三维基因组染色质构象捕获及其衍生技术

线性染色质经过多重折叠凝缩到真核生物的细胞核中,染色质的三维构象直接决定了真核生物的基因表达,因此染色质可以在局部或远程空间上发生互作调控基因转录。折叠成环状构象的染色质可以借助染色质构象捕获 (Chromosome conformation capture,3C) 技术来研究,基于3C技术扩展的4C/5C/Hi-C从单个位点延伸到全基因组捕捉三维构象,在此基础上,染色质构象核心技术可以与免疫共沉淀、核酸分子杂交、单细胞、基因组测序等技术偶联而产生新的衍生技术和应用,这极大地推动了染色质构象技术在基因时空特异性表达调控上的研究。文中将以3C和Hi-C等三维基因组核心技术为基础,重点介绍染色质构象捕获及其衍生技术的原理和前沿应用。     

三维基因组学研究进展

三维基因组学是一门研究基因组三维空间结构与功能的新兴学科,主要研究基因组序列在细胞核内的三维空间构象,及其对DNA复制、DNA重组、基因表达调控等生物过程的生物学效应。自染色质构象捕获技术 (3C)出现后,三维基因组学相关研究领域飞速发展。借助于3C及其衍生技术、Hi-C和ChIA-PET等技术,科学家能对各类物种的三维基因组进行更为深入的研究,从而揭示微生物、植物和动物基因组的空间构象、染色质的相互作用模式、转录调控以及不同生物学性状的形成机制;挖掘与生命活动和疾病相关的关键基因和信号通路;推动农业科学、生命科学和医学等领域的快速发展。文中就三维基因组学研究进展作一综述,主要阐述三维基因组学的概念和研究技术的发展及其在农业科学、生命科学和医学等领域的应用,尤其是肿瘤领域所取得的阶段性研究成果。     

贲门癌中染色体8p21-p23杂合性丢失的研究

目的 研究贲门癌中染色体8p21-p23杂合性丢失的情况。方法 采用激光捕获显微切割技术获得均质的肿瘤细胞及正常的胃粘膜细胞,多重置换扩增技术扩增捕获细胞的基因组DNA。PCR结合硝酸银染色方法分析19例贲门癌染色体8p21-p23的杂合性丢失。结果 在贲门癌中染色体8p21-p23的缺失频率非常高（63.2%）,我们确定了一个最小丢失区域. 结论 进一步明确此最小丢失区域内的抑癌基因将有助于贲门癌发生机制的阐明。     

4C-克隆筛选过程中的质量控制

环形染色体构象俘获(Circular chromosome conformation capture,4C)是一种高通量研究细胞染色体相互作用、空间构象的技术。文章通过模拟的4C样品,优化反向PCR条件,建立了高效、特异的扩增方法,对4C克隆筛选等后续步骤进行严格的质量控制并对该方法的可行性进行了实例验证。该4C-克隆筛选方法作为4C方法的质量控制标准,具有重要的指导和监测作用。     

一种新的线粒体基因组DNA捕获探针的制备及初步应用

目的:建立新的线粒体基因组DNA杂交捕获探针制备方法并用进行初步应用。方法:通过PCR技术扩增特异线粒体DNA片段,并与生物素偶联,最后与标记磁珠的亲和素混合获得捕获探针。并自行制备的线粒体基因组DNA文库捕获探针与肝癌全基因组测序文库进行液相杂交。分离捕获产物后PCR扩增并进行测序分析。结果:成功建立了线粒体基因组杂交捕获探针制备方法并成功分离线粒体基因组DNA;对测序数据的分析显示:90%以上测序数据来自线粒体基因组DNA,且覆盖率达到100%,且均一性良好。检测到的同质性变异位点数量和异质性变异位点数量与全基因组测序数据产生的结果接近(P=0.9152,P=0.8409)。结论:新方法制备的线粒体基因组DNA杂交捕获探针可以从全基因组文库中高效捕获线粒体基因组DNA测序文库。     

染色体构象俘获技术及其研究进展

真核生物中远距离的调控元件往往通过相互作用形成复杂的染色体相互作用网络,对基因的表达进行三维调节,染色体构象俘获是研究染色体相互作用的有力工具。简要综述了染色体构象俘获技术的基本原理及其研究进展,并对相关技术存在的问题进行了分析,对发展趋势进行了展望。     

连续三步‘Gap-repair’构建小鼠WAP—人LF杂合基因座

为了构建一个利用小鼠乳清酸蛋白(mWAP)基因座完整的上下游调控序列指导人乳铁蛋白(hLF)基因组序列在乳腺特异性高效表达的mWAP-hLF杂合基因座,我们采用了连续三步‘Gap-repair'的方法.首先,以pBR322载体作为骨架,插入预先无痕连接在一起的6个同源臂,构成能连续进行三次gap-repair的基因抓捕载体.然后在大肠杆菌内利用Red同源重组系统介导的gap-repair技术,第一步从含mWAP基因座的细菌人工染色体(mWAP BAC)上亚克隆了8 kb的mWAP基因3'端完整侧翼序列到抓捕载体上;第二步,从hLF BAC上亚克隆29 kb的从起始密码子(ATG)到终止密码子(TAA)的hLF基因组序列;第三步,从mWAP BAC上亚克隆12 kb的mWAP基因5'端完整侧翼序列,并使这3个基因片段在抓捕载体上自动无痕地连接在一起,形成一个全长约49 kb的mWAP.hLF杂合基因座.经过PCR扩增、限制性内切酶消化和序列测定验证,我们构建的这个杂合基因座,达到了原来mWAP基因座中mWAP基因组编码序列从起始密码子到终止密码子被hLF基因组序列精确置换的目的.这种连续三步gap-repair构建杂合基因座乳腺表达载体的技术,将为乳腺生物反应器高效表达大载体的制备提供一种全新的思路和方法.     

连续3步缺口修复构建小鼠乳清酸蛋白-人溶菌酶杂合基因座

目的:构建一个利用小鼠乳清酸蛋白(mWAP)基因座完整的上下游调控序列指导人溶菌酶(hLYZ)基因组序列在乳腺内特异性高效表达的mWAP-hLYZ杂合基因座,实现人溶菌酶的高效表达。方法:采用连续3步缺口修复的方法。首先,以pBR322载体作为骨架,插入预先合成的6个同源臂序列,构成能够连续进行3次缺口修复的基因抓捕载体。然后在大肠杆菌内利用λ噬菌体Red同源重组系统介导的同源重组方法:第一步,从含mWAP基因座的细菌人工染色体(BAC)上亚克隆8 kb的mWAP基因3’端完整侧翼序列到抓捕载体上;第二步,从含hLYZ基因的BAC上亚克隆5 kb的从起始密码子(ATG)到终止密码子(TAA)的hLYZ基因组序列;第三步,从mWAP BAC上亚克隆9kb的mWAP基因5’端完整侧翼序列,并使上述3个片段在抓捕载体上自动无痕地连接在一起。结果:构建了全长约22 kb的mWAP-hLYZ杂合基因座,经PCR扩增、限制性内切酶酶切和序列测定验证,构建的杂合基因座达到原mWAP基因座中mWAP基因组编码序列从起始密码子(ATG)到终止密码子(TAA)完全被hLYZ基因组序列精确置换的目的。结论:通过连续3步缺口修复构建杂合mWAP-hLYZ基因座乳腺表达载体,为乳腺生物反应器高效表达人溶菌酶提供了可行的思路和方法。     

ChIA-PET技术

配对末端标签测序分析染色质相互作用(chromatin interaction analysis by paired-end tag sequencing,ChIA-PET)技术是一项在全基因组范围内分析远程染色质相互作用的新技术。它把染色质免疫沉淀(chromatin immunoprecipitation,ChIP)技术、染色质邻近式连接(chromatin proximity ligation)技术、配对末端标签(paired-endtag,PET)技术和新一代测序(next-generation sequencing)技术融为一体,在基因组三维折叠和套环状态下分析基因表达和调控。ChIA-PET技术已用于确定人乳腺腺癌细胞内雌激素受体a的结合位点之间的相互作用。随着更多蛋白质因子的发现及其抗体的应用,该技术可实时捕获全基因组范围内参与复制、转录过程的蛋白质因子结合位点以及结合位点间的相互作用,这对于阐明基因调控和疾病发生机制具有重大意义。     

连续3步缺口修复构建人β肌动蛋白-人凝血因子Ⅶ杂合基因座

目的:为了获得稳定高效表达凝血因子Ⅶ的哺乳动物细胞株,构建一个利用人β肌动蛋白(hACTB)基因座完整的上下游调控序列指导人凝血因子Ⅶ(hFⅦ)基因组序列在人胚胎肾细胞特异性高效表达的hACTB-hFⅦ杂合基因座。方法:采用3步连续缺口修复的方法。首先,以pBR322载体作为骨架,插入预先合成的6个同源臂,构成能进行3次连续基因抓捕的载体。然后在大肠杆菌内利用Red同源重组系统介导的缺口修复技术:第一步,从含hACTB基因座的细菌人工染色体(BAC)上亚克隆10 kb的hACTB基因3′端完整侧翼序列;第二步,从hFⅦBAC上亚克隆13 kb的从起始密码子(ATG)到终止密码子(TAG)的hFⅦ基因组序列;第三步,从hACTB BAC上亚克隆20kb的hACTB基因5′端完整侧翼序列,并使这3个基因片段自动无痕地连接在基因抓捕载体上,形成全长约50 kb的hACTB-hFⅦ杂合基因座。结果:经过PCR扩增、限制性内切酶消化和序列测定验证,构建的杂合基因座达到了原来hACTB基因座中hACTB基因组编码序列从起始密码子到终止密码子被hFⅦ从起始密码子到终止密码子的基因组序列基因组序列精确置换的目的。结论:连续3步缺口修复构建杂合基因座细胞表达载体的技术,将为细胞高效表达大载体的制备提供一种全新的思路和方法。     

染色质构象捕获及其衍生技术

染色质的构象在基因表达调节方面起重要作用．介绍了染色质构象捕获、环状染色质构象捕获、3C碳拷贝、ChIP-loop、ChIA-PET和Hi-C等技术的基本原理及发展历程,对影响实验结果准确性的主要因素进行了分析．目的是为在三维层面研究基因的表达调控介绍新的研究手段,为功能研究提供新思路,也为相关技术的应用提供理论参考．     

Identifying multi-locus chromatin contacts in human cells using tethered multiple 3C

Background

Several recently developed experimental methods, each an extension of the chromatin conformation capture (3C) assay, have enabled the genome-wide profiling of chromatin contacts between pairs of genomic loci in 3D. Especially in complex eukaryotes, data generated by these methods, coupled with other genome-wide datasets, demonstrated that non-random chromatin folding correlates strongly with cellular processes such as gene expression and DNA replication.

Results

We describe a genome architecture assay, tethered multiple 3C (TM3C), that maps genome-wide chromatin contacts via a simple protocol of restriction enzyme digestion and religation of fragments upon agarose gel beads followed by paired-end sequencing. In addition to identifying contacts between pairs of loci, TM3C enables identification of contacts among more than two loci simultaneously. We use TM3C to assay the genome architectures of two human cell lines: KBM7, a near-haploid chronic leukemia cell line, and NHEK, a normal diploid human epidermal keratinocyte cell line. We confirm that the contact frequency maps produced by TM3C exhibit features characteristic of existing genome architecture datasets, including the expected scaling of contact probabilities with genomic distance, megabase scale chromosomal compartments and sub-megabase scale topological domains. We also confirm that TM3C captures several known cell type-specific contacts, ploidy shifts and translocations, such as Philadelphia chromosome formation (Ph+) in KBM7. We confirm a subset of the triple contacts involving the IGF2-H19 imprinting control region (ICR) using PCR analysis for KBM7 cells. Our genome-wide analysis of pairwise and triple contacts demonstrates their preference for linking open chromatin regions to each other and for linking regions with higher numbers of DNase hypersensitive sites (DHSs) to each other. For near-haploid KBM7 cells, we infer whole genome 3D models that exhibit clustering of small chromosomes with each other and large chromosomes with each other, consistent with previous studies of the genome architectures of other human cell lines.

Conclusion

TM3C is a simple protocol for ascertaining genome architecture and can be used to identify simultaneous contacts among three or four loci. Application of TM3C to a near-haploid human cell line revealed large-scale features of chromosomal organization and multi-way chromatin contacts that preferentially link regions of open chromatin.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-015-1236-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

CTCF mediates the cell-type specific spatial organization of the Kcnq5 locus and the local gene regulation

Chromatin loops play important roles in the dynamic spatial organization of genes in the nucleus. Growing evidence has revealed that the multivalent functional zinc finger protein CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) is a master regulator of genome spatial organization, and mediates the ubiquitous chromatin loops within the genome. Using circular chromosome conformation capture (4C) methodology, we discovered that CTCF may be a master organizer in mediating the spatial organization of the kcnq5 gene locus. We characterized the cell-type specific spatial organization of the kcnq5 gene locus mediated by CTCF in detail using chromosome conformation capture (3C) and 3C-derived techniques. Cohesion also participated in mediating the organization of this locus. RNAi-mediated knockdown of CTCF sharply diminished the interaction frequencies between the chromatin loops of the kcnq5 gene locus and down-regulated local gene expression. Functional analysis showed that the interacting chromatin loops of the kcnq5 gene locus can repress the gene expression in a luciferase reporter assay. These interacting chromatin fragments were a series of repressing elements whose contacts were mediated by CTCF. Therefore, these findings suggested that the dynamical spatial organization of the kcnq5 locus regulates local gene expression.     

Genomics tools for unraveling chromosome architecture

The spatial organization of chromosomes inside the cell nucleus is still poorly understood. This organization is guided by intra- and interchromosomal contacts and by interactions of specific chromosomal loci with relatively fixed nuclear 'landmarks' such as the nuclear envelope and the nucleolus. Researchers have begun to use new molecular genome-wide mapping techniques to uncover both types of molecular interactions, providing insights into the fundamental principles of interphase chromosome folding.     

High-resolution analysis of cis-acting regulatory networks at the α-globin locus

We have combined the circular chromosome conformation capture protocol with high-throughput, genome-wide sequence analysis to characterize the cis-acting regulatory network at a single locus. In contrast to methods which identify large interacting regions (10–1000 kb), the 4C approach provides a comprehensive, high-resolution analysis of a specific locus with the aim of defining, in detail, the cis-regulatory elements controlling a single gene or gene cluster. Using the human α-globin locus as a model, we detected all known local and long-range interactions with this gene cluster. In addition, we identified two interactions with genes located 300 kb (NME4) and 625 kb (FAM173a) from the α-globin cluster.