Strong genetic differentiation due to multiple founder events during a recent range expansion of an introduced wall lizard population

Biological invasions represent ideal systems for the study of evolutionary processes associated with colonization events. It has been hypothesized that the genetic diversity is generally decreasing from the centre of the range to the margins due to multiple founder events. Invasive populations offer the opportunity to test this hypothesis at a fine spatial and temporal scale. We analysed the genetic structure of a large expanding non-native population of the Common Wall Lizard (Podarcis muralis) in Passau (Germany) using thirteen microsatellite loci. We analyzed the genetic structure and levels of admixture across a transect reflecting the expansion process and tested for a loss of genetic diversity and an increase of genetic differentiation from the centre to the invasion front. Our results demonstrate that significant genetic population structure can emerge rapidly at a small spatial scale. We found a trend for an increase in genetic differentiation and a decrease in genetic diversity from the invasion centre to the expanding range margin, suggesting that genetic drift is the major factor causing this pattern. The correlation between genetic diversity and average genetic differentiation was significant among sites. We hypothesize that the territoriality of P. muralis generates sufficient rates of noncontiguous and stratified dispersal from longer established sites to maintain significant genetic diversity at the invasion front. Simultaneously, territoriality might restrict the colonization success of migrants at established sites, so that in combination with founder events a strong differentiation arises.     

Arginine methylation: Making its mark on AP-1 gene activation

Oncogene-induced senescence (OIS) is characterised by a stable cell cycle arrest triggered by activated oncogenes and tumour suppressors. Whilst the in vivo relevance of OIS as a mode of tumour suppression is now beyond doubt many key questions with regard to the underlying mechanisms remain unanswered. To address these questions, we first review current knowledge of the essential players and pathways in OIS focussing our discussions mainly on murine cell systems and the paradigm of Ras-induced senescence. We then update experimental evidence for the involvement of the Runx genes that have recently emerged as important mediators of OIS. Of particular interest is the observation that Runx2 disruption renders primary murine embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) refractory to Ras-induced senescence despite induction of a cascade of growth inhibitors and senescence markers. We suggest that Runx acts downstream of p53 in the "execution phase" of senescence specifically through deregulation of cyclin gene expression. We speculate how this might operate and consider the implications of these findings for the emerging role of the Runx family as tumour suppressors.     

Riociguat Reduces Infarct Size and Post-Infarct Heart Failure in Mouse Hearts: Insights from MRI/PET Imaging

Aim

Stimulation of the nitric oxide (NO) – soluble guanylate (sGC) - protein kinase G (PKG) pathway confers protection against acute ischaemia/reperfusion injury, but more chronic effects in reducing post-myocardial infarction (MI) heart failure are less defined. The aim of this study was to not only determine whether the sGC stimulator riociguat reduces infarct size but also whether it protects against the development of post-MI heart failure.

Methods and Results

Mice were subjected to 30 min ischaemia via ligation of the left main coronary artery to induce MI and either placebo or riociguat (1.2 µmol/l) were given as a bolus 5 min before and 5 min after onset of reperfusion. After 24 hours, both, late gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (LGE-MRI) and ¹⁸F-FDG-positron emission tomography (PET) were performed to determine infarct size. In the riociguat-treated mice, the resulting infarct size was smaller (8.5±2.5% of total LV mass vs. 21.8%±1.7%. in controls, p = 0.005) and LV systolic function analysed by MRI was better preserved (60.1%±3.4% of preischaemic vs. 44.2%±3.1% in controls, p = 0.005). After 28 days, LV systolic function by echocardiography treated group was still better preserved (63.5%±3.2% vs. 48.2%±2.2% in control, p = 0.004).

Conclusion

Taken together, mice treated acutely at the onset of reperfusion with the sGC stimulator riociguat have smaller infarct size and better long-term preservation of LV systolic function. These findings suggest that sGC stimulation during reperfusion therapy may be a powerful therapeutic treatment strategy for preventing post-MI heart failure.     

High-Throughput miRNA and mRNA Sequencing of Paired Colorectal Normal,Tumor and Metastasis Tissues and Bioinformatic Modeling of miRNA-1 Therapeutic Applications

MiRNAs are discussed as diagnostic and therapeutic molecules. However, effective miRNA drug treatments with miRNAs are, so far, hampered by the complexity of the miRNA networks. To identify potential miRNA drugs in colorectal cancer, we profiled miRNA and mRNA expression in matching normal, tumor and metastasis tissues of eight patients by Illumina sequencing. We validated six miRNAs in a large tissue screen containing 16 additional tumor entities and identified miRNA-1, miRNA-129, miRNA-497 and miRNA-215 as constantly de-regulated within the majority of cancers. Of these, we investigated miRNA-1 as representative in a systems-biology simulation of cellular cancer models implemented in PyBioS and assessed the effects of depletion as well as overexpression in terms of miRNA-1 as a potential treatment option. In this system, miRNA-1 treatment reverted the disease phenotype with different effectiveness among the patients. Scoring the gene expression changes obtained through mRNA-Seq from the same patients we show that the combination of deep sequencing and systems biological modeling can help to identify patient-specific responses to miRNA treatments. We present this data as guideline for future pre-clinical assessments of new and personalized therapeutic options.     

Localization of Microfibrillar-Associated Protein 4 (MFAP4) in Human Tissues: Clinical Evaluation of Serum MFAP4 and Its Association with Various Cardiovascular Conditions

Microfibrillar-associated protein 4 (MFAP4) is located in the extracellular matrix (ECM). We sought to identify tissues with high levels of MFAP4 mRNA and MFAP4 protein expression. Moreover, we aimed to evaluate the significance of MFAP4 as a marker of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and to correlate MFAP4 with other known ECM markers, such as fibulin-1, osteoprotegerin (OPG), and osteopontin (OPN). Quantitative real-time PCR demonstrated that MFAP4 mRNA was more highly expressed in the heart, lung, and intestine than in other elastic tissues. Immunohistochemical studies demonstrated high levels of MFAP4 protein mainly at sites rich in elastic fibers and within blood vessels in all tissues investigated. The AlphaLISA technique was used to determine serum MFAP4 levels in a clinical cohort of 172 patients consisting of 5 matched groups with varying degrees of CVD: 1: patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), 2: patients with non-STEMI, 3: patients destined for vascular surgery because of various atherosclerotic diseases (stable atherosclerotic disease), 4: apparently healthy individuals with documented coronary artery calcification (CAC-positive), and 5: apparently healthy individuals without signs of coronary artery calcification (CAC-negative). Serum MFAP4 levels were significantly lower in patients with stable atherosclerotic disease than CAC-negative individuals (p<0.05). Furthermore, lower serum MFAP4 levels were present in patients with stable atherosclerotic disease compared with STEMI and non-STEMI patients (p<0.05). In patients with stable atherosclerotic disease, positive correlations between MFAP4 and both fibulin-1 (ρ = 0.50; p = 0.0244) and OPG (ρ = 0.62; p = 0.0014) were found. Together, these results indicate that MFAP4 is mainly located in elastic fibers and is highly expressed in blood vessels. The present study suggests that serum MFAP4 varies in groups of patients with different cardiovascular conditions. Further studies are warranted to describe the role of serum MFAP4 as a biomarker of stable atherosclerotic disease.     

Comparative analysis of inner cavities and ligand migration in non-symbiotic AHb1 and AHb2

This study reports a comparative analysis of the topological properties of inner cavities and the intrinsic dynamics of non-symbiotic hemoglobins AHb1 and AHb2 from Arabidopsis thaliana. The two proteins belong to the 3/3 globin fold and have a sequence identity of about 60%. However, it is widely assumed that they have distinct physiological roles. In order to investigate the structure–function relationships in these proteins, we have examined the bis-histidyl and ligand-bound hexacoordinated states by atomistic simulations using in silico structural models. The results allow us to identify two main pathways to the distal cavity in the bis-histidyl hexacoordinated proteins. Nevertheless, a larger accessibility to small gaseous molecules is found in AHb2. This effect can be attributed to three factors: the mutation Leu35(AHb1) → Phe32(AHb2), the enhanced flexibility of helix B, and the more favorable energetic profile for ligand migration to the distal cavity. The net effect of these factors would be to facilitate the access of ligands, thus compensating the preference for the fully hexacoordination of AHb2, in contrast to the equilibrium between hexa- and pentacoordinated species in AHb1. On the other hand, binding of the exogenous ligand introduces distinct structural changes in the two proteins. A well-defined tunnel is formed in AHb1, which might be relevant to accomplish the proposed NO detoxification reaction. In contrast, no similar tunnel is found in AHb2, which can be ascribed to the reduced flexibility of helix E imposed by the larger number of salt bridges compared to AHb1. This feature would thus support the storage and transport functions proposed for AHb2. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Oxygen Binding and Sensing Proteins.