Mucispirillum schaedleri is an abundant inhabitant of the intestinal mucus layer of rodents and other animals. To gain insights into its lifestyle, we analyzed the genome and transcriptome of M. schaedleri ASF 457 and tested for traits predicted by the genome using physiological experiments. Although thought to be a mucus degrader, its genome surprisingly predicts that M. schaedleri has limited capacity for degrading host-derived mucosal glycans or other complex polysaccharides. Rather, it may utilize small compounds such as peptides, amino acids, glycerol, and short chain fatty acids. Additionally, it can reduce nitrate and has systems for scavenging oxygen and reactive oxygen species, which accounts for its presence close to the mucosal tissue and during inflammation. Also of note, M. schaedleri harbors a type VI secretion system (T6SS) and several putative effector proteins containing eukaryotic domains, which suggest intimate interactions with the host and a role in inflammation. Examination of the individual phylogenies of all genes in the M. schaedleri genome revealed extensive horizontal gene transfer, primarily from intestinal Epsilon- and Deltaproteobacteria. Though M. schaedleri utilizes non-horizontally-transferred pathways (e.g. nitrate reduction), horizontally-acquired pathways from gut organisms (e.g. T6SS and glycerol-P utilization) are also likely also important for its survival in the intestine, suggesting that lateral gene transfer may have played a key role in facilitating its establishment in the gut ecosystem.
Lifestyle and Horizontal Gene Transfer-Mediated Evolution of <i>Mucispirillum schaedleri</i>, a Core Member of the Murine Gut Microbiota.
Sex, Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Host microbiota constantly control maturation and function of microglia in the CNS.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesAs tissue macrophages of the central nervous system (CNS), microglia are critically involved in diseases of the CNS. However, it remains unknown what controls their maturation and activation under homeostatic conditions. Here we reveal significant contributions of the host microbiota to microglia homeostasis as germ-free (GF) mice displayed global defects in microglia with altered cell proportions and an immature phenotype leading to impaired innate immune responses. Temporal eradication of host microbiota severely changed microglia properties. Limited microbiota complexity also resulted in defective microglia. In contrast, recolonization with a complex microbiota partially restored microglia features. We determined that short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), microbiota-derived bacterial fermentation products, regulate microglia homeostasis. Accordingly, mice deficient for the SCFA receptor FFAR2 mirrored microglia defects found under GF conditions. These findings reveal that host bacteria vitally regulate microglia maturation and function, whereas microglia impairment can be restored to some extent by complex microbiota.
Host microbiota constantly control maturation and function of microglia in the CNS.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesAs tissue macrophages of the central nervous system (CNS), microglia are critically involved in diseases of the CNS. However, it remains unknown what controls their maturation and activation under homeostatic conditions. Here we reveal significant contributions of the host microbiota to microglia homeostasis as germ-free (GF) mice displayed global defects in microglia with altered cell proportions and an immature phenotype leading to impaired innate immune responses. Temporal eradication of host microbiota severely changed microglia properties. Limited microbiota complexity also resulted in defective microglia. In contrast, recolonization with a complex microbiota partially restored microglia features. We determined that short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), microbiota-derived bacterial fermentation products, regulate microglia homeostasis. Accordingly, mice deficient for the SCFA receptor FFAR2 mirrored microglia defects found under GF conditions. These findings reveal that host bacteria vitally regulate microglia maturation and function, whereas microglia impairment can be restored to some extent by complex microbiota.
Host microbiota constantly control maturation and function of microglia in the CNS.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesIschemic tolerance can be induced by numerous preconditioning stimuli, including various Toll-like receptor (TLR) ligands. We have shown previously that systemic administration of the TLR4 ligand, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or the TLR9 ligand, unmethylated CpG ODNs prior to transient brain ischemia in mice confers substantial protection against ischemic damage. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms of preconditioning, we compared brain and blood genomic profiles in response to preconditioning with these TLR ligands and to preconditioning via exposure to brief ischemia.
Multiple preconditioning paradigms converge on interferon regulatory factor-dependent signaling to promote tolerance to ischemic brain injury.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesWe used microarrays to detail the global program of gene expression during early hESC differentiation to mesendoderm using FBS, with and without RUNX1 depletion.
Transient RUNX1 Expression during Early Mesendodermal Differentiation of hESCs Promotes Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition through TGFB2 Signaling.
Specimen part, Cell line
View SamplesThe signaling molecule retinoic acid (RA) regulates rod and cone photoreceptor fate, differentiation, and survival. The purpose of this study was to identify eye-specific genes controlled by RA during photoreceptor differentiation in the zebrafish.
Retinoic Acid Signaling Regulates Differential Expression of the Tandemly-Duplicated Long Wavelength-Sensitive Cone Opsin Genes in Zebrafish.
Specimen part
View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Anti-diabetic rosiglitazone remodels the adipocyte transcriptome by redistributing transcription to PPARγ-driven enhancers.
Cell line, Treatment, Time
View SamplesRosiglitazone (rosi) is a powerful insulin sensitizer, but serious toxicities have curtailed its widespread clinical use. Rosi functions as a high-affinity ligand for PPARg, the adipocyte-predominant nuclear receptor (NR). The classic model, involving binding of ligand to the NR on DNA, explains positive regulation of gene expression, but ligand-dependent repression is not well understood. We have now addressed this issue by studying the direct effects of rosiglitazone on gene transcription, using global run-on sequencing (GRO-seq). Rosi-induced changes in gene body transcription were pronounced after 10 minutes and correlated with steady-state mRNA levels as well as with transcription at nearby enhancers (eRNAs). Upregulated eRNAs occurred almost exclusively at PPARg binding sites, to which rosi treatment recruited the coactivator MED1. By contrast, transcriptional repression by rosi involved a loss of MED1 from eRNA sites devoid of PPARg and enriched for other TFs including AP-1 factors and C/EBPs. Thus, rosi activates and represses transcription by fundamentally different mechanisms that could inform the future development of antidiabetic drugs.
Anti-diabetic rosiglitazone remodels the adipocyte transcriptome by redistributing transcription to PPARγ-driven enhancers.
Cell line, Treatment, Time
View SamplesThe onset and progression of breast cancer are linked to genetic and epigenetic changes that alter the normal programming of cells. Epigenetic modifications of DNA and histones contribute to chromatin structure that results in the activation or repression of gene expression. Several epigenetic pathways have been shown to be highly deregulated in cancer cells. Targeting specific histone modifications represents a viable strategy to prevent oncogenic transformation, tumor growth or metastasis. Methylation of histone H3 lysine 4 has been extensively studied and shown to mark genes for expression; however this residue can also be acetylated and the specific function of this alteration is less well known. To define the relative roles of histone H3 methylation (H3K4me3) and acetylation (H3K4ac) in breast cancer, we determined genomic regions enriched for both marks in normal-like (MCF10A), transformed (MCF7) and metastatic (MDA-MB-231) cells using a genome-wide ChIP-Seq approach. Our data revealed a genome-wide gain of H3K4ac associated with both early and late breast cancer cell phenotypes, while gain of H3K4me3 was predominantly associated with late stage cancer cells. Enrichment of H3K4ac was overrepresented at promoters of genes associated with cancer-related phenotypic traits, such as estrogen response and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition pathways. Our findings highlight an important role for H3K4ac in predicting epigenetic changes associated with early stages of transformation. In addition, our data provide a valuable resource for understanding epigenetic signatures that correlate with known breast cancer-associated oncogenic pathways. Overall design: RNA-Seq of cell lines MCF10A, MCF7 and MDA-MB-231.
Histone H3 lysine 4 acetylation and methylation dynamics define breast cancer subtypes.
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