Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) are emerging as key molecules in human cancer, with the potential to serve as novel markers of disease and to reveal uncharacterized aspects of tumor biology. Here we discover 121 unannotated prostate cancer–associated ncRNA transcripts (PCATs) by ab initio assembly of high-throughput sequencing of polyA+ RNA (RNA-Seq) from a cohort of 102 prostate tissues and cells lines. We characterized one ncRNA, PCAT-1, as a prostate-specific regulator of cell proliferation and show that it is a target of the polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2). We further found that patterns of PCAT-1 and PRC2 expression stratified patient tissues into molecular subtypes distinguished by expression signatures of PCAT-1–repressed target genes. Taken together, our findings suggest that PCAT-1 is a transcriptional repressor implicated in a subset of prostate cancer patients. These findings establish the utility of RNA-Seq to identify disease-associated ncRNAs that may improve the stratification of cancer subtypes. Overall design: 21 prostate cell lines sequenced on the Illumina Genome Analyzer and GAII. Variable number of replicates per sample. RNA-Seq data from prostate cancer tissues used in this study will be made available on dbGAP.
Transcriptome sequencing across a prostate cancer cohort identifies PCAT-1, an unannotated lincRNA implicated in disease progression.
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View SamplesAnalysis of stratified epidermal cultures treated with IL-1a, IL-1F5, IL-1F6, IL-1F8 and IL-1F9 to determine the effects of these cytokines at 24h. Results provide insight into the role of IL-1 family cytokines in the pathogenesis of psoriasis.
IL-1F5, -F6, -F8, and -F9: a novel IL-1 family signaling system that is active in psoriasis and promotes keratinocyte antimicrobial peptide expression.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesTranscriptome analysis of somatic stem cells and their progeny is fundamental to identify new factors controlling proliferation versus differentiation during tissue formation. Here we generated a combinatorial, fluorescent reporter mouse line to isolate proliferating neural stem cells, differentiating progenitors and newborn neurons that coexist as intermingled cell populations during brain development. Transcriptome sequencing revealed numerous novel long non-coding (lnc)RNAs and uncharacterized protein-coding transcripts identifying the signature of neurogenic commitment. Importantly, most lncRNAs overlapped neurogenic genes and shared with them a nearly identical expression pattern suggesting that lncRNAs control corticogenesis by tuning the expression of nearby cell fate determinants. We assessed the power of our approach by manipulating lncRNAs and protein-coding transcripts with no function in corticogenesis reported to date. This led to several evident phenotypes in neurogenic commitment and neuronal survival indicating that our study provides a remarkably high number of uncharacterized transcripts with hitherto unsuspected roles in brain development. Finally, we focussed on one lncRNA, Miat, whose manipulation was found to trigger pleiotropic effects on brain development and aberrant splicing of Wnt7b. Hence, our study suggests that lncRNA-mediated alternative splicing of cell fate determinants controls stem cell commitment during neurogenesis. “LncRNAs control neurogenesis” Aprea, Prenninger, Dori, Monasor, Wessendof, Zocher, Massalini, Ghosh, Alexopoulou, Lesche, Dahl, Groszer, Hiller, Calegari, The EMBO Journal (In Press) Overall design: mRNA profiles of Proliferating Progenitors, Differentiating Progenitors and Neurons from lateral cortex of E14.5 mouse embryos. Each cell type in three biological replicates.
Transcriptome sequencing during mouse brain development identifies long non-coding RNAs functionally involved in neurogenic commitment.
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View SamplesDevelopment of a suitable mouse model would facilitate the investigation of pathomechanisms underlying human psoriasis and would also assist in development of therapeutic treatments. However, while many psoriasis mouse models have been proposed, no single model recapitulates all features of the human disease, and standardized validation criteria for psoriasis mouse models have not been widely applied. In this study, whole-genome transcriptional profiling is used to compare gene expression patterns manifested by human psoriatic skin lesions with those that occur in five psoriasis mouse models (K5-Tie2, imiquimod, K14-AREG, K5-Stat3C and K5-TGFbeta1). While the cutaneous gene expression profiles associated with each mouse phenotype exhibited statistically significant similarity to the expression profile of psoriasis in humans, each model displayed distinctive sets of similarities and differences in comparison to human psoriasis. For all five models, correspondence to the human disease was strong with respect to genes involved in epidermal development and keratinization. Immune and inflammation-associated gene expression, in contrast, was more variable between models as compared to the human disease. These findings support the value of all five models as research tools, each with identifiable areas of convergence to and divergence from the human disease. Additionally, the approach used in this paper provides an objective and quantitative method for evaluation of proposed mouse models of psoriasis, which can be strategically applied in future studies to score strengths of mouse phenotypes relative to specific aspects of human psoriasis.
Genome-wide expression profiling of five mouse models identifies similarities and differences with human psoriasis.
Specimen part
View SamplesCyclin D1 is an important cell cycle regulator but in cancer its overexpression also increases cellular migration mediated by p27KIP1 stabilization and RhoA inhibition. Recently, a common polymorphism at the exon 4-intron 4 boundary of the human cyclin D1 gene within a splice donor region was associated with an altered risk of developing cancer. Altered RNA splicing caused by this polymorphism gives rise to a variant cyclin D1 isoform termed cyclin D1b, which has the same N-terminus as the canonical cyclin D1a isoform but a distinct C-terminus. Analysis was performed of mouse cyclin D1 knockout 3T3 cells infected with splice variants of cyclin D1. 3T3 cells transduced with retroviral vectors expressing each cyclin D1 isoform were processed for expression analysis.
Alternate cyclin D1 mRNA splicing modulates p27KIP1 binding and cell migration.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesPancreatic beta-cell dysfunction contributes to onset and progression of type 2 diabetes. In this state beta-cells become metabolically inflexible, losing the ability to select between carbohydrates and lipids as substrates for mitochondrial oxidation. These changes lead to beta-cell dedifferentiation. We have proposed that FoxO proteins are activated through deacetylation-dependent nuclear translocation to forestall the progression of these abnormalities. However, how deacetylated FoxO exert their actions remains unclear. To address this question, we analyzed islet function in mice homozygous for knock-in alleles encoding deacetylated FoxO1 (6KR). Islets expressing 6KR mutant FoxO1 have enhanced insulin secretion in vivo and ex vivo, and decreased fatty acid oxidation ex vivo. Remarkably, the gene expression signature associated with FoxO1 deacetylation differs from wild-type by only ~2% of the > 4,000 genes regulated in response to re-feeding. But this narrow swath includes key genes required for beta-cell identity, lipid metabolism, and mitochondrial fatty acid and solute transport. The data support the notion that deacetylated FoxO1 protects beta-cell function by limiting mitochondrial lipid utilization, and raise the possibility that inhibition of fatty acid oxidation in ß-cells is beneficial to diabetes treatment. Overall design: Examined 2 different feeding state and 2 different genotypes
FoxO1 Deacetylation Decreases Fatty Acid Oxidation in β-Cells and Sustains Insulin Secretion in Diabetes.
Cell line, Subject
View SamplesSmall molecule curaxin CBL0137 has broad anti-cancer activity in different preclinical models. It interferes with histone-DNA interactions via binding to DNA without causing DNA damage. It resposents first in class "chromatin damaging" agent without genotoxic properties. Its effect on the transcription in human tumor cells was evaluated. DNA-targeting small molecules are widely used for anticancer therapy based on their ability to induce cell death, presumably via DNA damage. DNA in the eukaryotic cell is packed into chromatin, a highly-ordered complex of DNA, histones, and non-histone proteins. These agents perturb chromatin organization. However, the mechanisms, consequences, and impact of the alterations of chromatin structure in relation to their anti-cancer activity is unclear because it is difficult to separate DNA damage and chromatin damage in cells. We recently demonstrated that curaxins, small molecules with broad anticancer activity, bind DNA without causing detectable DNA damage by interfering with histone/DNA interactions and destabilizing the nucleosome. Chromatin unfolding caused by curaxins is sensed by histone chaperone FACT. FACT binds unfolded nucleosomes, which leads to chromatin trapping or c-trapping. In this study, we investigated whether other DNA-targeting small molecules disturb chromatin and cause c-trapping. We found that only compounds directly binding DNA induce chromatin damage and c-trapping. Chromatin damage may occur in the absence of DNA damage and is dependent on the mechanism of compound binding to DNA and its ability to bind chromatinized DNA in cells. We show that FACT is sensitive to a plethora of nucleosomes perturbations induced by DNA-binding small molecules, including displacement of the linker histone, eviction of core histones, and accumulation of negative supercoiling. Most importantly, the cytotoxicity of DNA-binding small molecules correlates with their ability to cause chromatin damage , but not DNA damage. Overall design: HT1080 cells were treated with CBL0137 for 1 hour at 1uM. EU was added for the last 15 minutes. Newly synthesized RNA was isolated using Click-iTâ„¢ Nascent RNA Capture Kit (Invitrogen, cat#C10365) according to manufacturer instruction.
Prevention of Chromatin Destabilization by FACT Is Crucial for Malignant Transformation.
Cell line, Subject
View SamplesIn proliferating cells, where most Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) studies have been performed, gene repression is associated with PRC2 trimethylation of H3K27 (H3K27me3). However, it is uncertain whether PCR2 writing of H3K27me3 is mechanistically required for gene silencing. Here we studied PRC2 function in postnatal mouse cardiomyocytes, where the paucity of cell division obviates bulk H3K27me3 rewriting after each cell cycle. EED (Embryonic Ectoderm Development) inactivation in the postnatal heart (Eed CKO ) caused lethal dilated cardiomyopathy. Surprisingly, gene upregulation in Eed CKO was not coupled with loss of H3K27me3. Rather, the activating histone mark H3K27ac increased. EED interacted with histone deacetylases (HDACs) and enhanced their catalytic activity. HDAC overexpression normalized Eed CKO heart function and expression of derepressed genes. Our results uncovered a non-canonical, H3K27me3-independent EED repressive mechanism that is essential for normal heart function. Our results further illustrate that organ dysfunction due to epigenetic dysregulation can be corrected by epigenetic rewiring.
EED orchestration of heart maturation through interaction with HDACs is H3K27me3-independent.
Specimen part
View SamplesThrough H3K27me3 and H3K27ac ChIP-seq and RNA-seq data in wile-tpye (WT) and EED-knockout (CKO) mouse cardiomyocytes, we unexpectedly uncovered a novel mechanism of PRC2-mediated gene repression. EED inactivation in the postnatal heart (EEDCKO) caused progressive, lethal dilated cardiomyopathy, with upregulation of components of the slow-twitch muscle gene program. Surprisingly, upregulation of these genes was not associated with their loss of H3K27me3, but rather with their gain of H3K27 acetylation (H3K27ac), an activating histone mark. Moreover, re-expression of EED in juvenile hearts rescued heart function and normalized H3K27ac, but not H3K27me3. Overall design: RNA-seq in isolated adult cardiomyocytes from 2-month old mice, Wildtype (WT or Het), cardiac conditional EED Knockout (CKO) and CKO injected with AAV9 expressing luciferase, EED or HDAC1/2..
EED orchestration of heart maturation through interaction with HDACs is H3K27me3-independent.
Specimen part, Subject
View SamplesThrough H3K27me3 and H3K27ac ChIP-seq and microarray data in wile-tpye (WT) and EED-knockout (CKO) mouse cardiomyocytes, we unexpectedly uncovered a novel mechanism of PRC2-mediated gene repression. EED inactivation in the postnatal heart (EEDCKO) caused progressive, lethal dilated cardiomyopathy, with upregulation of components of the slow-twitch muscle gene program. Surprisingly, upregulation of these genes was not associated with their loss of H3K27me3, but rather with their gain of H3K27 acetylation (H3K27ac), an activating histone mark. Moreover, re-expression of EED in juvenile hearts rescued heart function and normalized H3K27ac, but not H3K27me3. Overall design: RNA-seq in isolated adult cardiomyocytes from 2-month old mice, Wildtype (WT) cardiac conditional EED Knockout (CKO).
EED orchestration of heart maturation through interaction with HDACs is H3K27me3-independent.
Specimen part, Subject
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