Magnaporthe oryzae causes rice blast, the most devastating foliar fungal disease of cultivated rice. During disease development the fungus simultaneously maintains both biotrophic and necrotrophic growth corresponding to a hemi-biotrophic life style. The ability of M. oryzae to also colonize roots and subsequently develop blast symptoms on aerial tissue has been recognized. The fungal root infection strategy and the respective host responses are currently unknown. Global temporal expression analysis suggested a purely biotrophic infection process reflected by the rapid induction of defense response-associated genes at the early stage of root invasion and subsequent repression coinciding with the onset of intracellular fungal growth. The same group of down-regulated defense genes was increasingly induced upon leaf infection by M. oryzae where symptom development occurs shortly post tissue penetration. Our molecular analysis therefore demonstrates the existence of fundamentally different tissue-specific fungal infection strategies and provides the basis for enhancing our understanding of the pathogen life style.
Tissue-adapted invasion strategies of the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae.
Specimen part
View SamplesMaintenance of CG methylation (mCG) patterns is essential for chromatin-mediated epigenetic regulation of transcription in plants and mammals. Using successive generations of an Arabidopsis thaliana mutant deficient in maintaining mCG, we found that mCG loss triggered genome-wide activation of alternative epigenetic mechanisms. However, these mechanisms involving RNA-directed DNA methylation, inhibiting expression of DNA demethylases, and retargeting of histone H3K9 methylation act in a stochastic and uncoordinated fashion. As a result, new and aberrant epigenetic patterns were progressively formed over several plant generations in the absence of mCG. Interestingly, the unconventional redistribution of epigenetic marks was necessary to rescue the loss of mCG, since mutant plants impaired in rescue activities were severely dwarfed and sterile. Our results provide evidence that mCG is a central coordinator of epigenetic memory that secures stable transgenerational inheritance in plants.
Transgenerational stability of the Arabidopsis epigenome is coordinated by CG methylation.
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View SamplesEmbryonic stem cells (ESCs) cells run a self-renewal gene expression program, requiring the expression of certain transcription factors accompanied by a particular chromosome organization to maintain a balance between pluripotency and the capacity for rapid differentiation. However, how transcriptional regulation is linked to chromosome organization in ESCs remains enigmatic. Here we show that Cohesin exhibits a functional role in maintaining ESC identity through association with the pluripotency transcriptional network. ChIP-seq analyses of the cohesin subunit Rad21 reveal an ESC specific cohesin binding pattern that is characterized by a CTCF independent colocalization of cohesin with pluripotency related transcription factors. Upon ESC differentiation, these binding sites disappear and instead new CTCF independent Rad21 binding sites emerge, which are enriched for binding sites of transcription factors implicated in early differentiation. Furthermore, knock-down of cohesin subunits causes expression changes that are reminiscent of the depletion of key pluripotency transcription factors, demonstrating the functional relevance of the cohesin - pluripotency transcriptional network association. Finally, we show that Nanog physically interacts with the cohesin interacting proteins Stag1 and Wapl, further substantiating this association. Based on these findings we propose that a dynamic placement of cohesin by pluripotency transcription factors contributes to a chromosome organization supporting the ESC expression program.
RAD21 cooperates with pluripotency transcription factors in the maintenance of embryonic stem cell identity.
Specimen part
View SamplesLong non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate diverse biological pathways. Unlike protein coding genes, where methods to comprehensibly study their functional roles in cellular systems are available, techniques to systematically investigate lncRNAs have largely remained unexplored. Here, we report a technology for combined Knockdown and Localization Analysis of Non-coding RNAs (c-KLAN) that merges phenotypic characterization and localization approaches to study lncRNAs. Using a library of endoribonuclease prepared short interfering RNAs (esiRNAs) coupled with a pipeline for synthesizing labeled riboprobes for RNA fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), we demonstrate the utility of c-KLAN by identifying a novel transcript Panct1 (Pluripotency associated non-coding transcript 1) that regulates embryonic stem cell identity. We postulate that c-KLAN should be generally useful in the discovery of lncRNAs implicated in various biological processes.
Combined RNAi and localization for functionally dissecting long noncoding RNAs.
Specimen part
View Samplestranscriptomic analysis in rosette leaves of bru1-2 and WT(Col) plants (24-day-old)
Ectopic gene expression and organogenesis in Arabidopsis mutants missing BRU1 required for genome maintenance.
Age, Specimen part
View SamplesWe combine a genome-scale RNAi screen in mouse epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs) with genetic interaction, protein localization and “protein-level dependency” studies – a systematic technique that uncovers post-transcriptional regulation – to delineate the network of factors that control the expression of Oct4, a key regulator of pluripotency. Our data signify that there are similarities, but also fundamental differences in Oct4 regulation in EpiSCs vs. embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Through multiparametric data analyses we predict that Tox4 is associating with the Paf1C complex, which maintains cell identity in both cell types and validate that this protein-protein interaction exists in ESCs and EpiSCs. We also identify numerous knockdowns that increase Oct4 expression in EpiSCs, indicating that, in stark contrast to ESCs, Oct4 is under active repressive control in EpiSCs. These studies provide a framework for better understanding pluripotency and for dissecting the molecular events that govern the transition from the pre-implantation to the post-implantation state. Overall design: RNA-seq of Tox4 knockdown in mouse EpiSCs
Systems Analyses Reveal Shared and Diverse Attributes of Oct4 Regulation in Pluripotent Cells.
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View SamplesTo monitor global transcript changes after Paf1C depletion we transfected ESCs with esiRNA targeting Ctr9 and control esiRNA (Luc).
A genome-scale RNAi screen for Oct4 modulators defines a role of the Paf1 complex for embryonic stem cell identity.
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View SamplesAim: to perform a genome-wide investigation of chromatin landscape and gene expression patterns downstream of calcium and kinase signaling in Jurkat T cells. Methods: PMA and ionomycin were used to activate the calcium and kinase signalling networks involved in T cell activation. Global gene expression was measured using RNA-seq, whilst ATAC-seq was used to probe chromatin landscape following 3 hours of stimulation with PMA, ionomycin or both. All experiments were performed in triplicate. For RNA-seq all sequencing was performed using paired-end sequencing on an Illumina HiSeq2500 instrument. For ATAC-seq sequencing was performed using a HiSeq 1500. Results: we mapped approximately 60 million reads per sample for ATAC-seq, and 22 million reads per library for RNA-seq. Overall we identified 57,825 transcripts and 19,763 ATAC-seq peaks. We identifiead 1648 genes whose expression was increased by 2-fold or more by at least one treatment in comparison to untreated cells. Similarly, we identified 3972 ATAC peaks that were induced by at least 2-fold by treatment in comparison to untreated cells. Conclusions: we found that chromatin landscape was associated with gene expression downstream of calcium and kinase signaling in Jurkat cells. Further to this we found that activation of the full complement of TCR-responsive genes is dependent upon both PMA and ionomycin, and amounts to more than just the sum of both. Overall design: RNA-sequencing and ATAC-sequencing were performed after 3 hours of treatment with either PMA, ionomycin or co-treatment with PMA and ionomycin.
Integration of Kinase and Calcium Signaling at the Level of Chromatin Underlies Inducible Gene Activation in T Cells.
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View SamplesmRNA expression data were collected from patients with brain tumor to improve diagnostic of gliomas on molecular level.
Neuronal and glioma-derived stem cell factor induces angiogenesis within the brain.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesThe Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR)/ligand system is centrally involved in multiple homeostatic functions of the epithelia. Epithelial cells are the primary targets of humanized antibodies and small molecule inhibitors against this system, whereby the constellation of skin-specific side effects of these drugs stems from a profound disturbance of keratinocyte biology. So far, the molecular mechanisms underlying these toxic events have been investigated only broadly. Here we show that keratinocyte response to anti-EGFR drugs comprises the development of a type 1 interferon (IFN) molecular signature including enhanced expression of IFN-kappa. Mechanistically, nuclear accumulation of IRF1 precedes this signature as well as the enhanced expression of a chemokine cluster we previously identified as a relevant pro-inflammatory component of EGFR inhibition. In fact, either silencing of IRF1 transcript expression, or antibody-mediated blockade of type 1 IFN receptor function and consequent abrogation of STAT1 activation, leads to impairment of this gene transcription profile. High levels of IRF1 and IFN-kappa can be clearly observed in the early skin lesions of patients treated with cetuximab. Type 1 IFN signaling could be crucially implicated in the triggering of the inflammatory mechanisms active in the skin of patients under treatment with anti-EGFR drugs.
Epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors trigger a type I interferon response in human skin.
Specimen part, Cell line
View Samples