Base pairing between the 5' half of epsilon and a cis-acting sequence, phi, makes a contribution to the synthesis of minus-strand DNA for human hepatitis B virus

Synthesis of minus-strand DNA of human hepatitis B virus (HBV) can be divided into three phases: initiation of DNA synthesis, the template switch, and elongation of minus-strand DNA. Although much is known about minus-strand DNA synthesis, the mechanism(s) by which this occurs has not been completely elucidated. Through a deletion analysis, we have identified a cis-acting element involved in minus-strand DNA synthesis that lies within a 27-nucleotide region between DR2 and the 3' copy of DR1. A subset of this region (termed Phi) has been hypothesized to base pair with the 5' half of epsilon (H. Tang and A. McLachlan, Virology, 303:199-210, 2002). To test the proposed model, we used a genetic approach in which multiple sets of variants that disrupted and then restored putative base pairing between the 5' half of epsilon and phi were analyzed. Primer extension analysis, using two primers simultaneously, was performed to measure encapsidated pregenomic RNA (pgRNA) and minus-strand DNA synthesized in cell culture. The efficiency of minus-strand DNA synthesis was defined as the amount of minus-strand DNA synthesized per encapsidation event. Our results indicate that base pairing between phi and the 5' half of epsilon contributes to efficient minus-strand DNA synthesis. Additional results are consistent with the idea that the primary sequence of phi and/or epsilon also contributes to function. How base pairing between phi and epsilon contributes to minus-strand DNA synthesis is not known, but a simple speculation is that phi base pairs with the 5' half of epsilon to juxtapose the donor and acceptor sites to facilitate the first-strand template switch.     

Peptide-plane flipping in proteins

A peptide-plane flip is a large-scale rotation of the peptide plane that takes the phi,psi angles at residues i and i + 1 to different structural regions in the Ramachandran plot with a comparatively small effect on the relative orientation of their side chains. This phenomenon, which is expected to play an important role during the early stages of protein folding, has been investigated using 76 proteins for which two high-resolution X-ray conformations are available. Peptide-plane flips are identified by looking for those cases where changes in /psi(i)/ + /phi(i + 1)/ are large (>200 degrees), but changes in /psi(i) + phi(i + 1)/ are comparatively small (<50 degrees). Of a total of 23 cases, the most common peptide-plane flip was identified to be the type I to type II beta-turn interconversion. Although individually rarer, there are many other types of flips that are collectively more common. Given the four main accessible regions alpha(R), alpha(L), beta and epsilon, identified from the phi,psi distribution corresponding to non-hydrogen-bonded peptide planes, 32 main types of peptide-plane flip are identified. Only 8 of these are "passive," in that they require only relatively minor adjustments in the orientation of adjacent peptide planes. Of these, only the type I to type II beta-turn interconversion, denoted, beta(i) + alpha(L)(i + 1) <--> alpha(R)(i) + alpha(R)(i + 1), and the rarer alpha(R)(i) + alpha(L)(i + 1) <--> beta(i) + alpha(R)(i + 1), do not involve the epsilon region. "Active" peptide-plane flips affect the orientation of adjacent peptide planes. The flip, alpha(L)(i) + alpha(L)(i + 1) <--> beta(i) + beta(i + 1), of which one example was found, shows how concerted peptide-plane flips can convert the alpha(L) structure to the beta structure without affecting the relative orientations of the side chains.     

Isolation and characterization of mutants with deletions in dnaQ, the gene for the editing subunit of DNA polymerase III in Salmonella typhimurium.

dnaQ (mutD) encodes the editing exonuclease subunit (epsilon) of DNA polymerase III. Previously described mutations in dnaQ include dominant and recessive mutator alleles as well as leaky temperature-sensitive alleles. We describe the properties of strains bearing null mutations (deletion-substitution alleles) of this gene. Null mutants exhibited a growth defect as well as elevated spontaneous mutation. As a consequence of the poor growth of dnaQ mutants and their high mutation rate, these strains were replaced within single colonies by derivatives carrying an extragenic suppressor mutation that compensated the growth defect but apparently not the mutator effect. Sixteen independently derived suppressors mapped in the vicinity of dnaE, the gene for the polymerization subunit (alpha) of DNA polymerase III, and one suppressor that was sequenced encoded an altered alpha polypeptide. Partially purified DNA polymerase III containing this altered alpha subunit was active in polymerization assays. In addition to their dependence on a suppressor mutation affecting alpha, dnaQ mutants strictly required DNA polymerase I for viability. We argue from these data that in the absence of epsilon, DNA replication falters unless secondary mechanisms, including genetically coded alteration in the intrinsic replication capacity of alpha and increased use of DNA polymerase I, come into play. Thus, epsilon plays a role in DNA replication distinct from its known role in controlling spontaneous mutation frequency.     

Pyridoxal 5'-phosphate is a selective inhibitor in vivo of DNA polymerase alpha and epsilon

Vitamin B(6) compounds such as pyridoxal 5(')-phosphate (PLP), pyridoxal (PL), pyridoxine (PN), and pyridoxamine (PM), which reportedly have anti-angiogenic and anti-cancer effects, were thought to be inhibitors of some types of eukaryotic DNA polymerases. PL moderately inhibited only the activities of calf DNA polymerase alpha (pol alpha), while PN and PM had no inhibitory effects on any of the polymerases tested. On the other hand, PLP, a phosphated form of PL, was potentially a strong inhibitor of pol alpha and epsilon from phylogenetic-wide organisms including mammals, fish, insects, plants, and protists. PLP did not suppress the activities of prokaryotic DNA polymerases such as Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I and Taq DNA polymerase, or DNA-metabolic enzymes such as deoxyribonuclease I. For pol alpha and epsilon, PLP acted non-competitively with the DNA template-primer and competitively with the nucleotide substrate. Since PL was converted to PLP in vivo after being incorporated into human cancer cells, the anti-angiogenic and anti-cancer effects caused by PL must have been caused by the inhibition of pol alpha and epsilon activities after conversion to PLP.     

SiDCoN: a tool to aid scoring of DNA copy number changes in SNP chip data

The recent application of genome-wide, single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) microarrays to investigate DNA copy number aberrations in cancer has provided unparalleled sensitivity for identifying genomic changes. In some instances the complexity of these changes makes them difficult to interpret, particularly when tumour samples are contaminated with normal (stromal) tissue. Current automated scoring algorithms require considerable manual data checking and correction, especially when assessing uncultured tumour specimens. To address these limitations we have developed a visual tool to aid in the analysis of DNA copy number data. Simulated DNA Copy Number (SiDCoN) is a spreadsheet-based application designed to simulate the appearance of B-allele and logR plots for all known types of tumour DNA copy number changes, in the presence or absence of stromal contamination. The system allows the user to determine the level of stromal contamination, as well as specify up to 3 different DNA copy number aberrations for up to 5000 data points (representing individual SNPs). This allows users great flexibility to assess simple or complex DNA copy number combinations. We demonstrate how this utility can be used to estimate the level of stromal contamination within tumour samples and its application in deciphering the complex heterogeneous copy number changes we have observed in a series of tumours. We believe this tool will prove useful to others working in the area, both as a training tool, and to aid in the interpretation of complex copy number changes.     

Identification of tumor suppressors and oncogenes from genomic and epigenetic features in ovarian cancer

The identification of genetic and epigenetic alterations from primary tumor cells has become a common method to identify genes critical to the development and progression of cancer. We seek to identify those genetic and epigenetic aberrations that have the most impact on gene function within the tumor. First, we perform a bioinformatic analysis of copy number variation (CNV) and DNA methylation covering the genetic landscape of ovarian cancer tumor cells. We separately examined CNV and DNA methylation for 42 primary serous ovarian cancer samples using MOMA-ROMA assays and 379 tumor samples analyzed by The Cancer Genome Atlas. We have identified 346 genes with significant deletions or amplifications among the tumor samples. Utilizing associated gene expression data we predict 156 genes with altered copy number and correlated changes in expression. Among these genes CCNE1, POP4, UQCRB, PHF20L1 and C19orf2 were identified within both data sets. We were specifically interested in copy number variation as our base genomic property in the prediction of tumor suppressors and oncogenes in the altered ovarian tumor. We therefore identify changes in DNA methylation and expression for all amplified and deleted genes. We statistically define tumor suppressor and oncogenic features for these modalities and perform a correlation analysis with expression. We predicted 611 potential oncogenes and tumor suppressors candidates by integrating these data types. Genes with a strong correlation for methylation dependent expression changes exhibited at varying copy number aberrations include CDCA8, ATAD2, CDKN2A, RAB25, AURKA, BOP1 and EIF2C3. We provide copy number variation and DNA methylation analysis for over 11,500 individual genes covering the genetic landscape of ovarian cancer tumors. We show the extent of genomic and epigenetic alterations for known tumor suppressors and oncogenes and also use these defined features to identify potential ovarian cancer gene candidates.     

Nonparametric testing for DNA copy number induced differential mRNA gene expression

Summary .  The central dogma of molecular biology relates DNA with mRNA. Array CGH measures DNA copy number and gene expression microarrays measure the amount of mRNA. Methods that integrate data from these two platforms may uncover meaningful biological relationships that further our understanding of cancer. We develop nonparametric tests for the detection of copy number induced differential gene expression. The tests incorporate the uncertainty of the calling of genomic aberrations. The test is preceded by a "tuning algorithm" that discards certain genes to improve the overall power of the false discovery rate selection procedure. Moreover, the test statistics are "shrunken" to borrow information across neighboring genes that share the same array CGH signature. For each gene we also estimate its effect, its amount of differential expression due to copy number changes, and calculate the coefficient of determination. The method is illustrated on breast cancer data, in which it confirms previously reported findings, now with a more profound statistical underpinning.     

Persistence of Tandem Arrays: Implications for Satellite and Simple-Sequence Dnas

Recombination processes acting on tandem arrays are suggested here to have probable intrinsic biases, producing an expected net decrease in array size following each event, in contrast to previous models which assume no net change in array size. We examine the implications of this by modeling copy number dynamics in a tandem array under the joint interactions of sister-strand unequal crossing over (rate gamma per generation per copy) and intrastrand recombination resulting in deletion (rate epsilon per generation per copy). Assuming no gene amplification or selection, the expected mean persistence time of an array starting with z excess copies (i.e., array size z + 1) is z(1 + gamma/epsilon) recombinational events. Nontrivial equilibrium distributions of array sizes exist when gene amplification or certain forms of selection are considered. We characterize the equilibrium distribution for both a simple model of gene amplification and under the assumption that selection imposes a minimal array size, n. For the latter case, n + 1/alpha is an upper bound for mean array size under fairly general conditions, where alpha(= 2 epsilon/gamma) is the scaled deletion rate. Further, the distribution of excess copies over n is bounded above by a geometric distribution with parameter alpha/(1 + alpha). Tandem arrays are unlikely to be greatly expanded by unequal crossing over unless alpha much less than 1, implying that other mechanisms, such as gene amplification, are likely important in the evolution of large arrays. Thus unequal crossing over, by itself, is likely insufficient to account for satellite DNA.     

Identification of Networks of Co-Occurring,Tumor-Related DNA Copy Number Changes Using a Genome-Wide Scoring Approach

Tumorigenesis is a multi-step process in which normal cells transform into malignant tumors following the accumulation of genetic mutations that enable them to evade the growth control checkpoints that would normally suppress their growth or result in apoptosis. It is therefore important to identify those combinations of mutations that collaborate in cancer development and progression. DNA copy number alterations (CNAs) are one of the ways in which cancer genes are deregulated in tumor cells. We hypothesized that synergistic interactions between cancer genes might be identified by looking for regions of co-occurring gain and/or loss. To this end we developed a scoring framework to separate truly co-occurring aberrations from passenger mutations and dominant single signals present in the data. The resulting regions of high co-occurrence can be investigated for between-region functional interactions. Analysis of high-resolution DNA copy number data from a panel of 95 hematological tumor cell lines correctly identified co-occurring recombinations at the T-cell receptor and immunoglobulin loci in T- and B-cell malignancies, respectively, showing that we can recover truly co-occurring genomic alterations. In addition, our analysis revealed networks of co-occurring genomic losses and gains that are enriched for cancer genes. These networks are also highly enriched for functional relationships between genes. We further examine sub-networks of these networks, core networks, which contain many known cancer genes. The core network for co-occurring DNA losses we find seems to be independent of the canonical cancer genes within the network. Our findings suggest that large-scale, low-intensity copy number alterations may be an important feature of cancer development or maintenance by affecting gene dosage of a large interconnected network of functionally related genes.     

Detecting simultaneous changepoints in multiple sequences

We discuss the detection of local signals that occur at the same location in multiple one-dimensional noisy sequences, with particular attention to relatively weak signals that may occur in only a fraction of the sequences. We propose simple scan and segmentation algorithms based on the sum of the chi-squared statistics for each individual sample, which is equivalent to the generalized likelihood ratio for a model where the errors in each sample are independent. The simple geometry of the statistic allows us to derive accurate analytic approximations to the significance level of such scans. The formulation of the model is motivated by the biological problem of detecting recurrent DNA copy number variants in multiple samples. We show using replicates and parent-child comparisons that pooling data across samples results in more accurate detection of copy number variants. We also apply the multisample segmentation algorithm to the analysis of a cohort of tumour samples containing complex nested and overlapping copy number aberrations, for which our method gives a sparse and intuitive cross-sample summary.     

Characterization of the IgE Fc receptors on monocytes and macrophages

Subpopulations of human monocytes (15%) and alveolar macrophages (AM phi, 8%) and rat and mouse AM phi (89%) and peritoneal M phi (57%) bear Fc receptors for IgE (Fc epsilon R) as shown by IgE-specific rosette formation. Cells from M phi-like cell lines of human, rat, and mouse origins also express Fc epsilon R. Monomeric IgE binds to Fc epsilon R on M phi with an equilibrium association constant Ka congruent to 10(7) M-1. The Fc epsilon R on human monocytes and M phi are antigenically similar to Fc epsilon R on lymphocytes but differ from Fc epsilon R on basophilic granulocytes. The Fc epsilon R on human and mouse M phi promote phagocytosis and lysis of IgE-coated erythrocytes. Patients with active IgE-mediated allergic diseases have elevated percentages of Fc epsilon R(+) monocytes (56%) that show allergic increased lytic activity against IgE-coated erythrocytes as compared to monocytes from normal humans. M phi from rats infested with Nippostrongylus brasiliensis parasites express more Fc epsilon R than normal M phi. The data indicate that Fc epsilon R expressed on M phi differ from those on mast cells and basophils, increase in number during IgE immune responses, and are likely to play an important role in the host's defense against parasites and in the pathogenesis of allergic diseases.     

Multiple displacement amplification for malaria parasite DNA

Multiple displacement amplification (MDA) using Phi29 has proved to be an efficient, high-fidelity method for whole genome amplification in many organisms. This project was designed to evaluate this approach for use with the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. In particular, we were concerned that the AT richness and presence of contaminating human DNA could limit efficiency of MDA in this system. We amplified 60 DNA samples using phi29 and scored 14 microsatellites, 9 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and gene copy number at GTP-cyclohydrolase I both before and after MDA. We observed 100% concordance in 829 microsatellite genotypes and in 499 SNP genotypes. Furthermore, copy number estimates for the GTP-cyclohydrolase I gene were correlated (r(2) = 0.67) in pre- and postamplification samples. These data confirm that MDA permits scoring of a range of different types of polymorphisms in P. falciparum malaria and can be used to extend the life of valuable DNA stocks.     

Impulse photoconductance of solutions of chlorophyll and its analogs. IV. Absolute quantum yield of ion radical formation during photooxidation of chlorophyll a by n-benzoquinone

The values of absolute quantum yield phi of the formation of free ion-radicals during the illumination of alkohol solutions of chlorophyll alpha (Chl) and rho-benzoquinone (Q) at room temperature were obtained by the method of impulse photoconductance. With an increase of the dielectric constant epsilon of the solvent from approximately 6 to approximately 25 phi increases by two orders ( approximately 10(-3)--approximately 10(-1). That obtained relationship phi (epsilon) is explained by epsilon effect on the efficiency of dissociation of "solvent-shared" ion-radical pair Chls+. Os-. The comparison of experimental data and theoretically expected ones allowed the estimation of some parameters to be obtained which characterize the ion-radical pair: interionic distance (10 A), the dissociation velocity constant ( approximately 10(5)--10(8) s-1), the velocity constant of reverse electron transfer (10(8) s-1), the life time approximately 10(-8) s).     

Reconstructing DNA copy number by joint segmentation of multiple sequences

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Variations in DNA copy number carry information on the modalities of genome evolution and mis-regulation of DNA replication in cancer cells. Their study can help localize tumor suppressor genes, distinguish different populations of cancerous cells, and identify genomic variations responsible for disease phenotypes. A number of different high throughput technologies can be used to identify copy number variable sites, and the literature documents multiple effective algorithms. We focus here on the specific problem of detecting regions where variation in copy number is relatively common in the sample at hand. This problem encompasses the cases of copy number polymorphisms, related samples, technical replicates, and cancerous sub-populations from the same individual. RESULTS: We present a segmentation method named generalized fused lasso (GFL) to reconstruct copy number variant regions, that is based on penalized estimation and is capable of processing multiple signals jointly. Our approach is computationally very attractive and leads to sensitivity and specificity levels comparable to those of state-of-the-art specialized methodologies. We illustrate its applicability with simulated and real data sets. CONCLUSIONS: The flexibility of our framework makes it applicable to data obtained with a wide range of technology. Its versatility and speed make GFL particularly useful in the initial screening stages of large data sets.     

DNA polymerase epsilon: the latest member in the family of mammalian DNA polymerases

DNA polymerase epsilon is a mammalian polymerase that has a tightly associated 3'----5' exonuclease activity. Because of this readily detectable exonuclease activity, the enzyme has been regarded as a form of DNA polymerase delta, an enzyme which, together with DNA polymerase alpha, is in all probability required for the replication of chromosomal DNA. Recently, it was discovered that DNA polymerase epsilon is both catalytically and structurally distinct from DNA polymerase delta. The most striking difference between the two DNA polymerases is that processive DNA synthesis by DNA polymerase delta is dependent on proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), a replication factor, while DNA polymerase epsilon is inherently processive. DNA polymerase epsilon is required at least for the repair synthesis of UV-damaged DNA. DNA polymerases are highly conserved in eukaryotic cells. Mammalian DNA polymerases alpha, delta and epsilon are counterparts of yeast DNA polymerases I, III and II, respectively. Like DNA polymerases I and III, DNA polymerase II is also essential for the viability of cells, which suggests that DNA polymerase II (and epsilon) may play a role in DNA replication.     

Network modeling of the transcriptional effects of copy number aberrations in glioblastoma

DNA copy number aberrations (CNAs) are a hallmark of cancer genomes. However, little is known about how such changes affect global gene expression. We develop a modeling framework, EPoC (Endogenous Perturbation analysis of Cancer), to (1) detect disease‐driving CNAs and their effect on target mRNA expression, and to (2) stratify cancer patients into long‐ and short‐term survivors. Our method constructs causal network models of gene expression by combining genome‐wide DNA‐ and RNA‐level data. Prognostic scores are obtained from a singular value decomposition of the networks. By applying EPoC to glioblastoma data from The Cancer Genome Atlas consortium, we demonstrate that the resulting network models contain known disease‐relevant hub genes, reveal interesting candidate hubs, and uncover predictors of patient survival. Targeted validations in four glioblastoma cell lines support selected predictions, and implicate the p53‐interacting protein Necdin in suppressing glioblastoma cell growth. We conclude that large‐scale network modeling of the effects of CNAs on gene expression may provide insights into the biology of human cancer. Free software in MATLAB and R is provided.