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Pretranslational regulation of type 2 deiodinase.

Type 2 deiodinase (D2) is a highly potent selenoenzyme that catalyzes the first step of thyroid hormone action and its expression is under close, multilevel control. D2 expression is tissue specific and can be regulated by transcriptional and posttranscriptional mechanisms. There is now compelling evidence that D2 is critically important in triiodothyronine (T3) homeostasis as well as in several biologic processes in which thyroid hormone is involved. A host of factors are known to influence dio2 mRNA including the transcription factors that regulate the dio2 gene in different cell types. In particular, cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and two homeodomain- containing proteins are relevant for its defined and highly dynamic expression pattern. Single nucleotide polymorphisms of the dio2 gene and other pre-translational events such as alternative splicing can potentially modulate D2 expression and ultimately T(3) generation. Given the wealth of data accumulated over the past two decades, we have attempted in this review to provide a comprehensive update on the pretranslational regulation of D2.

Alternative Splicing↗

Evidence for archaic Asian ancestry on the human X chromosome.

The human RRM2P4 pseudogene has a pattern of nucleotide polymorphism that is unlike any locus published to date. A gene tree constructed from a 2.4-kb fragment of the RRM2P4 locus sequenced in a sample of 41 worldwide humans clearly roots in East Asia and has a most-recent common ancestor approximately 2 Myr before present. The presence of this basal lineage exclusively in Asia results in higher nucleotide diversity among non-Africans than among Africans. A global survey of a single-nucleotide polymorphism that is diagnostic for the basal, Asian lineage in 570 individuals shows that it occurs at frequencies up to 53% in south China, whereas only one of 177 surveyed Africans carries this archaic lineage. We suggest that this ancient lineage is a remnant of introgressive hybridization between expanding anatomically modern humans emerging from Africa and archaic populations in Eurasia.

Africa↗

Mechanisms of genetic exchange within the chromosomal inversions of Drosophila pseudoobscura.

We have used the inversion system of Drosophila pseudoobscura to investigate how genetic flux occurs among the gene arrangements. The patterns of nucleotide polymorphism at seven loci were used to infer gene conversion events between pairs of different gene arrangements. We estimate that the average gene conversion tract length is 205 bp and that the average conversion rate is 3.4 x 10(-6), which is 2 orders of magnitude greater than the mutation rate. We did not detect gene conversion events between all combinations of gene arrangements even though there was sufficient nucleotide variation for detection and sufficient opportunity for exchanges to occur. Genetic flux across the inverted chromosome resulted in higher levels of differentiation within 0.1 Mb of inversion breakpoints, but a slightly lower level of differentiation in central inverted regions. No gene conversion events were detected within 17 kb of an inversion breakpoint suggesting that the formation of double-strand breaks is reduced near rearrangement breakpoints in heterozygotes. At least one case where selection rather than proximity to an inversion breakpoint is responsible for reduction in polymorphism was identified.

Animals↗

Patterns of nucleotide diversity in wild and cultivated sunflower.

Interest in the level and organization of nucleotide diversity in domesticated plant lineages has recently been motivated by the potential for using association-based mapping techniques as a means for identifying the genes underlying complex traits. To date, however, such data have been available only for a relatively small number of well-characterized plant taxa. Here we provide the first detailed description of patterns of nucleotide polymorphism in wild and cultivated sunflower (Helianthus annuus), using sequence data from nine nuclear genes. The results of this study indicate that wild sunflower harbors at least as much nucleotide diversity as has been reported in other wild plant taxa, with randomly selected sequence pairs being expected to differ at 1 of every 70 bp. In contrast, cultivated sunflower has retained only 40-50% of the diversity present in the wild. Consistent with this dramatic reduction in polymorphism, a phylogenetic analysis of our data revealed that the cultivars form a monophyletic clade, adding to the growing body of evidence that sunflower is the product of a single domestication. Eight of the nine loci surveyed appeared to be evolving primarily under purifying selection, while the remaining locus may have been the subject of positive selection. Linkage disequilibrium (LD) decayed very rapidly in the self-incompatible wild sunflower, with the expected LD falling to negligible levels within 200 bp. The cultivars, on the other hand, exhibited somewhat higher levels of LD, with nonrandom associations persisting up to approximately 1100 bp. Taken together, these results suggest that association-based approaches will provide a high degree of resolution for the mapping of functional variation in sunflower.

Base Pairing↗

Single-nucleotide polymorphism g.1548G > A (E469K) in human ICAM-1 gene affects mRNA splicing pattern and TPA-induced apoptosis.

The single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) g.1548G > A (E469K) in the human intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) gene has been suggested to have an association with several types of inflammatory diseases. The polymorphism is located at the three-base position upstream of the splice donor site that produces an alternatively spliced short isoform (ICAM-1-S). To clarify its functional relevance, we studied RNA splicing patterns by comparing cells with different genotype (G/G cells and A/A cells). G/G cells expressed a lower amount of ICAM-1-S mRNA than A/A cells. Since ICAM-1-S has no transmembrane or intracellular domain, ICAM-1 signal transduction and cell-cell contact including Fas-FasL interaction may be influenced. In addition, we studied the effect of this change on FLIP-L mRNA and apoptosis. FLIP-L mRNA tended to decrease, while cell death induced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate was increased. These results suggest that the g.1548 polymorphism modifies inflammatory immune responses by changing cell-cell interaction and then regulating apoptosis.

Apoptosis↗

Larger genetic differences within africans than between Africans and Eurasians.

The worldwide pattern of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) variation is of great interest to human geneticists, population geneticists, and evolutionists, but remains incompletely understood. We studied the pattern in noncoding regions, because they are less affected by natural selection than are coding regions. Thus, it can reflect better the history of human evolution and can serve as a baseline for understanding the maintenance of SNPs in human populations. We sequenced 50 noncoding DNA segments each approximately 500 bp long in 10 Africans, 10 Europeans, and 10 Asians. An analysis of the data suggests that the sampling scheme is adequate for our purpose. The average nucleotide diversity (pi) for the 50 segments is only 0.061% +/- 0.010% among Asians and 0.064% +/- 0.011% among Europeans but almost twice as high (0.115% +/- 0.016%) among Africans. The African diversity estimate is even higher than that between Africans and Eurasians (0.096% +/- 0.012%). From available data for noncoding autosomal regions (total length = 47,038 bp) and X-linked regions (47,421 bp), we estimated the pi-values for autosomal regions to be 0.105, 0.070, 0.069, and 0.097% for Africans, Asians, Europeans, and between Africans and Eurasians, and the corresponding values for X-linked regions to be 0.088, 0.042, 0.053, and 0.082%. Thus, Africans differ from one another slightly more than from Eurasians, and the genetic diversity in Eurasians is largely a subset of that in Africans, supporting the out of Africa model of human evolution. Clearly, one must specify the geographic origins of the individuals sampled when studying pi or SNP density.

Africa↗

A new cancer genome anatomy project web resource for the community.

The National Cancer Institute's Cancer Genome Anatomy Project (CGAP) is developing publicly accessible information, technology, and material resources that provide a platform for the interface of cancer research and genomics. CGAP's efforts have focused toward (1) building and annotating catalogues of genes expressed during cancer development, (2) identifying polymorphisms in those genes, and (3) developing resources for the molecular characterization of cancer-related chromosomal aberrations. To date, CGAP has produced more than 1,000,000 expressed sequence tags, approximately 3,300,000 serial analysis of gene expression tags, and identified more than 10,000 human gene-based single-nucleotide polymorphisms. To enhance access to these datasets by the research community, a new Cancer Genome Project web site (http://cgap.nci.nih.gov/) is being introduced. The web site includes genomic data for humans and mice, including transcript sequence, gene expression patterns, single-nucleotide polymorphisms, clone resources, and cytogenetic information. Descriptions of the methods and reagents used in deriving the CGAP datasets are also provided. An extensive suite of informatics tools facilitates queries and analysis of the CGAP data by the community. One of the newest features of the CGAP web site is an electronic version of the Mitelman Database of Chromosome Aberrations in Cancer.

Chromosome Aberrations↗

Complexities in ETS-domain transcription factor function and regulation: lessons from the TCF (ternary complex factor) subfamily. The Colworth Medal Lecture.

The ETS-domain transcription factor family can be divided into a series of subfamilies. Elk-1 represents the founding member of the ternary complex factor (TCF) subfamily. By focusing on the TCF subfamily, we can demonstrate the complexities that exist in the function and regulation of ETS-domain transcription factors. This article focuses on Elk-1 in detail and summarizes the functions of other TCFs. The key themes covered include the domain structure of the TCFs, the mechanisms of complex formation with serum response factor, regulation of TCFs by mitogen-activated protein kinase cascades, and transcriptional regulatory properties of the TCFs. Finally, the emerging role of the TCFs in vivo is discussed. A picture is developing indicating that, while these proteins exhibit significant sequence and functional conservation, key differences in their structure and regulation are being identified which may relate to unique functions of these proteins in vivo.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Neighboring-nucleotide effects on single nucleotide polymorphisms: a study of 2.6 million polymorphisms across the human genome.

We investigated substitution patterns and neighboring-nucleotide effects for 2,576,903 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) publicly available through the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). The proportions of substitutions were A/G, 32.77%; C/T, 32.81%; A/C, 8.98%; G/T, 9.06%; A/T, 7.46%; and C/G, 8.92%. The two nucleotides immediately neighboring the variable site showed major deviation from genome-wide and chromosome-specific expectations, although lesser biases extended as far as 200 bp. On the 5' side, the biases for A, C, G, and T were 1.43%, 4.91%, -1.70%, and -4.62%, respectively. These biases were -4.44%, -1.59%, 5.05%, and 0.99%, respectively, on the 3' side. The neighboring-nucleotide patterns for transitions were dominated by the hypermutability effects of CpG dinucleotides. Transitions were more common than transversions, and the probability of a transversion increased with increasing A + T content at the two adjacent sites. Neighboring-nucleotide biases were not consistent among chromosomes, with Chromosomes 19 and 22 standing out as different from the others. These data provide genome-wide information about the effects of neighboring nucleotides on mutational and evolutionary processes giving rise to contemporary patterns of nucleotide occurrence surrounding SNPs.

Base Composition↗

N-acetyltransferase (NAT) 2 acetylator status and age of onset in patients with hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC).

N-acetyltransferase (NAT) 2 is an essential polymorphic enzyme involved in the metabolism of various xenobiotics, including potential carcinogens. The individual differences in the NAT2 metabolic capacity are caused by allelic variants of the NAT2 gene which are determined by a pattern of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) resulting in slow (SA), intermediate (IA) or rapid acetylator (RA) phenotypes. Highly penetrant germline mutations in mismatch repair (MMR) genes are the cause of the disease in hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC). There is no strict correlation between the type of germline mutation in MMR genes and the HNPCC phenotype, but age of tumor onset (AO) in HNPCC has been associated at least in part with different variants in apoptosis-related genes. To clarify the potential modifying role of the NAT2 acetylator status in HNPCC, we performed a multicenter study in 226 individuals with colorectal cancer carrying exclusively pathogenic germline mutations in MSH2 or MLH1. We did not observe any significant difference in the NAT2 acetylator status frequency between HNPCC patients and 107 healthy controls (P=0.156), and between MLH1 and MSH2 mutation carriers (P=0.198). Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that male patients had a significantly increased risk to develop CRC compared to females during any interval (P=0.043), while the NAT2 acetylator status (P=0.447) and the mutated gene (MLH1 or MSH2) (P=0.236) were not risk factors for AO. The median AO in HNPCC patients was 39 years in patients with RA as well as with SA status (P=0.347). In MLH1 mutation carriers, the median AO was 38 years in RA and 36 years in SA status patients (P=0.901), whereas in MSH2 mutation carriers, the median AO was 39 years in RA and 42 years in SA status patients (P=0.163). Log-rank test revealed a significantly lower age of CRC onset in male compared to female HNPCC patients (P=0.0442). These data do not support the hypothesis that the NAT2 acetylatorship acts as a modifying factor on AO in HNPCC-associated CRC.

Acetylation↗

Haplotype parsing: methods for extracting information from human genetic variations.

While the shared consensus genetic sequence of our species contains a great deal of information about our common biology, there is also much to be learned from the subtle genetic variations across our species. These variations are believed to be generally of little or no direct functional significance and predominantly reflect the chance accumulation of small genetic changes since our emergence as a species. Therefore, they carry little useful information when observed in a single individual. When tallied across a whole population though, these chance mutations can teach us a great deal about our evolutionary history and the patterns of inheritance in particular individuals. In particular, frequently observed patterns of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in a population can identify segments of chromosome that have been passed down largely intact through long stretches of our evolution. Finding these frequently conserved chromosomal segments, or haplotypes, and developing methods to identify haplotype patterns in particular individuals, will in turn help us to identify those particular segments that carry genetic factors influencing risk for many common human diseases. To make the best use of this data, we will need to develop new models for the encoding of information in genome variations--the "language of genetic variation"--and new algorithms for fitting datasets to those models. This article surveys past work by the author and colleagues on this problem, utilising computational methods for locating frequent patterns in haploid sequence data, and "parsing" sequences so as to optimally explain them given the knowledge of the general population structure. The author's recent work in this area has been compiled into a set of computational tools available at http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/~russells/software/hapmotif.html.

Algorithms↗

Comparative ITS and AFLP analysis of diploid Cardamine (Brassicaceae) taxa from closely related polyploid complexes.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Diploid representatives from the related polyploid complexes of Cardamine amara, C. pratensis and C. raphanifolia (Brassicaceae), were studied to elucidate phylogenetic relationships among the complexes and among the individual taxa included. METHODS: Two independent molecular data sets were used: nucleotide sequences from the internal transcribed spacers (ITS) of nrDNA, and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers. Seventeen diploid taxa from the studied groups were sampled. KEY RESULTS: Both ITS and AFLP analyses provided congruent results in inferred relationships, and revealed two main lineages. While the C. amara group, consisting of C. wiedemanniana and four subspecies of C. amara, was resolved as a well-supported monophyletic group, taxa from the C. pratensis and C. tenera groups (the latter representing diploid taxa of the complex of C. raphanifolia) all appeared together in a single clade/cluster with no support for the recognition of either of the groups. Intra-individual polymorphisms and patterns of nucleotide variation in the ITS region in C. uliginosa and C. tenera, together with the distribution of AFLP bands, indicate ancient hybridization and introgression among these Caucasian diploids. CONCLUSIONS: The lack of supported hierarchical structure suggests that extensive reticulate evolution between these groups, even at the diploid level, has occurred (although an alternative explanation, namely ancestral polymorphism in ITS data, cannot be completely excluded). Several implications for the investigation of the polyploid complexes of concern are drawn. When tracing origins of polyploid taxa, a much more complex scenario should be expected, taking into account all relatives as potential parents, irrespective of the group in which they are classified.

Base Sequence↗

Association between patterns of nucleotide variation across the three fibrinogen genes and plasma fibrinogen levels: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study.

BACKGROUND: Previous genotype-phenotype association studies of fibrinogen have been limited by incomplete knowledge of genomic sequence variation within and between major ethnic groups in FGB, FGA, and FGG. METHODS: We characterized the linkage disequilibrium patterns and haplotype structure across the human fibrinogen gene locus in European- and African-American populations. We analyzed the association between common polymorphisms in the fibrinogen genes and circulating levels of both 'functional' fibrinogen (measured by the Clauss clotting rate method) and total fibrinogen (measured by immunonephelometry) in a large, multi-center, bi-racial cohort of young US adults. RESULTS: A common haplotype tagged by the A minor allele of the well-studied FGB-455 G/A promoter polymorphism (FGB 1437) was confirmed to be strongly associated with increased plasma fibrinogen levels. Two non-coding variants specific to African-American chromosomes, FGA 3845 A and FGG 5729 G, were each associated with lower plasma fibrinogen levels. In European-Americans, a common haplotype tagged by FGA Thr312Ala and several other variant alleles across the fibrinogen gene locus was strongly associated with decreased fibrinogen levels as measured by functional assay, but not by immunoassay. Overall, common polymorphisms within the three fibrinogen genes explain < 2% of the variability in plasma fibrinogen concentration. CONCLUSIONS: In young adults, fibrinogen multi-locus genotypes are associated with plasma fibrinogen levels. The specific single nucleotide polymorphism and haplotype patterns for these associations differ according to population and also according to phenotypic assay. It is likely that a substantial proportion of the heritable component of plasma fibrinogen concentration is due to genetic variation outside the three fibrinogen genes.

Adolescent↗

Molecular evolution of two linked genes, Est-6 and Sod, in Drosophila melanogaster.

We have obtained 15 sequences of Est-6 from a natural population of Drosophila melanogaster to test whether linkage disequilibrium exists between Est-6 and the closely linked Sod, and whether natural selection may be involved. An early experiment with allozymes had shown linkage disequilibrium between these two loci, while none was detected between other gene pairs. The Sod sequences for the same 15 haplotypes were obtained previously. The two genes exhibit similar levels of nucleotide polymorphism, but the patterns are different. In Est-6, there are nine amino acid replacement polymorphisms, one of which accounts for the S-F allozyme polymorphism. In Sod, there is only one replacement polymorphism, which corresponds to the S-F allozyme polymorphism. The transversion/transition ratio is more than five times larger in Sod than in Est-6. At the nucleotide level, the S and F alleles of Est-6 make up two allele families that are quite different from each other, while there is relatively little variation within each of them. There are also two families of alleles in Sod, one consisting of a subset of F alleles, and the other consisting of another subset of F alleles, designed F(A), plus all the S alleles. The Sod F(A) and S alleles are completely or nearly identical in nucleotide sequence, except for the replacement mutation that accounts for the allozyme difference. The two allele families have independent evolutionary histories in the two genes. There are traces of statistically significant linkage disequilibrium between the two genes that, we suggest, may have arisen as a consequence of selection favoring one particular sequence at each locus.

Animals↗

Sequence variation of the tRNA(Leu) intron as a marker for genetic diversity and specificity of symbiotic cyanobacteria in some lichens.

We examined the genetic diversity of Nostoc symbionts in some lichens by using the tRNA(Leu) (UAA) intron as a genetic marker. The nucleotide sequence was analyzed in the context of the secondary structure of the transcribed intron. Cyanobacterial tRNA(Leu) (UAA) introns were specifically amplified from freshly collected lichen samples without previous DNA extraction. The lichen species used in the present study were Nephroma arcticum, Peltigera aphthosa, P. membranacea, and P. canina. Introns with different sizes around 300 bp were consistently obtained. Multiple clones from single PCRs were screened by using their single-stranded conformational polymorphism pattern, and the nucleotide sequence was determined. No evidence for sample heterogenity was found. This implies that the symbiont in situ is not a diverse community of cyanobionts but, rather, one Nostoc strain. Furthermore, each lichen thallus contained only one intron type, indicating that each thallus is colonized only once or that there is a high degree of specificity. The same cyanobacterial intron sequence was also found in samples of one lichen species from different localities. In a phylogenetic analysis, the cyanobacterial lichen sequences grouped together with the sequences from two free-living Nostoc strains. The size differences in the intron were due to insertions and deletions in highly variable regions. The sequence data were used in discussions concerning specificity and biology of the lichen symbiosis. It is concluded that the tRNA(Leu) (UAA) intron can be of great value when examining cyanobacterial diversity.

Base Sequence↗

[A case of Tinea capitis caused by Trichophyton tonsurans].

A 10-year-old Peruvian girl, living in Japan since 1996, visited our hospital in August 2000 complaining of alopecia which had been present on her scalp for one year. The bald areas appeared as multiple small, scattered, angular patches with indistinct margins. Follicular pustules, erythemic nodules and lymphadenopathy were also seen. In the culture of the affected hair, a tan surface with wiry undulations grew on Sabouraud's media. The colony reverse had reddish-brown central pigmentation. Slide cultured fungi produced great numbers of round and short club-shaped microconidia, hyphae and intercalary chlamydospores. These fungi showed the following characteristics: positive urease test, no pigment production on cornmeal agar and positive thiamine dependency. The restriction fragment length polymorphism pattern and the nucleotide sequences of ribosomal-DNA internal transcribed spacer region of the causative fungus was compatible with Trichophyton tonsurans. Daily administration of 125 mg of terbinafine resulted in a satisfactory response and the lesion healed almost completely.

Administration, Oral↗

Nucleotide variation of the duplicated amylase genes in Drosophila kikkawai.

We examined levels and patterns of the nucleotide polymorphism of the Amylase genes with a head-to-head duplication in Drosophila kikkawai. The levels of variation in D. kikkawai were comparable to those in Drosophila melanogaster. Tajima's test, Fu and Li's test, HKA test, and MK test did not show significant departure from neutrality. We found an excess of replacement changes in the within-locus class, representing polymorphism in one of the duplicated genes, compared with the between-locus class, representing polymorphism shared between the duplicated genes. Most replacement changes in the within-locus class were singletons. These results suggest that most replacement changes are deleterious. A contrasting evolutionary pattern, involving concerted evolution in the coding regions but differential evolution in the 5'-flanking regions, was observed. However, unlike the duplicated Amy genes of D. melanogaster, the coding regions of the duplicated genes in D. kikkawai tended to diverge. Using Ohta's model of the small multigene family, we found that recombination (interchromosomal equal crossing-over) rate was one order higher than gene conversion (unequal crossing-over) rate, resulting in a considerable but incomplete homogenization of the duplicated coding regions. Linkage disequilibria were found in the intron as well as within and around the regulatory cis-element sequences of one of the duplicated genes (Amy1). The possible causes of these linkage disequilibria were discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Population differences in haplotype structure within a human olfactory receptor gene cluster.

We investigated the population differences in patterns of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for a 400 kb olfactory receptor (OR) gene cluster on human chromosome 17p13.3. Samples were drawn from 35 individuals, of four different ethnogeographical origins: Pygmies, Bedouins, Yemenite Jews and Ashkenazi Jews. Of the 74 SNPs identified, two segregated between pseudogenized and intact ORs, while a third involved a change in a highly conserved motif proposed to mediate ligand-induced signal transduction. Linkage disequilibrium (LD) was computed based on phase inference across the cluster using Clark's haplotype subtraction algorithm. We also calculated LD directly from the genotypes using the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm. Both methods yielded very similar results. Our analyses revealed substantial differences in nucleotide diversity, haplotype distribution and LD patterns among the different human populations. In particular, the two Jewish populations had low haplotype diversity and negligible decay of LD across the entire genomic region. Intriguingly, the three functional SNPs segregated at different frequencies in the different ethnogeographical groups, with the Pygmies having higher frequencies of the intact OR genes. Our data suggests that OR genes may have evolved to create different functional repertoires in distinct human populations.

Chromosomes, Human, Pair 17↗