Epitranscriptomic modifications have recently emerged into the spotlight of researchers due to their vast regulatory effects on gene expression and thereby cellular physiology and pathophysiology. N6,2'-O-dimethyladenosine (m6Am) is one of the most prevalent chemical marks on RNA and is dynamically regulated by writers (PCIF1, METTL4) and erasers (FTO). The presence or absence of m6Am in RNA affects mRNA stability, regulates transcription, and modulates pre-mRNA splicing. Nevertheless, its functions in the heart are poorly known. This review summarizes the current knowledge and gaps about m6Am modification and its regulators in cardiac biology. It also points out technical challenges and lists the currently available techniques to measure m6Am. A better understanding of epitranscriptomic modifications is needed to improve our knowledge of the molecular regulations in the heart which may lead to novel cardioprotective strategies.
Genome methylation profiles define naïve-like (n-CLL), memory-like (m-CLL), and intermediate (i-CLL) subsets of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL). The profiles can be easily determined by the analysis of the five-CpG signature. m-CLL, i-CLL, and n-CLL with the good, intermediate, and poor prognoses, respectively, differ by the somatic hypermutation status of the immunoglobulin heavy chain variable gene (IGHV), a widely used prognostic predictor in CLL. We have previously shown that the expression of WNT5A, encoding a ROR1 ligand, distinguishes patients with the worse outcome within the prognostically favourable IGHV-mutated subgroup. To analyse the mechanisms controlling WNT5A expression, we investigated the methylation status of 54 CpG sites within the WNT5A promoter and its relation to the WNT5A gene expression. In a cohort of 59 CLL patients balanced for combinations of IGHV and WNT5A statuses, we identified three promoter CpG sites whose methylation level correlated with the WNT5A expression within the IGHV-mutated subgroup. Further, we complemented our data with the methylation status of the five-CpG signature. IGHV-mutated/WNT5A-negative and IGHV-mutated/WNT5A-positive cases overlapped with m‐CLL and i‐CLL methylation subgroups, respectively, while most IGHV‐unmutated samples were assigned to n-CLL. Median methylation levels of all the three CpG sites in the WNT5A promoter were lowest in i-CLL. Finally, a detailed analysis of m-CLL and i-CLL showed that undetectable WNT5A expression predicts longer treatment-free survival with higher statistical significance than the classification according to the five-CpG signature. To conclude, a favourable m-CLL subgroup is associated with mutated IGHV and undetectable WNT5A expression due to its promoter methylation.
- MeSH
- chronická lymfatická leukemie * genetika MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- ligandy MeSH
- metylace DNA MeSH
- mutace MeSH
- prognóza MeSH
- promotorové oblasti (genetika) MeSH
- protein Wnt 5a genetika metabolismus MeSH
- těžké řetězce imunoglobulinů genetika metabolismus MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
Recently, an increasing incidence of HPV-induced oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) has been observed. Moreover, locoregionally advanced stages require a combined modal approach, and the prognosis is poor. Therefore, it is essential to find early diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers. DNA methylation changes play a crucial role in the process of carcinogenesis and are often investigated as promising biomarkers in many types of cancer. For analysis of DNA methylation levels of selected tumour suppressor genes in HPV-positive and HPV-negative samples (including primary tumours and corresponding metastases of metastasizing OPSCCs, primary tumours of non-metastasizing OPSCCs, and control samples), methylation-specific MLPA and methylation-specific high-resolution melting analyses were used. A significant difference in methylation between OPSCCs and the control group was observed in WT1, PAX6 (P < 0.01) and CADM1, RARβ (P < 0.05) genes. CADM1 and WT1 hypermethylation was detected mostly in HPV-positive samples; all but one HPV-negative samples were unmethylated. Moreover, hypermethylation of PAX5 gene was observed in metastases compared with control samples and was also associated with shorter overall survival of all patients (P < 0.05). Associations described herein between promoter methylation of selected genes and clinicopathological data could benefit OPSCC patients in the future by improvement in screening, early detection, and prognosis of the disease.
- MeSH
- aktivátorový protein specifický pro B-buňky genetika MeSH
- Alphapapillomavirus * MeSH
- buněčná adhezní molekula 1 genetika metabolismus MeSH
- dlaždicobuněčné karcinomy hlavy a krku genetika MeSH
- DNA metabolismus MeSH
- infekce papilomavirem * komplikace MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- metylace DNA MeSH
- nádory hlavy a krku * genetika MeSH
- nádory orofaryngu * patologie MeSH
- Papillomaviridae MeSH
- prognóza MeSH
- proteiny WT1 genetika metabolismus MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
In the clinical management of paediatric solid tumours, histological examination of tumour tissue obtained by a biopsy remains the gold standard to establish a conclusive pathological diagnosis. The DNA methylation pattern of a tumour is known to correlate with the histopathological diagnosis across cancer types and is showing promise in the diagnostic workup of tumour samples. This methylation pattern can be detected in the cell-free DNA. Here, we provide proof-of-concept of histopathologic classification of paediatric tumours using cell-free reduced representation bisulphite sequencing (cf-RRBS) from retrospectively collected plasma and cerebrospinal fluid samples. We determined the correct tumour type in 49 out of 60 (81.6%) samples starting from minute amounts (less than 10 ng) of cell-free DNA. We demonstrate that the majority of misclassifications were associated with sample quality and not with the extent of disease. Our approach has the potential to help tackle some of the remaining diagnostic challenges in paediatric oncology in a cost-effective and minimally invasive manner.
Hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) contain a sub-population of cancer stem cells (CSCs) that are responsible for tumor relapse, metastasis, and chemoresistance. We recently showed that loss of macroH2A1, a variant of the histone H2A and an epigenetic regulator of stem-cell function, in HCC leads to CSC-like features such as resistance to chemotherapeutic agents and growth of large and relatively undifferentiated tumors in xenograft models. These HCC cells silenced for macroH2A1 also exhibited stem-like metabolic changes consistent with enhanced glycolysis. However, there is no consensus as to the metabolic characteristics of CSCs that render them adaptable to microenvironmental changes by conveniently shifting energy production source or by acquiring intermediate metabolic phenotypes. Here, we assessed long-term proliferation, energy metabolism, and central carbon metabolism in human hepatoma HepG2 cells depleted in macroH2A1. MacroH2A1-depleted HepG2 cells were insensitive to serum exhaustion and showed two distinct, but interdependent changes in glucose and lipid metabolism in CSCs: (1) massive upregulation of acetyl-coA that is transformed into enhanced lipid content and (2) increased activation of the pentose phosphate pathway, diverting glycolytic intermediates to provide precursors for nucleotide synthesis. Integration of metabolomic analyses with RNA-Seq data revealed a critical role for the Liver X Receptor pathway, whose inhibition resulted in attenuated CSCs-like features. These findings shed light on the metabolic phenotype of epigenetically modified CSC-like hepatic cells, and highlight a potential approach for selective therapeutic targeting.
- MeSH
- buňky Hep G2 MeSH
- epigeneze genetická * MeSH
- HEK293 buňky MeSH
- hepatocelulární karcinom genetika metabolismus MeSH
- histonový kód * MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- metabolismus lipidů * MeSH
- metabolismus sacharidů * MeSH
- nádorové kmenové buňky metabolismus MeSH
- nádory jater metabolismus MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
Homeobox (HOX) genes are frequently dysregulated in leukemia. Previous studies have shown that aberrant HOX gene expression accompanies leukemogenesis and affects disease progression and leukemia patient survival. Patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) bearing PML-RARα fusion gene have distinct HOX gene signature in comparison to other subtypes of AML patients, although the mechanism of transcription regulation is not completely understood. We previously found an association between the mRNA levels of HOX genes and those of the histone demethylases JMJD3 and UTX in PML-RARα- positive leukemia patients. Here, we demonstrate that the release of the PML-RARα-mediated block in PML-RARα-positive myeloid leukemia cells increased both JMJD3 and HOX gene expression, while inhibition of JMJD3 using the specific inhibitor GSK-J4 reversed the effect. This effect was driven specifically through PML-RARα fusion protein since expression changes did not occur in cells with mutated RARα and was independent of differentiation. We confirmed that gene expression levels were inversely correlated with alterations in H3K27me3 histone marks localized at HOX gene promoters. Furthermore, data from chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing broaden a list of clustered HOX genes regulated by JMJD3 in PML-RARα-positive leukemic cells. Interestingly, the combination of GSK-J4 and all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) significantly increased PML-RARα-positive cell apoptosis compared with ATRA treatment alone. This effect was also observed in ATRA-resistant NB4 clones, which may provide a new therapeutic opportunity for patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) resistant to current treatment. The results of our study reveal the mechanism of HOX gene expression regulation and contribute to our understanding of APL pathogenesis.
- MeSH
- akutní myeloidní leukemie farmakoterapie genetika patologie MeSH
- benzazepiny farmakologie MeSH
- buněčná diferenciace účinky léků genetika MeSH
- epigeneze genetická MeSH
- fúzní onkogenní proteiny genetika metabolismus MeSH
- histondemethylasy genetika metabolismus MeSH
- histony metabolismus MeSH
- homeoboxové geny * MeSH
- jaderné proteiny genetika metabolismus MeSH
- Jumonjiho doména s histondemethylasami antagonisté a inhibitory genetika metabolismus MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- metylace DNA MeSH
- metylace MeSH
- nádorové buněčné linie MeSH
- promotorové oblasti (genetika) MeSH
- pyrimidiny farmakologie MeSH
- regulace genové exprese u leukemie * MeSH
- tretinoin farmakologie MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
Downregulation of miR26A1 has been reported in various B-cell malignancies; however, the mechanism behind its deregulation remains largely unknown. We investigated miR26A1 methylation and expression levels in a well-characterized series of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). From 450K methylation arrays, we first observed miR26A1 (cg26054057) as uniformly hypermethylated in MCL (n = 24) (all >75%), while CLL (n = 18) showed differential methylation between prognostic subgroups. Extended analysis using pyrosequencing confirmed our findings and real-time quantitative PCR verified low miR26A1 expression in both CLL (n = 70) and MCL (n = 38) compared to normal B-cells. Notably, the level of miR26A1 methylation predicted outcome in CLL, with higher levels seen in poor-prognostic, IGHV-unmutated CLL. Since EZH2 was recently reported as a target for miR26A1, we analyzed the expression levels of both miR26A1 and EZH2 in primary CLL samples and observed an inverse correlation. By overexpression of miR26A1 in CLL and MCL cell lines, reduced EZH2 protein levels were observed using both Western blot and flow cytometry. In contrast, methyl-inhibitor treatment led to upregulated miR26A1 expression with a parallel decrease of EZH2 expression. Finally, increased levels of apoptosis were observed in miR26A1-overexpressing cell lines, further underscoring the functional relevance of miR26A1. In summary, we propose that epigenetic silencing of miR26A1 is required for the maintenance of increased levels of EZH2, which in turn translate into a worse outcome, as shown in CLL, highlighting miR26A1 as a tumor suppressor miRNA.
- MeSH
- apoptóza genetika MeSH
- chronická lymfatická leukemie genetika patologie MeSH
- epigeneze genetická MeSH
- EZH2 protein biosyntéza genetika MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- lymfom z plášťových buněk genetika patologie MeSH
- metylace DNA genetika MeSH
- mikro RNA biosyntéza genetika MeSH
- nádorové buněčné linie MeSH
- promotorové oblasti (genetika) MeSH
- regulace genové exprese u nádorů MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
Epigenetic mechanisms have not been characterized in ticks despite their importance as vectors of human and animal diseases worldwide. The objective of this study was to characterize the histones and histone modifying enzymes (HMEs) of the tick vector Ixodes scapularis and their role during Anaplasma phagocytophilum infection. We first identified 5 histones and 34 HMEs in I. scapularis in comparison with similar proteins in model organisms. Then, we used transcriptomic and proteomic data to analyze the mRNA and protein levels of I. scapularis histones and HMEs in response to A. phagocytophilum infection of tick tissues and cultured cells. Finally, selected HMEs were functionally characterized by pharmacological studies in cultured tick cells. The results suggest that A. phagocytophilum manipulates tick cell epigenetics to increase I. scapularis p300/CBP, histone deacetylase, and Sirtuin levels, resulting in an inhibition of cell apoptosis that in turn facilitates pathogen infection and multiplication. These results also suggest that a compensatory mechanism might exist by which A. phagocytophilum manipulates tick HMEs to regulate transcription and apoptosis in a tissue-specific manner to facilitate infection, but preserving tick fitness to guarantee survival of both pathogens and ticks. Our study also indicates that the pathogen manipulates arthropod and vertebrate cell epigenetics in similar ways to inhibit the host response to infection. Epigenetic regulation of tick biological processes is an essential element of the infection by A. phagocytophilum and the study of the mechanisms and principal actors involved is likely to provide clues for the development of anti-tick drugs and vaccines.
- MeSH
- Anaplasma phagocytophilum genetika MeSH
- apoptóza genetika MeSH
- buněčné linie MeSH
- epigeneze genetická * MeSH
- histonový kód genetika MeSH
- histony genetika metabolismus MeSH
- hmyz - vektory genetika MeSH
- interakce hostitele a patogenu genetika MeSH
- klíště genetika MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- messenger RNA biosyntéza genetika MeSH
- transkripční faktory p300-CBP biosyntéza genetika MeSH
- transkriptom genetika MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
Zygotes are totipotent cells that have the ability to differentiate into all cell types. It is believed that this ability is lost gradually and differentiation occurs along with the progression of preimplantation development. Here, we hypothesized that the loose chromatin structure is involved in the totipotency of one-cell stage embryos and that the change from loose to tight chromatin structure is associated with the loss of totipotency. To address this hypothesis, we investigated the mobility of eGFP-tagged histone H2B (eGFP-H2B), which is an index for the looseness of chromatin, during preimplantation development based on fluorescent recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) analysis. The highest mobility of eGFP-H2B was observed in pronuclei in 1-cell stage embryos and mobility gradually decreased during preimplantation development. The decrease in mobility between the 1- and 2-cell stages depended on DNA synthesis in 2-cell stage embryos. In nuclear transferred embryos, chromatin in the pseudopronuclei loosened to a level comparable to the pronuclei in 1-cell stage embryos. These results indicated that the mobility of eGFP-H2B is negatively correlated with the degree of differentiation of preimplantation embryos. Therefore, we suggest that highly loosened chromatin is involved in totipotency of 1-cell embryos and the loss of looseness is associated with differentiation during preimplantation development.
- MeSH
- blastocysta * MeSH
- buňky NIH 3T3 MeSH
- chromatin ultrastruktura MeSH
- embryonální kmenové buňky cytologie MeSH
- embryonální vývoj MeSH
- FRAP * MeSH
- histony metabolismus MeSH
- kultivace embrya MeSH
- myši inbrední ICR MeSH
- myši MeSH
- replikace DNA MeSH
- zelené fluorescenční proteiny metabolismus MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- mužské pohlaví MeSH
- myši MeSH
- ženské pohlaví MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
Aberrant DNA methylation at specific genetic loci is a key molecular feature of juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML) with poor prognosis. Using quantitative high-resolution mass spectrometry, we identified RASA4 isoform 2, which maps to chromosome 7 and encodes a member of the GAP1 family of GTPase-activating proteins for small G proteins, as a recurrent target of isoform-specific DNA hypermethylation in JMML (51% of 125 patients analyzed). RASA4 isoform 2 promoter methylation correlated with clinical parameters predicting poor prognosis (older age, elevated fetal hemoglobin), with higher risk of relapse after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and with PTPN11 mutation. The level of isoform 2 methylation increased in relapsed cases after transplantation. Interestingly, most JMML cases with monosomy 7 exhibited hypermethylation on the remaining RASA4 allele. The results corroborate the significance of epigenetic modifications in the phenotype of aggressive JMML.
- MeSH
- chemorezistence * MeSH
- CpG ostrůvky MeSH
- dítě MeSH
- juvenilní myelomonocytární leukemie diagnóza metabolismus patologie MeSH
- kojenec MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- lidské chromozomy, pár 7 MeSH
- metylace DNA * MeSH
- mladiství MeSH
- monozomie MeSH
- mutace MeSH
- předškolní dítě MeSH
- prognóza MeSH
- promotorové oblasti (genetika) MeSH
- protein - isoformy genetika metabolismus MeSH
- proteiny aktivující GTPasu ras genetika metabolismus MeSH
- tyrosinfosfatasa nereceptorového typu 11 genetika metabolismus MeSH
- umlčování genů MeSH
- Check Tag
- dítě MeSH
- kojenec MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- mladiství MeSH
- mužské pohlaví MeSH
- předškolní dítě MeSH
- ženské pohlaví MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
