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Replacement of the Bacillus subtilis subtilisin structural gene with an In vitro-derived deletion mutation.

The entire subtilisin structural gene from Bacillus subtilis I168 has been cloned, and its nucleotide sequence has been determined. When expressed on a high-copy-number shuttle vector, a fivefold increase in serine protease activity was observed. The DNA sequence of the gene is 80% homologous to the Bacillus amyloliquefaciens subtilisin structural gene, and the translated mature coding sequence is 85% homologous to the published protein sequence of subtilisin BPN'. The chloramphenicol resistance determinant of a plasmid integrated at the subtilisin locus was mapped by PBS1 transduction and was found to be linked to glyB (83%) and argC (60%), but not with metC or purB . The chromosomal locus containing the wild-type subtilisin allele was replaced with an in vitro-derived allele of the gene (delta apr-684) that contained a 684-base-pair deletion. The technique used for introducing the deletion is a variation of the gene replacement methods used in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Escherichia coli. When used in B. subtilis, deletion mutants could be directly screened among the transformants. Physiological characterization of the delta apr-684 mutation revealed no discernable effect on the formation of heat-resistant endospores, but strains carrying the mutation produced only 10% of wild-type serine protease activity. A model is presented that outlines the pathway for plasmid integration and deletion formation in B. subtilis.

Bacillus subtilis↗

Analysis of the stabilizing effect of Rom on the genetic network controlling ColE1 plasmid replication.

A stochastic model of ColE1 plasmid replication is presented. It is implemented by using UltraSAN, a simulation tool based on an extension of stochastic Petri nets (SPNs). It allows an exploration of the variation in plasmid number per bacterium, which is not possible using a deterministic model. In particular, the rate at which plasmid-free bacteria arise during bacterial division is explored in some detail since spontaneous plasmid loss is a widely observed empirical phenomenon. The rate of spontaneous plasmid loss provides an evolutionary explanation for the maintainance of Rom protein. The presence of Rom acts to reduce variance in plasmid copy number, thereby reducing the rate of plasmid loss at bacterial division. The ability of stochastic models to link biochemical function with evolutionary considerations is discussed.

Cell Division↗

Distribution of insertion sequence ISRm1 in Rhizobium meliloti and other gram-negative bacteria.

An internal 0.9 kb segment of Rhizobium meliloti insertion sequence ISRm1 was used as a probe to determine the distribution of ISRm1 in strains of R. meliloti and other Gram-negative bacteria. The insertion sequence was detected in 80% (12/15) of R. meliloti strains from different parts of the world. Its copy number ranged from one to at least eleven. The ISRm1 copies detected showed variation in their internal restriction sites and their degree of homology to the probe. ISRm1 was found in a variety of genomic restriction fragments, and was detected in plasmids, including the nod and exo megaplasmids of R. meliloti. Other rhizobia found to contain ISRm1 were a strain of R. leguminosarum biovar phaseoli and two Rhizobium isolates capable of nodulating both Medicago sativa and Phaseolus vulgaris. It was also found in a diazotrophic soil bacterium isolated from the roots of wetland rice.

DNA Transposable Elements↗

Mammalian ultraconserved elements are strongly depleted among segmental duplications and copy number variants.

An earlier search in the human, mouse and rat genomes for sequences that are 100% conserved in orthologous segments and > or = 200 bp in length identified 481 distinct sequences. These human-mouse-rat sequences, which represent ultraconserved elements (UCEs), are believed to be important for functions involving DNA binding, RNA processing and the regulation of transcription and development. In vivo and additional computational studies of UCEs and other highly conserved sequences are consistent with these functional associations, with some observations indicating enhancer-like activity for these elements. Here, we show that UCEs are significantly depleted among segmental duplications and copy number variants. Notably, of the UCEs that are found in segmental duplications or copy number variants, the majority overlap exons, indicating, along with other findings presented, that UCEs overlapping exons represent a distinct subset.

Animals↗

Retrotransposon characterisation and fingerprinting of apple clones by S-SAP markers.

Retrotransposons have been found to comprise the most common class of transposable elements in eukaryotes and to occur in high copy number in plant genomes. Several of these elements have been sequenced and were found to display a high degree of heterogeneity and insertional polymorphism, both within and between species. The dispersion, ubiquity and prevalence of retrotransposons in plant genomes provide an excellent basis for the development of marker systems and, hence, may be good molecular candidates in distinguishing among apple clones, when they represent bud mutations of the original variety, considering that the random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and simple sequence repeat (SSR) used thus far in fingerprinting analyses have failed to meet discrimination expectations. The technique called sequence-specific amplified polymorphism (S-SAP), which makes it possible to identify dominant markers for the detection of variation in the DNA flanking the retrotransposon insertion site, was used in the present study to distinguish several clones of the cultivars 'Gala' and 'Braeburn' in apple fingerprinting. Moreover, our results suggest that the bud mutations, which have generated new patented varieties of 'Gala' and 'Braeburn', appear to derive from retrotransposon insertion.

Alleles↗

Characterization and comparison of microsatellites derived from repeat-enriched libraries and expressed sequence tags.

The construction of high-density linkage maps for use in identifying loci underlying important traits requires the development of large numbers of polymorphic genetic markers spanning the entire genome at regularly spaced intervals. As part of our efforts to develop markers for rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), we performed a comparison of allelic variation between microsatellite markers developed from expressed sequence tag (EST) data and anonymous markers identified from repeat-enriched libraries constructed from genomic DNA. A subset of 70 markers (37 from EST databases and 33 from repeat enriched libraries) was characterized with respect to polymorphism information content (PIC), number of alleles, repeat number, locus duplication within the genome and ability to amplify in other salmonid species. Higher PIC was detected in dinucleotide microsatellites derived from ESTs than anonymous markers (72.7% vs. 54.0%). In contrast, dinucleotide repeat numbers were higher for anonymous microsatellites than for EST derived microsatellites (27.4 vs.18.1). A higher rate of cross-species amplification was observed for EST microsatellites. Approximately half of each marker type was duplicated within the genome. Unlike single-copy markers, amplification of duplicated microsatellites in other salmonids was not correlated to phylogenetic distance. Genomic microsatellites proved more useful than EST derived microsatellites in discriminating among the salmonids. In total, 428 microsatellite markers were developed in this study for mapping and population genetic studies in rainbow trout.

Alleles↗

Typing of Candida glabrata in clinical isolates by comparative sequence analysis of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 2 gene distinguishes two clusters of strains associated with geographical sequence polymorphisms.

We tested whether comparative sequence analysis of the mitochondrion-encoded cytochrome c oxidase subunit 2 gene (COX2) could be used to distinguish intraspecific variants of Candida glabrata. Mitochondrial genes are suitable for investigation of close phylogenetic relationships because they evolve much faster than nuclear genes, which in general exhibit very limited intraspecific variation. For this survey we used 11 clinical isolates of C. glabrata from three different geographical locations in Brazil, 10 isolates from one location in the United States, 1 American Type Culture Collection strain as an internal control, and the published sequence of strain CBS 138. The complete coding region of COX2 was amplified from total cellular DNA, and both strands were sequenced twice for each strain. These sequences were aligned with published sequences from other fungi, and the numbers of substitutions and phylogenetic relationships were determined. Typing of these strains was done by using 17 substitutions, with 8 being nonsynonymous and 9 being synonymous. Also, cDNAs made from purified mitochondrial polyadenylated RNA were sequenced to confirm that our sequences correspond to the expressed copies and not nuclear pseudogenes and that a frameshift mutation exists in the 3' end of the coding region (position 673) relative to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae sequence and the previously published C. glabrata sequence. We estimated the average evolutionary rate of COX2 to be 11.4% sequence divergence/10(8) years and that phylogenetic relationships of yeasts based on these sequences are consistent with rRNA sequence data. Our analysis of COX2 sequences enables typing of C. glabrata strains based on 13 haplotypes and suggests that positions 51 and 519 indicate a geographical polymorphism that discriminates strains isolated in the United States and strains isolated in Brazil. This provides for the first time a means of typing of Candida strains that cause infections by use of direct sequence comparisons and the associated divergence estimates.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Nuclear DNA sequences detect species limits in ancient moa.

Ancient DNA studies have typically used multi-copy mitochondrial DNA sequences. This is largely because single-locus nuclear genes have been difficult to recover from sub-fossil material, restricting the scope of ancient DNA research. Here, we have isolated single-locus nuclear DNA markers to assign the sex of 115 extinct moa and, in combination with a mitochondrial DNA phylogeny, tested competing hypotheses about the specific status of moa taxa. Moa were large ratite birds that showed extreme size variation both within and among species. For some taxa, this large variation was hypothesized to represent sexual dimorphism, while for others it was argued to reflect the existence of different species. Our results show that moa were characterized by extreme reverse sexual dimorphism and as a result we have been able to clarify the number of moa species. For example, we show that the three recognized 'species' of Dinornis comprised only two monophyletic groups and that two of these 'species' comprised individuals of one sex only. This study also illustrates that single-locus nuclear DNA sequences can be consistently recovered from ancient material.

Animals↗

Problematic variation in local institutional review of a multicenter genetic epidemiology study.

CONTEXT: Sequencing of the human genome provides an immense resource for studies correlating DNA variation and epidemiology. However, appropriately powered genetic epidemiology studies often require recruitment from multiple sites. OBJECTIVES: To document the burden imposed by review of multicenter studies and to determine the variability among local institutional review boards (IRBs) in the approval of a multicenter genetic epidemiology study. DESIGN: A PubMed search was performed to determine the frequency of citations of multicenter studies by 5-year intervals from 1974 through 2002. A 7-question survey was sent to all participating study centers to obtain information on frequency of IRB meetings, dates for submission and approval, use/nonuse of a specific consent form, type of review performed, types of consent forms required, preparation time, and number of changes requested by the IRB at each center. Centers also provided a copy of all consent forms they generated and IRB correspondence regarding the study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-one of 42 cystic fibrosis care centers in this single US multicenter genetic epidemiology study of cystic fibrosis replied, yielding a 74% response rate. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Frequency of published research studies and consistency among IRBs. RESULTS: The number of all published single-center studies has increased 1.3-fold since 1985, while the number of published epidemiology and genetic epidemiology multicenter studies increased by 8- and 9-fold, respectively, during this same period. Evaluation of the risk of the same genetic epidemiology study by 31 IRBs ranged from minimal to high, resulting in 7 expedited reviews (23%) and 24 full reviews (77%). The number of consents required by the IRBs ranged from 1 to 4; 15 IRBs (48%) required 2 or more consents, while 10 (32%) did not require assent for children. The most common concern (52%) of IRBs pertained to the genetic aspects of the study. CONCLUSIONS: Review of a protocol for a multicenter genetic epidemiology study by local IRBs was highly variable. Lack of uniformity in the review process creates uneven human subjects protection and incurs considerable inefficiency. The need for reform, such as the proposed centralized review, is underscored by the ever increasing rate of genetic discoveries facilitated by the Human Genome Project and the unprecedented opportunity to assess the relevance of genetic variation to public health.

Cystic Fibrosis↗

Rapid assessment of single-copy nuclear DNA variation in diverse species.

We investigated the use of PCR primers designed to conserved exons within nuclear DNA to amplify potentially variable regions such as introns or hypervariable exons from a wide range of species. We then explored various approaches to assay population-level variation in these PCR products. Primers designed to amplify regions within the histone H2AF, myoglobin, MHC DQA, and aldolase (ALD) genes gave clean amplifications in diverse mammals (DQA), and in birds, reptiles and mammals (aldolase, H2AF, myoglobin). The sequenced PCR products generally, but not always, confirmed that the correct locus had been amplified. Several primer sets produced smaller size fragments consistent with preferential amplification of intronless pseudogenes; this was confirmed by sequencing seal and reptile H2AF PCR products. Digestion with randomly selected four-base recognizing enzymes detected variation in some cases but not in others. In species/gene combinations with either low (e.g. seal H2AF, ALD-A) or high (e.g. skink ALD-1) nucleotide diversity it was more efficient to sequence a small number of distantly related individuals (e.g. one per geographic population) and from these data to identify informative or potentially informative restriction enzymes for 'targeted' digestion. We conclude that for studies of population-level variation, the optimal approach is to use a battery of primers for initial PCR of both mtDNA and scnDNA loci, select those that give clean amplifications, and sequence one sample from each population to (i) confirm gene identity, (ii) estimate the amount of variation and, (iii) search for diagnostic restriction sites. This will allow determination of the most efficient approach for a large-scale study.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Influence of preassay and sequence variations on viral load determination by a multiplex real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction for feline immunodeficiency virus.

Determination of retroviral load is an important tool in the investigation of the success of therapeutic or vaccination trials in patients infected with lentiviruses such as HIV, or with their simian (SIV) or feline (FIV) counterparts. We have developed an one-tube quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay based on the ABI Prism 7700 Sequence Detection System (TaqMan) to quantify the viral load of FIV-infected cats. Two different primer/probe systems were designed to detect a broad range of clade A FIV isolates. Both systems are characterized by excellent reproducibility, high sensitivity, and a wide range of quantification. As a consequence of this improved precision in the quantitative RT-PCR, preassay variations have greater impact on the accuracy of the viral load estimation. To compensate for these variations, we improved the assay and developed a multiplex real-time RT-PCR, which allows simultaneous calculation of the viral copy number and the individual recovery rate in an one-tube reaction. This enables the rapid and accurate calculation of copy number independent of preassay variations. In further studies, two additional real-time RT-PCR assays were designed and used to investigate the influence of sequence variations in the binding regions for either the primers or probe. Sequence mismatches in this region had a significant effect (up to 4 logarithmic decades) on reaction efficiency. In view of the inherent variability of retroviral sequences, these results underline the necessity to check reaction efficiencies before determining viral load.

Animals↗

Evolution of genome size in Drosophila. is the invader's genome being invaded by transposable elements?

Genome size varies considerably between species, and transposable elements (TEs) are known to play an important role in this variability. However, it is far from clear whether TEs are involved in genome size differences between populations within a given species. We show here that in Drosophila melanogaster and Drosophila simulans the size of the genome varies among populations and is correlated with the TE copy number on the chromosome arms. The TEs embedded within the heterochromatin do not seem to be involved directly in this phenomenon, although they may contribute to differences in genome size. Furthermore, genome size and TE content variations parallel the worldwide colonization of D. melanogaster species. No such relationship exists for the more recently dispersed D. simulans species, which indicates that a quantitative increase in the TEs in local populations and fly migration are sufficient to account for the increase in genome size, with no need for an adaptation hypothesis.

Animals↗

Incongruence in the diploid B-genome species complex of Glycine (Leguminosae) revisited: histone H3-D alleles versus chloroplast haplotypes.

Variation at the single-copy nuclear locus histone H3-D was surveyed in the diploid B-genome group of Glycine subgenus Glycine (Leguminosae: Papilionoideae), which comprises three named Australian species and a number of distinct but as yet not formally recognized taxa. A total of 23 alleles was identified in the 44 accessions surveyed. Only one individual was clearly heterozygous, which is not surprising given the largely autogamous breeding system of subgenus Glycine. Alleles differed by as many as 19 nucleotide substitutions, nearly all in the three introns; length variation was minimal. Phylogenetic analysis identified two shortest allele trees with very little homoplasy, suggesting that recombination has been rare. Both topological and data set incongruence were statistically significant between histone H3-D allele trees and trees inferred from chloroplast DNA haplotypes previously described from these same accessions. Whereas the distribution of H3-D alleles agrees well with morphologically based taxonomic groupings, chloroplast DNA haplotype polymorphisms transgress species boundaries, suggesting that the chloroplast genome is not tracking taxic relationships. Divergences among chloroplast DNA haplotypes involved in such transgressive patterns appear to be more recent than speciation events, suggesting hybridization rather than lineage sorting.

Alleles↗

The Phytophthora sojae genome contains tandem repeat sequences which vary from strain to strain.

The oömycete Phytophthora sojae causes root and stem rot of soybean. In P. sojae, 37 cultivarspecific physiological races have been reported with different reactions against 13 single dominant resistance genes in soybean. Recent genetic studies have demonstrated that the P. sojae-soybean interaction follows Flor's gene-for-gene model. Genomic subtraction was carried out to isolate race-specific DNA sequences possibly including avirulence genes. DNA from a race 1 isolate was subtraction-enriched with the DNAs from race 19 and race 22 isolates. The enriched DNAs were used to differentially screen a P. sojae genomic library. Characterization of the clones obtained identified repetitive sequences with variable copy numbers among isolates. Five of these repetitive sequences were tandemly repeated and were localized on single chromosomes. The sixth corresponded to the ribosomal RNA genes. These observations suggest that gene amplification could contribute to the generation of genetic diversity in P. sojae. Enriched sequences corresponding to avirulence genes were not detected.

Base Sequence↗

A general coverage theory for shotgun DNA sequencing.

The classical theory of shotgun DNA sequencing accounts for neither the placement dependencies that are a fundamental consequence of the forward-reverse sequencing strategy, nor the edge effect that arises for small to moderate-sized genomic targets. These phenomena are relevant to a number of sequencing scenarios, including large-insert BAC and fosmid clones, filtered genomic libraries, and macro-nuclear chromosomes. Here, we report a model that considers these two effects and provides both the expected value of coverage and its variance. Comparison to methyl-filtered maize data shows significant improvement over classical theory. The model is used to analyze coverage performance over a range of small to moderately-sized genomic targets. We find that the read pairing effect and the edge effect interact in a non-trivial fashion. Shorter reads give superior coverage per unit sequence depth relative to longer ones. In principle, end-sequences can be optimized with respect to template insert length; however, optimal performance is unlikely to be realized in most cases because of inherent size variation in any set of targets. Conversely, single-stranded reads exhibit roughly the same coverage attributes as optimized end-reads. Although linking information is lost, single-stranded data should not pose a significant assembly liability if the target represents predominantly low-copy sequence. We also find that random sequencing should be halted at substantially lower redundancies than those now associated with larger projects. Given the enormous amount of data generated per cycle on pyro-sequencing instruments, this observation suggests devising schemes to split each run cycle between twoor more projects. This would prevent over-sequencing and would further leverage the pyrosequencing method.

Computational Biology↗

PCR fingerprinting of Trichophyton mentagrophytes var. interdigitale using polymorphic subrepeat loci in the rDNA nontranscribed spacer.

The sequence of the nontranscribed spacer (NTS) region of the rDNA of Trichophyton mentagrophytes var. interdigitale strain 2111 was determined, and three individual subrepeat loci identified. The first repeat region contained eight tandem copies of a degenerate 33-43 bp sequence, whilst the second had two complete and two partial 300 bp repeats. The third locus contained six tandemly repetitive elements of between 67 and 89 bp, which showed sequence identity to the TrS2 repeats of Trichophyton rubrum. PCR amplification of the individual repetitive regions from 42 random isolates of T. mentagrophytes var. interdigitale identified fragment length polymorphisms at each locus. Sequence analysis of the PCR products revealed that the size variations resulted from differences in the copy number of each of the three sets of subrepeat elements, TmiS0, TmiS1 and TmiS2. In addition, some indels were present in the flanking regions of the TmiS1 repeats. Combining PCR fingerprints from each of the three polymorphic loci produced a total of 19 individual strain profiles. The method was rapid, reproducible and discriminatory, and the fragment patterns simple to interpret. PCR fingerprint analysis of variable tandem repeat loci in the T. mentagrophytes var. interdigitale NTS represents a valuable molecular typing method for future epidemiological investigations in this species.

Belgium↗

BAC microarray analysis of 15q11-q13 rearrangements and the impact of segmental duplications.

Chromosome 15q11-q13 is one of the most variable regions of the human genome, with numerous clinical rearrangements involving a dosage imbalance. Multiple clusters of segmental duplications are found in the pericentromeric region of 15q and at the breakpoints of proximal 15q rearrangements. Using sequence maps and previous global analyses of segmental duplications in the human genome, a targeted microarray was developed to detect a wide range of dosage imbalances in clinical samples. Clones were also chosen to assess the effect of paralogous sequences in the array format. In 19 patients analysed, the array data correlated with microsatellite and FISH characterisation. The data showed a linear response with respect to dosage, ranging from one to six copies of the region. Paralogous sequences in arrayed clones appear to respond to the total genomic copy number, and results with such clones may seem aberrant unless the sequence context of the arrayed sequence is well understood. The array CGH method offers exquisite resolution and sensitivity for detecting large scale dosage imbalances. These results indicate that the duplication composition of BAC substrates may affect the sensitivity for detecting dosage variation. They have important implications for effective microarray design, as well as for the detection of segmental aneusomy within the human population.

Chromosome Aberrations↗

Construction of recombinant RNA templates for use as internal standards in quantitative RT-PCR.

The PCR has proven to be useful in the analysis of gene expression of specific mRNAs. Although PCR is able to detect rare mRNA transcripts following reverse transcription PCR, determining relative or absolute copy number can be difficult due to sample-to-sample variation. The use of a recombinant mRNA internal standard that contains target mRNA primer sequences greatly improves reproducibility of quantitation. Reverse transcription PCR products generated from the internal standard can be distinguished from the product generated from the target gene mRNA because of their size difference. In this report we present a facile and general PCR-based method for synthesis of internal standards that may be used as competitive or co-amplified templates for quantitative reverse transcription PCR.

Animals↗