结构,从中发现非经典的剪接位点,并采用Weblogo软件分析非经典剪接位点上下游序列,以期发现剪接相关的特异性元件。结果:共得到265个非经典的剪接位点,这些剪接位点落在195个蛋白编码基因上。结论:应用生物信息学方法在果蝇中发现了上百个非经典剪接位点,为研究非经典剪接机制奠定了基础。     

Tra2β1蛋白在神经特异性的基因剪接中的功能

体外(in vitro)生化研究已证明哺乳动物Tra2蛋白是前体mRNA剪接的重要调控因子,但是,对该蛋白在in vivo条件下的剪接功能,尤其是在神经特异性基因剪接中的功能及其细胞特异性,目前所知甚少。本文采用in vivo分析模型,在COS-l和PFSK两种不同类型的细胞中,研究了两个神经特异性基因(GluR-B,SMN2)剪接的细胞特异性,同时分析了Tra2β1在这两个基因剪接中的功能及其细胞特异性。结果表明,在研究的两种细胞中,GluR-B和SMN2“小基因”的剪接均具有明显的细胞特异性;而Tra2β1蛋白的过量表达在这两种不同的细胞中对“小基因”的剪接有显著的相同倾向的调节作用,提示Tra2β1蛋白对该两个基因剪接的调节作用可能没有细胞特异性。     

表观遗传因素在RNA剪接过程中的作用

RNA剪接是真核生物基因表达过程中的重要环节,增加了蛋白质的多样性和基因表达的可调节性. 日益增多的研究表明,RNA剪接并不是独立的生物过程.RNA Ⅱ型聚合酶(RNA polymerase-Ⅱ, RNA Pol Ⅱ)、核小体定位和组蛋白修饰等因素都与RNA剪接过程密切相关.阐明RNA Pol Ⅱ、核小体定位和组蛋白修饰等因素在RNA剪接过程中的作用,将为剪接位点的准确识别和剪接调控机制的研究提供新思路.本文综述了RNA Pol Ⅱ、核小体定位和组蛋白修饰等因素对RNA剪接的影响以及它们在RNA剪接过程中的调控作用.     

Alternative Splicing and Control of Apoptotic DNA Fragmentation

It has long been suggested that alternative splicing is involved in regulation of apoptosis by producing mRNA isoforms that encode proteins with distinct and even opposite functions in apoptotic pathways. However, the physiological functions and regulatory mechanisms of such alternative splicing events have been unclear. Recently, it was demonstrated that inactivation of a single SR protein, ASF/SF2, can modulate a specific step in the apoptotic pathway, internucleosomal DNA fragmentation, by regulating ICAD pre-mRNA alternative splicing. These studies have provided new evidence supporting the important role of regulated splicing and SR proteins in the process of apoptosis.     

Splicing and the single cell

The selection of alternative splice sites is an important component of cell-specific gene regulation in eukaryotic cells. Use of splice sites can be positively and negatively regulated, and often physiologically appropriate splice site choice is achieved by a balance of the two. RNA elements controlling splice site choice are found in both exons and introns, and these determine management by the cellular splicing machinery. However, the molecular basis of how the splicing machinery responds to these signals in different cells is somewhat of a paradox. Thus far the identified proteins which bind to tissue/cell-specific regulatory elements in mammals are expressed in many different tissues, and not just in the regulating tissue. Potential tissue-specific splicing regulators have been identified by non-biochemical means. However, alternative splicing choices are likely to be affected by subtle differences in the splicing machinery in different cells. In this review I suggest that one important factor is the ratio of proteins in different nuclear compartments, which might be established in a cell type specific fashion.     

丝氨酸/精氨酸富集蛋白与肿瘤发生

富含丝氨酸和精氨酸的SR蛋白（serine/arginine-rich protein）是重要的剪接因子家族,广泛参与RNA加工过程,包括剪接、出核、稳定性及翻译。近年来的研究发现,SR蛋白家族成员大多在肿瘤组织中存在异常表达,有些SR蛋白甚至能够作为原癌基因,通过调控肿瘤相关基因的选择性剪接而参与细胞转化和肿瘤发生。本文综述了SR蛋白的不同成员在肿瘤发生中的作用及其调控肿瘤相关基因的机制,以期为相关肿瘤的研究与诊治提供新思路和新靶点。     

Proteasome-Mediated Proteolysis of SRSF5 Splicing Factor Intriguingly Co-occurs with SRSF5 mRNA Upregulation during Late Erythroid Differentiation

SR proteins exhibit diverse functions ranging from their role in constitutive and alternative splicing, to virtually all aspects of mRNA metabolism. These findings have attracted growing interest in deciphering the regulatory mechanisms that control the tissue-specific expression of these SR proteins. In this study, we show that SRSF5 protein decreases drastically during erythroid cell differentiation, contrasting with a concomitant upregulation of SRSF5 mRNA level. Proteasome chemical inhibition provided strong evidence that endogenous SRSF5 protein, as well as protein deriving from stably transfected SRSF5 cDNA, are both targeted to proteolysis as the cells undergo terminal differentiation. Consistently, functional experiments show that overexpression of SRSF5 enhances a specific endogenous pre-mRNA splicing event in proliferating cells, but not in differentiating cells, due to proteasome-mediated targeting of both endogenous and transfection-derived SRSF5. Further investigation of the relationship between SRSF5 structure and its post-translation regulation and function, suggested that the RNA recognition motifs of SRSF5 are sufficient to activate pre-mRNA splicing, whereas proteasome-mediated proteolysis of SRSF5 requires the presence of the C-terminal RS domain of the protein. Phosphorylation of SR proteins is a key post-translation regulation that promotes their activity and subcellular availability. We here show that inhibition of the CDC2-like kinase (CLK) family and mutation of the AKT phosphorylation site Ser86 on SRSF5, have no effect on SRSF5 stability. We reasoned that at least AKT and CLK signaling pathways are not involved in proteasome-induced turnover of SRSF5 during late erythroid development.     

Pre-mRNA选择性剪接的调控及选择性剪接数据库

Pre-mRNA选择性剪接是真核生物转录组和蛋白质组多样性的主要来源,也是细胞分化、发育等过程中重要的基因表达调控方式。约95%的人类多外显子基因存在RNA选择性剪接|很多人类基因疾病的发生与RNA剪接错误相关。随着共转录现象的发现,RNA选择性剪接调控机制研究也取得了很大进展。本文分别从序列层面和核小体定位、组蛋白修饰、DNA甲基化及非编码RNA等表观遗传层面,系统地阐述了RNA选择性剪接的调控机制。为便于搜索,本文介绍了近10年来RNA选择性剪接相关的数据库。     

Splicing at the phase-separated nuclear speckle interface: a model

Phase-separated membraneless bodies play important roles in nucleic acid biology. While current models for the roles of phase separation largely focus on the compartmentalization of constituent proteins, we reason that other properties of phase separation may play functional roles. Specifically, we propose that interfaces of phase-separated membraneless bodies could have functional roles in spatially organizing biochemical reactions. Here we propose such a model for the nuclear speckle, a membraneless body implicated in RNA splicing. In our model, sequence-dependent RNA positioning along the nuclear speckle interface coordinates RNA splicing. Our model asserts that exons are preferentially sequestered into nuclear speckles through binding by SR proteins, while introns are excluded through binding by nucleoplasmic hnRNP proteins. As a result, splice sites at exon-intron boundaries are preferentially positioned at nuclear speckle interfaces. This positioning exposes splice sites to interface-localized spliceosomes, enabling the subsequent splicing reaction. Our model provides a simple mechanism that seamlessly explains much of the complex logic of splicing. This logic includes experimental results such as the antagonistic duality between splicing factors, the position dependence of splicing sequence motifs, and the collective contribution of many motifs to splicing decisions. Similar functional roles for phase-separated interfaces may exist for other membraneless bodies.     

Multiple Distinct Splicing Enhancers in the Protein-Coding Sequences of a Constitutively Spliced Pre-mRNA

We have identified multiple distinct splicing enhancer elements within protein-coding sequences of the constitutively spliced human β-globin pre-mRNA. Each of these highly conserved sequences is sufficient to activate the splicing of a heterologous enhancer-dependent pre-mRNA. One of these enhancers is activated by and binds to the SR protein SC35, whereas at least two others are activated by the SR protein SF2/ASF. A single base mutation within another enhancer element inactivates the enhancer but does not change the encoded amino acid. Thus, overlapping protein coding and RNA recognition elements may be coselected during evolution. These studies provide the first direct evidence that SR protein-specific splicing enhancers are located within the coding regions of constitutively spliced pre-mRNAs. We propose that these enhancers function as multisite splicing enhancers to specify 3′ splice-site selection.