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Sequence analysis of the ribosomal DNA intergenic spacer 1 regions of Trichosporon species.

We determined the sequence of the intergenic spacer (IGS) 1 region, which is located between the 26S and 5S rRNA genes, in 25 species of the genus TRICHOSPORON: IGS 1 sequences varied in length from 195 to 719 bp. Comparative sequence analysis suggested that the divergence of IGS 1 sequences has been greater than that of the internal transcribed spacer regions. We also identified five genotypes of T. asahii, which is a major causative agent of deep-seated trichosporonosis, based on the IGS 1 sequences of 43 strains. Most of the isolates that originated in Japan were of genotype 1, whereas the American isolates were of genotype 3 or 5. Our results suggest that analysis of IGS regions provides a powerful method to distinguish between phylogenetically closely related species and that a geographic substructure may exist among T. asahii clinical isolates.

Animals↗

The Cucurbita maxima ribosomal DNA intergenic spacer has a complex structure.

The nucleotide (nt) sequence of the 5508-nt intergenic spacer (IGS), between the 25S- and the 18S-coding regions of Cucurbita maxima rDNA, was determined. The fragment sequenced is 6142 nt long and includes 472 nt of 25S- and 162 nt of 18S-coding regions. The IGS has a complex primary structure, composed of five repetitive families (A-E) and three unique domains. It is dominated by the presence of nine, tandemly-repeating units of approximately 250 nt (repeat D), each unit containing four copies of an internal subrepeat (repeat E). The repetitive units show sequence variability consisting of nt changes, insertions and deletions. Upstream of the nine D repeats and between two copies of the B repeat is a 575-nt region, highly G + C rich (83%) and heavily biased toward C (58%) in the sense strand. Within this region are six repetitive units, averaging 42 nt (repeat C) each, containing but a single A nt. Downstream from the terminus of the 25S-coding sequence, are two tandem copies of the 103-nt A repeat. The IGS of C. maxima is longer and more complex than that of other plant IGSs described to date. The 600 nt at the 5' portion of cucurbit IGS is more conserved in evolution than the remainder, as revealed by comparison of C. maxima and C. pepo IGS restriction maps and by nucleotide sequence comparison of C. maxima and Cucumis sativa IGSs.

Base Sequence↗

Intragenomic length variation of the ribosomal DNA intergenic spacer in a malaria vector, Anopheles sinensis.

We determined the complete sequences of six size variants of intergenic spacer (IGS) region from one individual of the malaria vector mosquito species, Anopheles sinensis. All six size variants observed in this study show almost the same basic primary structure in which three repeat regions (A, B, and C) are interspersed by highly conserved nonrepeating sections. In contrast to the well-ordered subrepeating patterns found in A and C, the repeat region B displays extremely variable and complicated profiles in the number and arrangement of subrepeat units among different size classes. It is apparent that the prominent level of length difference in the repeat regions B and C is responsible for the intragenomic length variations of the IGS molecule observed in the present study. High level of sequence homology and regularly arranged repeating pattern of 11 to 14 bp motif sequences harbored within the B repeat region allow us to consider that these motif sequences may be associated with their potential role as a recombination site. Compared to those previously published in other mosquito species, the IGS of A. sinensis showed a very unique structural format in subrepeat patterns of the IGS region. This result suggests that the structure and sequence profiles of the IGS region would provide useful information for the exploitation of a convenient molecular marker to identify morphologically complicated species complex and to characterize the genetic variation of population. This suggestion is far from being conclusive at present, but a further genetic study will bring more compelling evidences for this pending issue.

Animals↗

Expression of mouse histone genes: transcription into 3' intergenic DNA and cryptic processing sites downstream from the 3' end of the H3 gene.

Introduction of the mouse histone H3.1 gene into tk- mouse L cells by cotransfection with the herpesvirus thymidine kinase gene resulted in the production of two mRNAs from the transfected gene, one with a normal 3' end and the other one with a longer 3'-untranslated region, ending at site X, which was poly(A)+. In contrast, the endogenous histone H3.1 gene only produced a single mRNA. The cryptic poly(A)+ site was only used when the histone H3.1 gene was transfected. To localize possible downstream cryptic processing sites, the hairpin loop at the end of the histone gene was deleted and the resulting deletions were introduced into L cells. Two major mRNAs were produced from this gene, one ending at site X and the major one ending at site Y, which was located 150 nucleotides before site X. Transcription extended downstream of site X efficiently in the endogenous gene, as judged by the extent of transcription of downstream sequences in isolated nuclei. Transcription extended downstream of site X in the transfected gene because the placement of a normal histone 3' end downstream of site X resulted in transcripts that ended at site X and longer transcripts that ended with the new histone 3' end. These results indicate that transcription may normally proceed a substantial distance past the hairpin loop (greater than 500 bases). The formation of the different 3' ends in these transfected genes was due to competition between different processing mechanisms.

Animals↗

Population diversity of Staphylococcus intermedius isolates from various host species: typing by 16S-23S intergenic ribosomal DNA spacer polymorphism analysis.

Twelve 16S-23S ribosomal DNA intergenic spacer (ITS-PCR) types were identified among 57 Staphylococcus intermedius isolates from humans and other animals. Six ITS-PCR types were host specific, and most human and canine strains belonged to the same types (A and J). Pigeon, horse, and mink strains appeared more heterogeneous.

Animals↗

Evolution of the genome and the genetic code: selection at the dinucleotide level by methylation and polyribonucleotide cleavage.

Noting the scarcity of CpG dinucleotide in total genomic DNA derived from higher organisms and the scarcity of TpA dinucleotide in total genomic DNA derived from most life forms, we examined the distribution of these dinucleotides in sequences derived from functionally distinct types of human DNA, including mitochondrial DNA, intergenic DNA, intron DNA, and DNA destined to be represented in the cytoplasm as mRNA, tRNA, or rRNA. While CpG frequency has fallen to its lowest levels in DNA that is transcriptionally silent, TpA is most stringently excluded in DNA destined to be expressed as mRNA in the cytosol. This observation suggests that the selective pressures leading to the removal of CpG and TpA operate at different levels. With respect to TpA, dinucleotide scarcity may reflect a requirement for mRNA stability and may indicate the action of UpA-selective ribonucleases. We propose that, by reason of its instability, UpA must have been very rare in primordial RNA. Therefore, tRNA with the anticodon for this dinucleotide may have failed to evolve, making UpA the primordial doublet "stop" codon. The modern triplet code has faithfully conserved this arrangement in the two universal stop codons, UAA and UAG.

Base Sequence↗

Distinctive sequence features in protein coding genic non-coding, and intergenic human DNA.

We have studied the behavior of a number of sequence statistics, mostly indicative of protein coding function, in a large set of human clone sequences randomly selected in the course of genome mapping (randomly selected clone sequences), and compared this with the behavior in known sequences containing genes (which we term genic sequences). As expected, given the higher coding density of the genic sequences, the sequence statistics studied behave in a substantially different manner in the randomly selected clone sequences (mostly intergenic DNA) and in the genic sequences. Strong differences in behavior of a number of such statistics are also observed, however when the randomly selected clone sequences are compared with only the non-coding fraction of the genic sequences, suggesting that intergenic and genic non-coding DNA constitute two different classes of non-coding DNA. By studying the behavior of the sequence statistics in simulated DNA of different C+G content, we have observed that a number of them are strongly dependent on C+G content. Thus, most differences between intergenic and genic non-coding DNA can be explained by differences in C+G content. A+T-rich intergenic DNA appears to be at the compositional equilibrium expected under random mutation, while C+G richer non-coding genic DNA is far from this equilibrium. The results obtained in simulated DNA indicate, on the other hand, that a very large fraction of the variation in the coding statistics that underlie gene identification algorithms is due simply to C+G content, and is not directly related to protein coding function. It appears, thus, that the performance of gene-finding algorithms should be improved by carefully distinguishing the effects of protein coding function from those of mere base compositional variation on such coding statistics.

Algorithms↗

Histone H2A.Z regulats transcription and is partially redundant with nucleosome remodeling complexes.

Nucleosomes impose a block to transcription that can be overcome in vivo by remodeling complexes such as SNF/SWI and histone modification complexes such as SAGA. Mutations in the major core histones relieve transcriptional repression and bypass the requirement for SNF/SWI and SAGA. We have found that the variant histone H2A.Z regulates gene transcription, and deletion of the gene encoding H2A.Z strongly increases the requirement for SNF/SWI and SAGA. This synthetic genetic interaction is seen at the level of single genes and acts downstream of promoter nucleosome reorganization. H2A.Z is preferentially crosslinked in vivo to intergenic DNA at the PH05 and GAL1 loci, and this association changes with transcriptional activation. These results describe a novel pathway for regulating transcription using variant histones to modulate chromatin structure.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗

Characterization of the Gyrodactylus salaris Malmberg, 1957 (Platyhelminthes: Monogenea) ribosomal intergenic spacer (IGS) DNA.

The intergenic spacer of the ribosomal RNA gene array from the monogenean Gyrodactylus salaris was isolated using PCR amplification. PCR products were cloned and sequenced. Three different fragments of 0.63, 1.0 and 2.62 kb, were consistently obtained. These showed homology at the 5' and 3' termini but differed in their overall size and intervening sequence. The 5' end showed homology to various 28S ribosomal RNA gene sequences, suggesting that this represented the 3' terminus of the G. salaris 28S ribosomal RNA gene. A number of features common to other eukaryotic intergenic spacers were found in the longest sequence, including A + T rich sequences, palindromic sequences and tandemly repeated elements. Two regions of 23 bp sequences arranged in non-identical tandem repeats were identified. There were 9 repeats in both regions, separated by 81 bp of non-repetitive sequence. The repeat units from the two regions shared some similarity at their 3' ends. The G. salaris intergenic spacer sequence was examined for sequence motifs involved in the transcription of the ribosomal RNA genes in other species. Several regions with homology to transcription start sites were identified.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Complete sequence of the 45-kb mouse ribosomal DNA repeat: analysis of the intergenic spacer.

DNA from a single bacterial artificial chromosome clone was used to sequence the mouse ribosomal DNA intergenic spacer from the 3' end of the 45S pre-RNA to the spacer promoter (Accession No. AF441733). This made possible the assembly of a complete mouse ribosomal DNA repeat unit (45309 bp long, TPA Accession No. BK000964). Analysis of the intergenic spacer (IGS) showed a high density of simple sequence repeats and transposable elements. The IGS contains two long sequence blocks, which are repeated tandemly. Some of the sequences in these blocks are also present in other parts of the IGS. A difference in the mutation rate along the mouse IGS was observed. The significance of sequence motifs in the IGS for transcription enhancement, transcription termination, origin of replication, and nucleolar organization is discussed.

Animals↗

Evolution of the noncoding regions in Drosophila mitochondrial DNA: two intergenic regions.

The sequences of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) segment containing the two intergenic regions were determined for six species belonging to the Drosophila immigrans species group and compared to the corresponding segments of Drosophila species which had been studied previously. We found remarkable differences in the evolutionary rates of the two intergenic regions. The Intergenic I region, which lies between the tRNA(gln) and the tRNA(ile) genes, was found to be highly conserved in terms of both size (30 ntp) and nucleotide sequence among the species studied. In contrast, the sequences of the Intergenic II region, which lies between the tRNA(f-met) and the tRNA(ile) genes, showed considerable variation. The size of the Intergenic II region ranged from 0 to 88 ntp, and accurate alignment was possible only among sequences from geographical strains or very closely related species in the nasuta species subgroup. The observed differences in conservation of the two mtDNA intergenic regions are discussed in light of functional constraints on mtDNA sequences.

Animals↗

Comprehensive analysis of blood coagulation pathways in teleostei: evolution of coagulation factor genes and identification of zebrafish factor VIIi.

It is not clear how the complex mammalian coagulation pathways evolved from an entirely dissimilar invertebrate coagulation cascade. Comprehensive analysis of pro-coagulant factors and their regulators is lacking in early vertebrates to discern the mechanism of evolution of these genes from the invertebrates. To elucidate the coagulation pathways found in early vertebrates, zebrafish cDNAs/gene orthologues for major coagulant, anticoagulant, and fibrinolytic proteins were identified and characterized by homology to mammalian sequences. We found that zebrafish carry all hemostatic genes present in mammals, providing evidence that the coagulation system of teleosts is nearly identical to mammals. Zebrafish factor VII and X genes were identified and analyzed to reveal a novel factor VII-like gene flanked by the factor VII and factor X genes. This gene encodes a protein homologous to factor VII, but lacks critical residues for factor VII activity. Expression of the factor VII-like protein (named factor VIIi) demonstrated that it functions as an inhibitor of blood coagulation in biochemical assays using zebrafish or human plasmas. Analysis of intergenic DNA between the zebrafish VII/VIIi/X gene cluster and a Drosophila trypsin gene cluster revealed significant homology, and based upon these data, we propose a model for a rapid evolution of coagulation factors from the invertebrates.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Selective constraint in intergenic regions of human and mouse genomes.

We aligned and analyzed 100 pairs of complete, orthologous intergenic regions from the human and mouse genomes (average length approximately 12 000 nucleotides). The alignments alternate between highly similar segments and dissimilar segments, indicating a wide variation of selective constraint. The average number of selectively constrained nucleotides within a mammalian intergenic region is at least 2000. This is threefold higher than within a nematode intergenic region and at least twofold higher than the number of selectively constrained nucleotides coding for an average protein. Because mammals possess only two- to threefold more proteins than Caenorhabditis elegans, the higher complexity of mammals might be primarily because of the functioning of intergenic DNA.

Animals↗

An analysis on gene architecture in human and mouse genomes.

A comparative genome analysis on exon-intron distribution profiles is performed for human and mouse genomes to deduce similarities and differences between them. Interestingly, both in human and mouse genomes, the total length in introns and intergenic DNA on each chromosome is significantly correlated to the chromosome size. The results presented provide a framework for understanding the nature and patterns of exon-intron length distributions, the constraints on them and their role in genome design and evolution.

Animals↗

Tn916 transposition in Haemophilus influenzae Rd: preferential insertion into noncoding DNA.

The availability of completely sequenced genomes has created an opportunity for high throughput mutational studies. Using the conjugative transposon Tn916, a pilot project was initiated to determine the efficiency of gene disruption in the first completely sequenced bacterium, Haemophilus influenzae Rd strain KW20. DNA was isolated from Tn916-mutagenized cells, and the point of transposon insertion was determined by inverse PCR, DNA sequencing, and mapping to the wild-type genome sequence. Analysis of the insertion sites at the nucleotide level demonstrated a biased pattern of insertion into regions rich in stretches of A's and T's. Although Tn916 integrated at multiple dispersed positions throughout the chromosome, 9 of 10 insertion events occurred in noncoding, intergenic DNA. It was determined that the intergenic DNA was over 5% more A + T-rich than that of protein coding sequences. This suggests that A + T-rich sequences similar to the Tn916 insertion site would be more likely to reside in the intergenic DNA. In an effort to identify other likely sites for transposon integration, a hidden Markov model of the consensus target insertion site was derived from the Tn916-H. influenzae junction fragments and searched against the entire genome. Eighty percent of the 30 highest-scoring predicted Tn916 target sites were from intergenic, nonprotein-coding regions of the genome. These data support the hypothesis that Tn916 has a marked preference for insertion into noncoding DNA for H. influenzae, suggesting that this mobile element has evolved to minimize disruption of host cell function on integration.

Base Sequence↗

Redox properties of the PutA protein from Escherichia coli and the influence of the flavin redox state on PutA-DNA interactions.

The PutA flavoprotein from Escherichia coli is both a transcriptional repressor and a membrane-associated proline dehydrogenase. PutA represses transcription of the putA and putP genes by binding to the control region DNA of the put regulon (put intergenic DNA). Previous work has shown that FAD has a role in regulating the transcriptional repressor and membrane binding functions of the PutA protein. To test the influence of the FAD redox state on PutA--DNA interactions, we characterized the redox properties of the PutA flavoprotein from E. coli. At pH 7.5, an E(m)(E--FAD/E--FADH(2)) of --0.076 V for the two-electron reduction of PutA-bound FAD was determined by potentiometric titrations. Stabilization of semiquinone species was not observed during potentiometric measurements. Dithionite reduction of PutA, however, caused formation of red anionic semiquinone. The E(m) value for the proline/Delta(1)-pyrroline-5-carboxylate couple was determined to be --0.123 V, demonstrating the reduction of PutA by proline is favored by a potential difference (Delta E degrees ') of more than 0.045 V. Characterization of the PutA redox properties in the presence of put intergenic DNA revealed an E(m)(E(DNA)--FAD/E(DNA)--FADH(2)) of --0.086 V. The 10 mV negative shift in E(m) corresponds to just a 2.3-fold increase in the dissociation constant of PutA with the DNA upon reduction of FAD. Thus, it appears the FAD redox state has little influence on the overall PutA--DNA interactions.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Upstream sequences modulate in vitro transcription from Drosophila yolk protein genes I and II.

A Drosophila transcription system was employed to study transcription in vitro from templates carrying yolk polypeptide I and II (YPI, YPII) promoter regions. The transcription start sites of YPI and YPII genes are linked by 1225 base pairs of intergenic DNA and the genes are transcribed in divergent directions. Transcription was studied in vitro from templates carrying YPI or YPII promoter regions separately. We have successively deleted intergenic DNA upstream of the YPI or the YPII transcription start site and have assayed the dependence of transcription efficiency an template concentration. The results indicate that in vitro YPI and YPII transcript synthesis is controlled by separate cis-acting DNA sequence elements, which are located between 86 and 159 base pairs upstream of the YPI transcription start site and between 161 and 341 base pairs upstream of the YPII transcription start site. These elements stimulate in vitro transcription up to fivefold. Transcription was also studied with templates which contained both YP promoters. The transcription data indicate that the intergenic DNA contains additional DNA motif(s), which apparently modulate in vitro transcription coordinately from both YP promoters in an orientation-dependent manner.

Animals↗

Comprehensive analysis of amino acid and nucleotide composition in eukaryotic genomes, comparing genes and pseudogenes.

Based on searches for disabled homologs to known proteins, we have identified a large population of pseudogenes in four sequenced eukaryotic genomes-the worm, yeast, fly and human (chromosomes 21 and 22 only). Each of our nearly 2500 pseudogenes is characterized by one or more disablements mid-domain, such as premature stops and frameshifts. Here, we perform a comprehensive survey of the amino acid and nucleotide composition of these pseudogenes in comparison to that of functional genes and intergenic DNA. We show that pseudogenes invariably have an amino acid composition intermediate between genes and translated intergenic DNA. Although the degree of intermediacy varies among the four organisms, in all cases, it is most evident for amino acid types that differ most in occurrence between genes and intergenic regions. The same intermediacy also applies to codon frequencies, especially in the worm and human. Moreover, the intermediate composition of pseudogenes applies even though the composition of the genes in the four organisms is markedly different, showing a strong correlation with the overall A/T content of the genomic sequence. Pseudogenes can be divided into 'ancient' and 'modern' subsets, based on the level of sequence identity with their closest matching homolog (within the same genome). Modern pseudogenes usually have a much closer sequence composition to genes than ancient pseudogenes. Collectively, our results indicate that the composition of pseudogenes that are under no selective constraints progressively drifts from that of coding DNA towards non-coding DNA. Therefore, we propose that the degree to which pseudogenes approach a random sequence composition may be useful in dating different sets of pseudogenes, as well as to assess the rate at which intergenic DNA accumulates mutations. Our compositional analyses with the interactive viewer are available over the web at http://genecensus.org/pseudogene.

Amino Acid Sequence↗