小RNAs在沉默转座因子中的作用

在很多生物基因组中都存在DNA成分的转座序列,它们能够转座到基因组的很多位点,对基因组造成很大的危害,如破坏编码基因、改变基因表达的调节网络、使染色体断裂或造成大范围基因重排等。真核生物已经进化出了多种机制来控制这些寄生核酸序列造成的损伤,以维持基因组完整性。虽然这些机制在不同生物中有些差异,但其中一种主要的机制是通过小RNAs介导的,这些小RNAs包括小干扰RNAs、piwi相互作用的小RNAs、微小RNAs、扫描RNAs和21U-RNAs等。这些小RNAs可以通过DNA水平剪切转座序列,或在转录和(或)转录后水平沉默转座成分。该文就这些小RNAs沉默转座成分的机制和功能做一论述。     

CRISPR相关转座元件的研究及应用进展

CRISPR-Cas的基因编辑能力引发了人们对该系统的研究热潮。除了实现基因的敲除和插入,CRISPR-Cas系统还可以被应用于基因簇重组、单碱基编辑和基因转录调控,推动了生物工程领域的发展。然而,有限的同源重组效率使CRISPR-Cas系统的应用受到了一定的限制。与CRISPR-Cas系统相比,移动遗传元件(mobile genetic elements,MGE)在转座酶的调控下,不需要依赖同源重组即可将指定DNA片段定向插入到细胞染色体中。近几年,人们发现了具有转座机制的CRISPR相关的转座元件,它可以介导DNA靶向整合,同时其出色的重编程能力为该领域的研究带来了新的发展。本文主要介绍近年来CRISPR-Cas系统相关转座元件的研究方向和应用进展,以及人工融合的dCas9-transposase系统的应用策略。文中还提出了CRISPR相关转座元件未来的应用前景和潜在挑战,为基因编辑工具的发展方向提供了参考意见。     

siRNA与miRNA在生物基因调控中的沉默机制比较

siRNA和miRNA的沉默机制是生物基因调控的重要手段之一. 小干扰RNA（small interfering RNA,siRNA）是RNA干扰的引发物,激发与之互补的目标mRNA沉默. 非编码RNA中的微小RNA（microRNA,miRNA）,能够识别特定的目标mRNA,通过与mRNAs的3′ 非翻译区结合,影响该目标蛋白的翻译水平. siRNA和miRNA的基因调控机制对生物学研究及疾病的病因和治疗等有直接影响. 本文主要对siRNAs和miRNAs的生物起源及沉默机制进行比较性论述：提出Dicers酶蛋白、Ago蛋白以及20 nt~25 nt的双链RNAs的 3类大分子是RNA沉默的特征结构,并进行了说明性论述|总结性叙述了siRNA和miRNA的2类小分子经典沉默机制,并提出其异同点. 最后,本文根据近期研究进展,对siRNA和miRNA的生物起源及沉默机制提出了新的疑问.     

Argonaute protein identity and pairing geometry determine cooperativity in mammalian RNA silencing

Small RNAs loaded into Argonaute proteins direct silencing of complementary target mRNAs. It has been proposed that multiple, imperfectly complementary small interfering RNAs or microRNAs, when bound to the 3' untranslated region of a target mRNA, function cooperatively to silence target expression. We report that, in cultured human HeLa cells and mouse embryonic fibroblasts, Argonaute1 (Ago1), Ago3, and Ago4 act cooperatively to silence both perfectly and partially complementary target RNAs bearing multiple small RNA-binding sites. Our data suggest that for Ago1, Ago3, and Ago4, multiple, adjacent small RNA-binding sites facilitate cooperative interactions that stabilize Argonaute binding. In contrast, small RNAs bound to Ago2 and pairing perfectly to an mRNA target act independently to silence expression. Noncooperative silencing by Ago2 does not require the endoribonuclease activity of the protein: A mutant Ago2 that cannot cleave its mRNA target also silences noncooperatively. We propose that Ago2 binds its targets by a mechanism fundamentally distinct from that used by the three other mammalian Argonaute proteins.     

Sectorial mutagenesis by transposable elements

Transposable elements (TEs) generate insertions and cause other mutations in the genomic DNA. It is proposed that during co-evolution between TEs and eukaryotic genomes, an optimal path of the insertion mutagenesis is determined by the surviving TEs. These TEs can become semi-permanently established, chromatin-regulated ‘source’ or ‘mutator genes’, responsible for targeting insertion mutations to specific chromosomal regions. Such mutations can manifest themselves in non-random distribution patterns of interspersed repeats in eukaryotic chromosomes. In this paper we discuss specific models, examples and implications of optimized mutagenesis in eukaryotes. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Constitutive heterochromatin and transposable elements in Drosophila melanogaster

Several families of transposable elements (TEs), most of them belonging to the retrotransposon catagory, are particularly enriched in Drosophila melanogaster constitutive heterochromatin. The enrichment of TE-homologous sequences into heterochromatin is not a peculiar feature of the Drosophila genome, but appears to be widespread among higher eukaryotes. The constitutive heterochromatin of D. melanogaster contains several genetically active domains; this raises the possibility that TE-homologous sequences inserted into functional heterochromatin compartments may be expressed. In this review, I present available data on the genetic and molecular organization of D. melanogaster constitutive heterochromatin and its relationship with transposable elements. The implications of these findings on the possible impact of heterochromatic TEs on the function and evolution of the host genome are also discussed. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Colonization of heterochromatic genes by transposable elements in Drosophila

As a further step toward understanding transposable element-host genome interactions, we investigated the molecular anatomy of introns from five heterochromatic and 22 euchromatic protein-coding genes of Drosophila melanogaster. A total of 79 kb of intronic sequences from heterochromatic genes and 355 kb of intronic sequences from euchromatic genes have been used in Blast searches against Drosophila transposable elements (TEs). The results show that TE-homologous sequences belonging to 19 different families represent about 50% of intronic DNA from heterochromatic genes. In contrast, only 0.1% of the euchromatic intron DNA exhibits homology to known TEs. Intraspecific and interspecific size polymorphisms of introns were found, which are likely to be associated with changes in TE-related sequences. Together, the enrichment in TEs and the apparent dynamic state of heterochromatic introns suggest that TEs contribute significantly to the evolution of genes located in heterochromatin.     

The impact of transposable elements in environmental adaptation

Transposable elements (TEs) play an important role in the responsive capacity of their hosts in the face of environmental challenges. The variety of mechanisms by which TEs influence the capacity of adaptation of the host is as large as the variety of TEs and host genomes. For example, TEs might directly affect the function of individual genes, provide a mechanism for rapidly acquiring new genetic material and disseminate regulatory elements that can lead to the creation of stress‐inducible regulatory networks. In this review, we summarize recent examples that are part of an increasing body of evidence suggesting a significant role of TEs in the host response to an ever‐changing environment, both in prokaryote and in eukaryote organisms. We argue that in the near future, the increasing availability of genome sequences and the development of new tools to discover and analyse TE insertions will further show the relevant role of TEs in environmental adaptation.     

Population genetics models of transposable elements

The control of transposable element copy number is of considerable theoretical and empirical interest. Under simple models, copy numbers may increase without limit. Mechanisms that can prevent such an increase include those in which the effect of selection increases with copy number, those in which the rate of transposition decreases with copy number, and those where unlimited increase in copy number is prevented by the consequences of functional heterogeneity in the transposable element family. Finite population sizes may attenuate the power of natural selection to act on transposable element copy number in a number of ways that may be of particular importance in laboratory populations. First, a small host population size will create occasional periods in which the variance between individuals in copy number is diminished, and with it the power of natural selection, even when the expected variance is Poisson. Second, small population sizes will produce high-frequency transposable element sites, systematically reducing the variance in copy number. The consequences will be particularly profound when the selective damage of transposable elements follows from their heterozygosity, as when ectopic exchange limits copy number. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Plant transposable elements: Their role in evolution

Transposable elements (TE) are natural constituents of plant genomes. However, their presence only becomes apparent if they become dislodged from their resident positions in the genome and transpore into another gene, thereby inducing a mutation. Such TE-induced mutations are somatically unstable because they revert to wild type and hence reconstitute the expression of the mutated gene. The frequent somatic excision of the TE results in a variegated phenotype. Since this instability is inherited in a Mendelian manner the variegated phenotype is nuclear determined. By this criterion TE have been shown to occur in more than 30 species belonging to different families and genera. Many questions arise when dealing with TE: their structure and functions, and the biological significance of the activity of elements in the differentiation of a normal plant or in the evolution of plant genes.     

Analysis of energetically biased transcripts of viruses and transposable elements

RNA interference (RNAi) is a natural endogenous process by which double-stranded RNA molecules trigger potent and specific gene silencing in eukaryotic cells and is characterized by target RNA cleavage. In mammals, small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) are the trigger molecules of choice and constitute a new class of RNA-based antiviral agents. In an efficient RNAi response, the antisense strand of siRNAs must enter the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) in a process mediated by thermodynamic features. In this report, we hypothesize that silent mutations capable of inverting thermodynamic properties can promote resistance to siRNAs. Extensive computational analyses were used to assess whether continuous selective pressure that promotes such mutations could lead to the emergence of viral strains completely resistant to RNAi (i.e., prone to transfer only the sense strands to RISC). Based on our findings, we propose that, although synonymous mutations may produce functional resistance, this strategy cannot be systematically adopted by viruses since the longest RNAi-refractory sequence is only 10 nt long. This finding also suggests that all mRNAs display fluctuating thermodynamic landscapes and that, in terms of thermodynamic features, RNAi is a very efficient antiviral system since there will always be sites susceptible to siRNAs.     

Population genetics of transposable DNA elements

This paper is an attempt to bring together the various, dispersed data published in the literature on insertion polymorphism of transposable elements from various kinds of populations (natural populations, laboratory strains, isofemale and inbred lines). Although the results deal mainly with Drosophila, data on other organisms have been incorporated when necessary to illustrate the discussion. The data pertinent to the regions of insertion, the rates of transposition and excision, the copy number regulation, and the degree of heterozygosity were analysed in order to be confronted with the speculations made with various theoretical models of population biology of transposable elements. The parameters of these models are very sensitive to the values of the transposable element characteristics estimated on populations, and according to the difficulties of these estimations (population not at equilibrium, particular mutations used to estimate the transposition and excision rates, trouble with the in situ technique used to localize the insertions, undesired mobilization of TEs in crosses, spontaneous genome resetting, environmental effects, etc.) it cannot be decided accurately which model better accounts for the population dynamics of these TEs. Tendencies, however, emerge in Drosophila: the copia element shows evidence for deficiency of insertions on the X chromosomes, a result consistent with selection against mutational effects of copia insertions; the P element repartition does not significantly deviate from the neutral assumption, in spite of a systematic copy number of insertions higher on the X than on the autosomes. Data on other elements support either the neutral model of TE containment, neither of the two models, or both. Prudence in conclusion should then be de rigueur when dealing with such kind of data. Finally the potential roles of TEs in population adaptation and evalution are discussed.     

dsRNA介导植物基因沉默及其应用

植物双链RNA(double stranded RNA,dsRNA)能有效干扰同源基因的表达,近年来已成为功能基因组学研究上的新方法。本文综述了植物dsRNA介导的转基因沉默现象及其特点、分子作用机制、主要介导方法,以及近年来在植物功能基因组学研究上的应用情况。     

The effects of thiophosphate substitutions on native siRNA gene silencing

RNA mediated interference has emerged as a powerful tool in controlling gene expression in mammalian cells. We investigated the gene silencing properties of six thiophosphate substituted siRNAs (all based on a commercial luciferase medium silencer) compared to that of unmodified siRNA. We also examined the cytotoxicity and dose-response using several thiophosphate modified siRNAs with unmodified siRNA. Our results show that two thiophosphate siRNA sequences convert from medium to high silencers with the addition of four randomly placed thiophosphates. Both thiophosphate siRNAs have a statistically significant difference in luciferase gene silencing (5% and 6% activity) relative to the unmodified native medium silencer referred to as siRNA-2 (18% activity) and four other thiophosphate siRNAs that maintain their medium silencing capability. This indicates that specific thiophosphate substitutions may alter native siRNA function. Further, this shows that thiophosphate siRNAs with the same nucleotide sequence but with different sulfur modification positions have different silencing effects. Both the native siRNA and the thio siRNAs showed a concentration dependent relationship, i.e., with concentration increase, the luciferase gene silencing effect also increased. Confirming cytotoxicity experiments showed no significant changes when HeLa cells were treated with 10nM thiophosphate siRNAs over the course of several days. These results suggest that specific placement of thiophosphates could play an important role in the development of siRNAs as therapeutics by engineering in properties such as strength of binding, nuclease sensitivity, and ultimately efficacy.