甘油脱氢酶基因在大肠杆菌中的密码子优化表达

[目的]利用密码子优化技术,提高甘油脱氢酶基因gldA在大肠杆菌中的表达水平.[方法]针对gldA起始密码子下游区域,优先选择AT含量最高的同义密码子,从而在不改变氨基酸序列的前提下,提高该区域的AT含量.利用大引物PCR的方法对野生型gldA-WT进行定点突变,获得优化型基因gldA-4,与pET-32a(+)连接后...     

A型流感病毒同义密码子的使用偏性对RNA二级结构的影响

以A型流感病毒为研究样本,分析了同义密码子使用偏性对RNA二级结构的影响,为进一步研究同义密码子存在的意义及A型流感病毒RNA特征提供一些理论依据。收集整理了NCBI中收录的全部A型流感病毒的核酸序列信息,计算了每一条核酸序列的RNA二级结构,计算出RNA环结构含量和茎结构含量及折叠自由能。在此基础上,计算了RNA二级结构的柔性。同时,计算了每一条核酸序列的相对同义密码子使用值。由此,建立了A型流感病毒RNA二级结构数据库。分析每条核酸序列的相对同义密码子使用值与RNA的环结构、茎结构及柔性之间的关系。分析结果表明,50%的氨基酸的相对同义密码子使用值与RNA茎结构含量和环结构含量显著相关;60%的氨基酸的相对同义密码子使用值与单位平均折叠自由能显著相关;50%的氨基酸的相对同义密码子使用值与RNA柔性显著相关。进一步分析发现,与茎结构含量和环结构含量都显著相关的密码子,它们的相对同义密码子使用值与两种结构含量的相关性截然相反,而且发现,在所选的参量中,RNA柔性与相对同义密码子使用值显示出更好的相关性。结果证实,对于A型流感病毒,同义密码子的使用偏性对RNA二级结构存在很大的影响。     

籼稻品种93-11同义密码子的使用偏性

利用籼稻品种93－11的全基因组序列及相应的EST数据,对影响同义密码子用法的若干因子进行了详细分析。指出93－11基因的表达水平（mRNA丰度）与3个同义密码子偏性指标CAI、CPP和ENC相关极显著（r=0.227^**,0.145^**和-0.147^**),表明高表达的基因其同义密码子非随机使用的程度越大;基因长度与CAI和CPP极显著负相关（r=-0.413^**和-0.480^**),与ENC极显著正相关（r=0.210^**),暗示较短的基因具有更高的转录活性;编码区G＋C含量对其同义密码子偏性的贡献率远高于mRNA丰度和基因长度,G＋C含量与CAI、CPP和ENC相关系数分别高达0.877^**,0.832^**和-0.740^**;起始编码区内A、T、C、G4种碱基呈明显的3周期振荡,尤以ATG下游第一个密码子所在的3个位点（＋4、＋5和＋6）偏置最强烈,由此认为在这3个特殊位点有较高的自然选择压存在;93－11中25个最优密码子的首次确定将对水稻转基因具有指导意义。     

毕赤酵母的密码子用法分析

通过分析Pichia pastoris的28个蛋白编码基因的同义密码子使用情况并计算该酵母的密码子用法,首次确定出P.pastoris的19个高表达优越密码子。这些结果经与已知的Saccharomyces cerevisiae及Kluyveromyces lactis的密码子用法基本相似,但在氨基酸谷氨酸的密码子选择上截然相反,提示这可能属于P.pastoris所偏爱的密码子用法。     

基于同义密码子使用的原核生物基因组大、小染色体及质粒进化特征分析北大核心CSCD

基于同义密码子偏好分析,对54个原核基因组大、小染色体及质粒中蛋白质编码基因的序列特征进行了对比分析。结果表明,大、小染色体中蛋白质编码基因的GC含量分布相近,质粒中蛋白质编码基因的GC含量分布与所在物种全基因组的GC含量差别较大。进一步的分析表明,大、小染色体共同偏好的密码子最多,且具有相近的起始密码子和终止密码子使用特征。基于对应分析的同义密码子使用模式分析表明,大、小染色体具有相近的序列特征,且大、小染色体及质粒之间具有不尽相同的影响因素。这些结果可为今后原核生物基因组进化研究提供可靠的方法和理论依据。     

枯草芽孢杆菌同义密码子使用偏性对蛋白质折叠速率的影响

目前,有关同义密码子使用偏性对蛋白质折叠的影响研究中,样本蛋白均来源于不同的物种。考虑到同义密码子使用偏性的物种差异性,选取枯草杆菌的核蛋白为研究对象。首先,将每条核蛋白按二级结构截取为α螺旋片段、β折叠片段和无规卷曲（α-β混合）片段,并计算其蛋白质折叠速率。然后,整理每个片段相应的核酸序列信息,计算其同义密码子使用度。在此基础上,分析枯草芽孢杆菌核蛋白的同义密码子使用偏性与蛋白质折叠速率的相关性。发现对于不同二级结构的肽链片段,都有部分密码子的使用偏性与其对应的肽链折叠速率显著相关。进一步分析发现,与肽链片段折叠速率显著相关的密码子绝大部分为枯草杆菌全序列或核蛋白序列的每一组同义密码子中使用度最高的密码子。结果表明,在蛋白质的折叠过程中,枯草芽孢杆菌的同义密码子使用偏性起着重要作用。     

沙枣叶绿体全基因组序列及其使用密码子偏性分析

该研究以2株野生沙枣(Elaeagnus angustifolia Linn.)嫩枝经温室水培后的嫩叶为材料,采用CTAB法分别提取总DNA,并利用第二代测序技术进行总DNA从头测序,组装后得到2株沙枣叶绿体基因组全序列,并详细分析了其蛋白质编码基因密码子使用的偏好性及其原因,为沙枣叶绿体基因工程和分子系统进化等研究奠定基础。结果显示:(1)组装得到沙枣叶绿体基因组序列全长150 546 bp,由长度为81 113 bp的长单拷贝(LSC)区域和25 494 bp的短单拷贝(SSC)区域,以及1对分隔开它们的长18 445 bp的反向重复序列(IRS)组成;注释共得到132个基因,包括86个蛋白编码基因、38个tRNA基因和8个rRNA基因。(2)沙枣叶绿体基因组蛋白编码基因密码子的第三位碱基GC含量(GC_3)为28.47%,明显低于整个叶绿体基因组GC含量(37%),也低于第一位(GC_1)和第二位(GC_2)碱基的GC含量,说明密码子对AT碱基结尾有偏好性;其中, UCU、CCU、UGU、GCU、CUU、GAU、UCA和UAA为最优密码子。(3)同义密码子相对使用频率(RSCU)分析发现,影响密码子使用模式的因素并不单一,密码子的偏好性受到突变、选择及其他因素的共同影响,并且自然选择表达引起的序列差异比突变对密码子偏好性的影响要显著;中性绘图分析、有效密码子数(ENC-plot)分析和奇偶偏好性(PR2-plot)分析表明,沙枣叶绿体基因组使用密码子的偏性受选择的影响更大。(4)通过最大似然法、最大简约法和贝叶斯方法对胡颓子科6个物种和1个枣的叶绿体基因序列构建系统发育树,与它们使用密码子偏性聚类的结果一致,表明叶绿体基因组使用密码子偏性与物种的亲缘关系相关。     

转座因子对水稻同义密码子使用偏性的影响

利用635个包含完整转座因子插入的粳稻CDS序列,对转座因子如何影响基因编码区的碱基组成及基因的表达水平,进而对基因同义密码子的使用偏性产生影响进行了详细分析。结果表明:转座因子插入极显著地影响到基因编码区的同义密码子使用但并非唯一因素;转座因子对不同基因的表达水平具有多重影响,有的基因表达被抑制,有的反而增强,但总的来说它减少了基因表达水平对同义密码子使用的影响程度。     

人类基因同义密码子偏好的特征以及与基因GC含量的关系

对人类的728个基因,按其编码区中GC的含量分成四组(从GC＜0.43到GC＞0.58),分别考察了这四组样本对同义密码子偏好的特征,发现在全部样本中都呈现NTG(N代表四种碱基中的任一种)特受偏爱和NCG尽量避免的特征.基因环境中GC含量与C3/G3含量(密码子第三位C和G的含量)的相关分析,以及四组样本对密码子的偏好都支持以C结尾的密码子在编码中有特殊的优势,这种优势有利于保证翻译的准确性.还考察了各种氨基酸含量随编码区GC含量不同而变化的趋势.     

珍珠鸟(Taeniopygia guttata)小染色体基因表达的密码子偏性

从NCBI数据库（http：／／www．ncbi．nlm．nih．gov／projects／mapview／map）下载珍珠鸟全部小染色体基因的cDNA序列,最终共有1586个基因的CDS序列纳入统计分析。密码子的偏性分析使用CodonW（1．4．2）完成,初步确定了UUC、UCC、UCG等27个密码子为珍珠鸟小染色体基因表达的“最优”密码子。对应分析表明,影响珍珠鸟小染色体基因密码子使用的主要因素分别为GC3s、CDS的GC含量基以及因的表达丰度。珍珠鸟小染色体基因的密码子用法受到了基因碱基组成的显著影响,其密码子的偏性是碱基组成及选择等因素综合作用的结果。本研究的目的是系统探究珍珠乌小染色体基因的密码子用法,探究鸟类基因表达的分子调控机制。     

Stress induced MAPK genes show distinct pattern of codon usage in Arabidopsis thaliana,Glycine max and Oryza sativa

Mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) genes provide resistance to various biotic and abiotic stresses. Codon usage profiling of the genes reveals the characteristic features of the genes like nucleotide composition, gene expressivity, optimal codons etc. The present study is a comparative analysis of codon usage patterns for different MAPK genes in three organisms, viz. Arabidopsis thaliana, Glycine max (soybean) and Oryza sativa (rice). The study has revealed a high AT content in MAPK genes of Arabidopsis and soybean whereas in rice a balanced AT-GC content at the third synonymous position of codon. The genes show a low bias in codon usage profile as reflected in the higher values (50.83 to 56.55) of effective number of codons (N_c). The prediction of gene expression profile in the MAPK genes revealed that these genes might be under the selective pressure of translational optimization as reflected in the low codon adaptation index (CAI) values ranging from 0.147 to 0.208.     

Analysis of mitochondrial protein‐coding genes of Antheraea assamensis: Muga silkworm of Assam

To understand the synonymous codon usage pattern in mitochondrial genome of Antheraea assamensis, we analyzed the 13 mitochondrial protein‐coding genes of this species using a bioinformatic approach as no work was reported yet. The nucleotide composition analysis suggested that the percentages of A, T, G,and C were 33.73, 46.39, 9.7 and 10.17, respectively and the overall GC content was 19.86, that is, lower than 50% and the genes were AT rich. The mean effective number of codons of mitochondrial protein‐coding genes was 36.30 and it indicated low codon usage bias (CUB). Relative synonymous codon usage analysis suggested overrepresented and underrepresented codons in each gene and the pattern of codon usage was different among genes. Neutrality plot analysis revealed a narrow range of distribution for GC content at the third codon position and some points were diagonally distributed, suggesting both mutation pressure and natural selection influenced the CUB.     

CodHonEditor: Spreadsheets for Codon Optimization and Editing of Protein Coding Sequences

Gene synthesis is getting more important with the growing availability of low-cost commercial services. The coding sequences are often “optimized” as for the relative synonymous codon usage (RSCU) before synthesis, which is generally included in the commercial services. However, the codon optimization processes are different among different providers and are often hidden from the users. Here, the d'Hondt method, which is widely adopted as a method for determining the number of seats for each party in proportional-representation public elections, is applied to RSCU fitting. This allowed me to make a set of electronic spreadsheets for manual design of protein coding sequences for expression in Escherichia coli, with which users can see the process of codon optimization and can manually edit the codons after the automatic optimization. The spreadsheets may also be useful for molecular biology education     

葡萄基因组密码子使用偏好模式研究

根据完整基因组序列,运用多元统计分析和对应分析的方法,探讨了葡萄全基因组序列密码子的使用模式和影响密码子使用的各种可能因素。结果显示:葡萄密码子偏好性主要受到碱基差异(r=0.925)和自然选择(r=0.193)共同作用的影响,突变压力占了主导因素,自然选择的作用较小。同时基因长度和蛋白质疏水性也对密码子的偏好性有所影响。确定了葡萄的20个最优密码子。     

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A crosstalk on nucleotide compositional dynamics and codon usage patterns of the genes involved in disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a lung disease, affects a large number of people worldwide, leading to death. Here, we analyzed the compositional features and trends of codon usage of the genes influencing COPD to understand molecular biology, genetics, and evolutionary relationships of these genes as no work was reported yet. Coding sequences of COPD genes were found to be rich in guanine-cytosine (GC) content. A high value (34-60) of the effective number of codons of the genes indicated low codon usage bias (CUB). Correspondence analysis suggested that the COPD genes were distinct in their codon usage patterns. Relative synonymous codon usage values of codons differed between the more preferred codons and the less-preferred ones. Correlation analysis between overall nucleotides and those at third codon position revealed that mutation pressure might influence the CUB of the genes. The high correlation between GC12 and GC3 signified that directional mutation pressure might have operated at all the three codon positions in COPD genes.     

同义密码子通过精微翻译选择机制实现对基因的表达调控

自然界中,同义密码子的存在使得众多氨基酸能够同时被多种密码子编码合成。随着研究的深入,同义密码子使用偏嗜性发挥出的生物学功能已经渗透到了基因复制、转录、翻译以及化学修饰等生命活动过程中。基于同义密码子使用偏嗜性的生物学特性,陆续发现密码子对(codon pair)和密码子共现(codon co-occurrence)同样在使用模式上存在明显的偏嗜性。在基因表达的过程中,针对编码序列的密码子优化能够显著提升基因的表达水平,这在生物工程领域对于蛋白表达有着重要的生物学意义。此外,同义密码子使用模式在调控基因转录、化学修饰以及翻译过程中间接控制着细胞内生命活动的有序性。而这些与同义密码子使用模式有着千丝万缕联系的生命过程主要是受精微翻译选择压力来调控运行的。本文中,我们结合当前同义密码子使用模式介导的精微翻译选择压力,简述密码子使用模式如何从转录、化学修饰以及翻译等方面来影响基因表达及蛋白产物生物学功能。这将为今后生物工程学领域如何优化蛋白高效表达以及深入研究重要生物学活动中基因表达调控提供可参考的思路与理念。     

Codon usage bias: causative factors,quantification methods and genome‐wide patterns: with emphasis on insect genomes

Codon usage bias refers to the phenomenon where specific codons are used more often than other synonymous codons during translation of genes, the extent of which varies within and among species. Molecular evolutionary investigations suggest that codon bias is manifested as a result of balance between mutational and translational selection of such genes and that this phenomenon is widespread across species and may contribute to genome evolution in a significant manner. With the advent of whole‐genome sequencing of numerous species, both prokaryotes and eukaryotes, genome‐wide patterns of codon bias are emerging in different organisms. Various factors such as expression level, GC content, recombination rates, RNA stability, codon position, gene length and others (including environmental stress and population size) can influence codon usage bias within and among species. Moreover, there has been a continuous quest towards developing new concepts and tools to measure the extent of codon usage bias of genes. In this review, we outline the fundamental concepts of evolution of the genetic code, discuss various factors that may influence biased usage of synonymous codons and then outline different principles and methods of measurement of codon usage bias. Finally, we discuss selected studies performed using whole‐genome sequences of different insect species to show how codon bias patterns vary within and among genomes. We conclude with generalized remarks on specific emerging aspects of codon bias studies and highlight the recent explosion of genome‐sequencing efforts on arthropods (such as twelve Drosophila species, species of ants, honeybee, Nasonia and Anopheles mosquitoes as well as the recent launch of a genome‐sequencing project involving 5000 insects and other arthropods) that may help us to understand better the evolution of codon bias and its biological significance.     

AT2-AT3-profiling: a new look at synonymous codon usage

The teleology of synonymous codon usage (SCU) still awaits a unifying concept. Here the 2nd codon letter of human mRNA-codons was graphically, aided by a computer program, put in relation to the 3rd codon letter, the carrier of SCU: AT2, the density of A+T in 2nd codon position, behaves to AT3, the analogous density of the 3rd codon position, mostly in an inverse fashion that can be expressed as typical figures: mRNAs with an overall AT-density below 50% have a tendency to produce bulky figures called "red dragons" (when redness is attributed to graph-areas, where AT3< AT2), while mRNAs with an AT-density above 50% produce a pattern called "harlequin" consisting of alternating red and blue (blueness, in analogy, when AT3>AT2) diamonds. With more diversion of AT3 from AT2, the harlequin patterns can assume the pattern of a "blue dragon". By analysing the mRNA of known proteins, these patterns can be correlated with certain functional regions: proteins with multiple transmembrane passages show bulky "red dragons", structural proteins with a high glycine- and proline content such as collagen result in "blue dragons". Non-coding mRNAs tend to show a balance between AT2 and AT3 and hence "harlequin patterns". Signal peptides usually code red due to a low AT3 with an AT2-density at the expectance level. With this technique DNA-sequences of as yet unknown functional meaning were scanned. When stretches of harlequin patterns appear interrupted by red or blue dragons, closer scrutiny of these stretches can reveal ORFs which deserve to be looked at more closely for their protein-informational content. At least in humans, SCU appears to follow protein-dependent AT2-density in a reciprocal fashion and does not seem to serve the purpose of influencing mRNA secondary structure which is discussed in depth.