The rates of obesity and sedentary lifestyle are on a dramatic incline, with associated detrimental health effects among women in particular. Although exercise prescriptions are useful for overcoming these problems, success can be hampered by differential responsiveness among individuals in cardiovascular fitness indices (i.e., improvements in strength, lipids, VO2max). Genetic factors appear to play an important role in determining this inter-individual variation in responsiveness. We performed microarray analyses on mRNA in whole blood from 60 sedentary women from a multi-ethnic cohort who underwent 12 weeks of exercise, to identify gene subsets that were differentially expressed between individuals who experienced the greatest and least improvements in fitness based upon a composite fitness score index. We identified 43 transcripts in 39 unique genes (FDR<10%; FC>1.5) whose expression increased the most in high versus low premenopausal female responders. Several (TIGD7, UQCRH, PSMA6, WDR12, TFB2M, USP15) have reported associations with fitness-related phenotypes. Bioinformatic analysis of the 39 genes identified 4 miRNAs whose expression has been linked to cardiovascular diseases (ANKRD22: miR-637, LRRFIP1: miR-132, PRKAR2B: miR-92a, RSAD2:miR-192). These 39 genes were enriched in 6 biological pathways, including the oxidative phosphorylation pathway (p=8.08 x 10-3). Two genes, LRRFIP1 and SNORD30, were also identified with lower expression in high responding postmenopausal women. In summary, we identified gene signatures based on mRNA analysis that define responsiveness to exercise in a largely minority-based female cohort. Importantly, this study validates several genes/pathways previously associated with exercise responsiveness and extends these findings with additional novel genes.
Genomic signatures of a global fitness index in a multi-ethnic cohort of women.
Sex, Race, Time
View SamplesOne of our new major finding among the genes that contributes to MS susceptibility is ICSBP1. The so called disease modifying therapies like interferon-beta (IFN-), possibly acting on the peripheral T-cells, reduce the disease activity and the clinical progression, with a MRI-detectable effect in preventing lesion burden and cerebral atrophy development in RR-MS. It suggests a critical role of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) immune response and modulation in developing inflammation in the brain. We tested the hypothesis that the genetic effect of the susceptible allele ICSBP1 can impact the gene expression profile of molecules belonging to the interferon pathway. We therefore interrogated the PBMC for changes in gene expression profile. We correlate those changes with the minor allele frequency for ICSBP1, performing independent quantitative trait analysis for each treatment category. Expression Quantitative Trait Loci Association with a p value < 0.05 have been used in follow up analysis. The regression coefficient of the Quantitative trait association represents the degree of correlation between the gene expression for each interrogated target gene and the minor allele frequency of the SNP for our gene of interest. This coefficient has been used as input in the subsequent Gene Set Enrichment Analysis performed in a pre-ranked approach. The resulting GSEA-SNP method rests on the assumption that SNPs underlying a disease phenotype might affect genes constituting a signaling pathway or genes with a common regulation. Therefore, GSEA-SNP can facilitate the identification of pathways or of underlying biological mechanisms.
Meta-analysis of genome scans and replication identify CD6, IRF8 and TNFRSF1A as new multiple sclerosis susceptibility loci.
Specimen part
View SamplesAssociation of juvenile spondyloarthritis (jSpA) with the HLA-B27 genotype is well established, but there is little knowledge of other genetic factors with a role in disease development. The aim of the present study was to identify and confirm gene signatures and novel biomarkers in various cohorts of untreated and treated patients diagnosed with jSpA and other forms of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).
Aberrant expression of shared master-key genes contributes to the immunopathogenesis in patients with juvenile spondyloarthritis.
Sex, Specimen part, Disease
View SamplesThe association between hyper-inflammatory states and numerous diseases is widely recognized, but our understanding of the molecular strategies that have evolved to prevent uncontrolled activation of inflammatory responses remains incomplete. Here, we report a critical, non-transcriptional role of GPS2 as a guardian against hyperstimulation of TNFA-induced gene program. GPS2 cytoplasmic actions are required to specifically modulate RIP1 ubiquitylation and JNK activation by inhibiting TRAF2/Ubc13 enzymatic activity. In vivo relevance of GPS2 anti-inflammatory role is confirmed by inhibition of TNFA target genes in macrophages and by improved insulin signaling in the adipose tissue of aP2-GPS2 transgenic mice. As the non-transcriptional role is complemented by GPS2 functioning as positive and negative cofactor for nuclear receptors, in vivo overexpression also results in elevated circulating level of resistin and development of hepatic steatosis. Together, these studies define GPS2 as a molecular guardian required for precise control of inflammatory responses involved in immunity and homeostasis. Overall design: RNA-sequencing of polyA selected RNA molecules in 293T cells and ChIP-seq of GPS2, TBL1, and NCOR.
A protective strategy against hyperinflammatory responses requiring the nontranscriptional actions of GPS2.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesProtein synthesis belongs to the most energy consuming processes in the cell. Lowering oxygen tension below normal (hypoxia) causes a rapid inhibition of global mRNA translation due to the decreased availability of energy. Interestingly, subsets of mRNAs pursue active translation under such circumstances. In human fibrosarcoma cells (HT1080) exposed to prolonged hypoxia (36 h, 1% oxygen) we observed that transcripts are either increasingly or decreasingly associated with ribosomes localized at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). In a global setting it turned out that only 31% of transcripts showing elevated total-RNA levels were also increasingly present at the ER in hypoxia. These genes, regulated by its expression as well as its ER-localization, belong to the gene ontologys hypoxia response, glycolysis and HIF-1 transcription factor network supporting the view of active mRNA translation at the ER during hypoxia. Interestingly, a large group of RNAs was found to be unchanged at the expression level, but translocate to the ER in hypoxia. Among these are transcripts encoding translation factors and >180 ncRNAs. In summary, we provide evidence that protein synthesis is favoured at the ER and, thus, partitioning of the transcriptome between cytoplasmic and ER associated ribosomes mediates adaptation of gene expression in hypoxia.
Hypoxia-induced gene expression results from selective mRNA partitioning to the endoplasmic reticulum.
Specimen part, Cell line
View SamplesBackground. Cellular senescence is a mechanism that virtually irreversibly suppresses the proliferative capacity of cells in response to various stress signals. This includes the expression of activated oncogenes, which cause Oncogene-Induced Senescence (OIS). A body of evidence points to the involvement of chromatin reorganization, including the formation of senescence-associated heterochromatic foci (SAHF). The nuclear lamina (NL) is an important contributor to genome organization and has been involved in cellular senescence and organismal aging. It interacts with multiple regions of the genome called lamina-associated domains (LADs). Some LADs are cell type-specific, while others are conserved between cell types and are referred to as constitutive LADs. Here, we used DamID to investigate the changes in genome-NL interactions in a model of OIS triggered by the expression of the BRAFV600E oncogene.Results. We found that OIS cells lose most of their constitutive LADs (cLADS), suggesting the loss of a specific mechanism that targets cLADs to the NL. In addition, multiple genes relocated to the NL. Unexpectedly, they were not repressed, implying the abrogation of the repressive activity of the NL during OIS. Finally, OIS cells displayed an increased association of telomeres with the NL.Conclusions. Our study reveals that senescent cells acquire a new type of LAD organization and suggest the existence of as yet unknown mechanisms that tether cLADs to the NL and repress gene expression at the NL.
Massive reshaping of genome-nuclear lamina interactions during oncogene-induced senescence.
Specimen part, Cell line, Subject, Time
View SamplesDietary polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are suggested to modulate immune function, but the effects of dietary fatty acids composition on gene expression patterns in immune organs have not been fully characterized. In the current study we investigated how dietary fatty acids composition affects the total transcriptome profile, and especially, immune related genes, in bone marrow cells (BMC) and spleen (SPL). Four tissues with metabolic function, skeletal muscle (SKM), white adipose tissue (WAT), brown adipose tissue (BAT), and liver (LIV), were investigated as a comparison. Following 8 weeks on low fat diet (LFD), high fat diet (HFD) rich in saturated fatty acids (HFD-S), or HFD rich in PUFA (HFD-P), tissue transcriptomics were analyzed by microarray and metabolic health assessed by fasting blood glucose level, HOMA-IR index, oral glucose tolerance test as well as quantification of crown-like structures in WAT. Interestingly, SKM and BMC were relatively inert to the diets, whereas the two adipose tissues (WAT and BAT) were mainly affected by HFD per se (both HFD-S and HFD-P). In particular, WAT gene expression was driven closer to that of the immune organs SPL and BMC by HFDs. Remarkably, the spleen, showed a major response to HFD-P, but not to HFD-S, whereas the LIV exhibited different responses to both of the HFDs. Further, HFD-P corrected the metabolic phenotype induced by HFD-S. Hence, the quantity and composition of dietary fatty acids affected the transcriptome in a distinct manner. Especially, PUFA prompted a specific regulation of immune related genes in the spleen. Thus, PUFA can regulate immune function by influencing gene expression.
Six Tissue Transcriptomics Reveals Specific Immune Suppression in Spleen by Dietary Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids.
Sex, Specimen part
View SamplesNon-proteolytic ubiquitin signaling mediated by K63 ubiquitin chains plays a critical role in multiple pathways converging on NFKB activation that are key to the development and activation of immune cells. However, a complete understanding of how the regulation of ubiquitin signaling affects immune cells development and functionality is still missing. G Protein Suppressor 2 (GPS2) is a multi-functional protein that recently emerged as an important regulator of inflammation and lipid metabolism through inhibition of Ubc13 activity. Here, we have deleted GPS2 in the B cell lineage results and performed RNAseq of WT and KO splenic B cells. Overall design: RNA-seq of WT and_KO of GPS2 in Bcells.
Inhibition of Ubc13-mediated Ubiquitination by GPS2 Regulates Multiple Stages of B Cell Development.
Specimen part, Subject
View SamplesWe used microarray analysis to investigate if keratinocytes excert an immuno-inflammatory response towards streptococcal M1 protein.
Vigilant keratinocytes trigger pathogen-associated molecular pattern signaling in response to streptococcal M1 protein.
Specimen part, Cell line
View SamplesWe used the flu mutant of Arabidopsis and a transgenic line that overexpresses the thylakoid-bound ascorbate peroxidase (tAPX) to address the interactions between different reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling pathways. The conditional flu mutant of Arabidopsis accumulates excess protochlorophyllide in the dark within chloroplast membranes that upon illumination acts as a photosensitizer and generates singlet oxygen (1O2). Immediately after the release of singlet oxygen rapid changes in nuclear gene expression occur. Distinct sets of genes were activated that were different from those induced by other reactive oxygen species, superoxide or hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), suggesting that different types of active oxygen species activate distinct signaling pathways. It was not known whether the pathways operate separately or interact with each other. We have addressed this problem by modulating noninvasively the level of H2O2 in plastids by means of a transgenic line that overexpresses the thylakoid-bound ascorbate peroxidase (tAPX, line 14/2 PMID: 15165186). In the flu mutant overexpressing tAPX, the expression of most of the nuclear genes that were rapidly activated after the release of 1O2 was significantly higher in flu plants overexpressing tAPX, whereas in wild-type plants, overexpression of tAPX had only a very minor impact on nuclear gene expression. The results suggest that H2O2 antagonizes the 1O2-mediated signaling of stress responses as seen in the flu mutant. This cross-talk between H2O2- and 1O2-dependent signaling pathways might contribute to the overall stability and robustness of wild-type plants exposed to adverse environmental stress conditions.
Cross-talk between singlet oxygen- and hydrogen peroxide-dependent signaling of stress responses in Arabidopsis thaliana.
No sample metadata fields
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