A family of C. elegans VASA homologs control Argonaute pathway specificity and promote transgenerational silencing
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ABSTRACT:
ORGANISM(S): Caenorhabditis elegans
PROVIDER: GSE195536 | GEO | 2022/01/30
REPOSITORIES: GEO
Similar Datasets
Project description:Germline Argonautes direct transcriptome surveillance within peri-nuclear membraneless organelles called nuage. In C. elegans, a family of Vasa-related Germ Line Helicase (GLH) proteins localize in, and promote the formation of nuage called P granules. Previous studies have implicated GLH proteins in inherited silencing but direct roles in amplification of small RNAs, or in target mRNA or Argonatue binding have not been identified. Here we show that GLH proteins compete with each other to control Argonaute pathway specificity, bind directly to Argonaute-target mRNAs and act to promote the amplification of small RNAs required for transgenerational inheritance. We show that the ATPase cycle of GLH-1 regulates its direct binding to the Argonaute WAGO-1 which engages amplified small RNAs. Our findings support a dynamic and direct role for GLH proteins in inherited silencing beyond their role as structural components of nuage.
2022-03-10 | GSE198101 | GEO
Project description:Animal cells have a remarkable capacity to adopt durable and heritable gene expression programs or epigenetic states that define the physical properties and diversity of somatic cell types. The maintenance of epigenetic programs depends on poorly understood pathways that prevent gain or loss of inherited signals. In the germline, epigenetic factors are enriched in liquid-like perinuclear condensates called nuage. Here we identify the deeply conserved helicase-domain protein, ZNFX-1, as an epigenetic regulator and component of nuage that interacts with Argonaute systems to balance epigenetic inheritance. Our findings suggest that ZNFX-1 promotes the 3’ recruitment of machinery that propagates the small RNA epigenetic signal and thus counteracts a tendency for Argonaute-targeting to shift 5’ along the mRNA. These functional insights support the idea that recently identified subdomains of nuage, including ZNFX-1 granules or “Z-granules,” may define spatial and temporal zones of molecular activity during epigenetic regulation.
2018-05-18 | GSE112708 | GEO
Project description:Endogenous small RNAs (endo-siRNAs) interact with Argonaute (AGO) proteins to mediate sequence-specific regulation of diverse biological processes. Here, we combine deep-sequencing and genetic approaches to explore the biogenesis and function of endo-siRNAs in C. elegans. We describe conditional alleles of the dicer-related helicase, drh-3, that abrogate both RNA interference and the biogenesis of endo-siRNAs, called 22G-RNAs. DRH-3 is a core component of RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) complexes essential for several distinct 22G-RNA systems. We show that in the germ-line, one system is dependent on worm-specific AGOs, including WAGO-1, which localizes to germ-line nuage structures called P-granules. WAGO-1 silences certain genes, transposons, pseudogenes and cryptic loci. Finally, we demonstrate that components of the nonsense-mediated decay pathway function in at least one WAGO-mediated surveillance pathway. These findings broaden our understanding of the biogenesis and diversity of 22G-RNAs and suggest novel regulatory functions for small RNAs.
2009-10-01 | GSE18230 | GEO
Project description:Piwi proteins specify an animal-specific subclass of the Argonaute family, that in vertebrates are specifically expressed in germ cells. We demonstrate that zebrafish Piwi (Ziwi) is expressed in both the male and the female gonad, and is a component of a germline specifying structure, called nuage. Loss of Ziwi function results in a progressive loss of germ cells due to apoptosis during larval development. In animals that have only reduced Ziwi function, germ cells are maintained, but display abnormal levels of apoptosis in adults. In mammals, Piwi proteins have been found to associate with approximately 29-nucleotide long, testis specific RNA molecules, called piRNAs. Here we show that zebrafish piRNAs are present in both ovaries and testes. Furthermore, we show that piRNAs are modified at their 3’ end and that they are produced by a Dicer independent mechanism. Many ovarian piRNAs are derived from transposons, implicating a role for these molecules in the silencing of these repetitive elements in vertebrates. Keywords: high-throughput 454 sequencing sequencing of ~30 nt small RNAs from zebrafish ovaries and testes using 454 technology
2007-04-04 | E-GEOD-7131 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Diverse naturally-occurring small RNA species interact with Argonaute proteins to mediate sequence-specific regulation in animals. In addition to micro-RNAs (miRNAs), which collectively regulate thousands of target mRNAs, other endogenous small RNA species include the Piwi-associated piRNAs that are important for fertility and a less well-characterized class of small RNAs often referred to simply as endo-siRNAs. Here we have utilized deep-sequencing technology and C. elegans genetics to explore the biogenesis and function of endo-siRNAs. We describe conditional alleles of the dicer-related helicase, drh-3, that implicate DRH-3 in both the response to foreign dsRNA as well as the RNA-dependent RNA Polymerase (RdRP)-dependent biogenesis of a diverse class of endogenous small RNAs, termed 22G-RNAs. We show that 22G-RNAs are abundantly expressed in the germline and maternally inherited and are the products of at least two distinct 22G-RNA systems. One system is dependent on worm-specific AGOs, including WAGO-1, which localizes to germline nuage-related structures termed P-granules. The WAGO 22G-RNA system silences transposons, pseudogenes and cryptic loci as well as a number of genes. Finally, we demonstrate that components of the nonsense-mediated decay pathway function in at least one of the multiple, distinct WAGO surveillance pathways. These findings broaden our understanding of the biogenesis and diversity of 22G-RNA species and suggest potential novel regulatory functions for these small RNAs. 18 samples examined. Small RNA libraries generated from: C. elegans animals with mutations in the WAGO pathway and a WAGO-1 immunopercipitate.
2009-10-01 | E-GEOD-18215 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Epigenetic silencing of transposons by Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) constitutes an RNA-based genome defense mechanism. Piwi endonuclease action amplifies the piRNA pool by generating new piRNAs from target transcripts by a poorly understood mechanism. Here, we identified mouse Fkbp6 as a factor in this biogenesis pathway delivering piRNAs to the Piwi protein Miwi2. Mice lacking Fkbp6 derepress LINE1 (L1) retrotransposon and display reduced DNA methylation due to deficient nuclear accumulation of Miwi2. Like other co-chaperones, Fkbp6 associates with the molecular chaperone Hsp90 via its tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) domain. Inhibition of the ATP-dependent Hsp90 activity in an insect cell culture model results in the accumulation of short antisense RNAs in Piwi complexes. We identify these to be by-products of piRNA amplification that accumulate only in nuage-localized Piwi proteins. We propose that the chaperone machinery normally ejects these inhibitory RNAs, allowing turnover of Piwi complexes for their continued participation in piRNA amplification. Small RNAs were purified for preparation of high-throughput sequencing libraries. All libraries except JX56, JX57, JX36 and JX37 were generated from isolated small RNAs obtained by immunoprecipitation of the indicated proteins (Mili, Miwi2, Siwi or Ago3). JX56 and JX57 were prepared from small RNAs extracted from mouse testis. JX36 and JX37 were prepared from polyA+ RNAs extracted from the Bombyx mori cell line BmN4. Libraries prepared from mouse were prepared from mice having the indicated genotype. BmN4 cells were treated with the Hsp90 inhibitor geldanamycin (GA) before performing the immunoprecipitation in the indicated libraries. This lead to accumulation to a short species of small RNAs (16nt long) in Ago3 complexes which we called ping-pong by-product. Details can be found in Xiol et al. 2012, Molecular Cell.
2012-09-04 | E-GEOD-39203 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:In germ cells, Piwi proteins interact with a specific class of small non-coding RNAs, piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs). Together, these form a pathway that represses transposable elements, thus safeguarding germ cell genomes. While basic models describe the operation of piRNA pathways, neither the protein compositions of Piwi complexes, the critical protein-protein interactions that drive small RNA production and target recognition, or the precise molecular consequences of conserved localization to germline structures, call nuage, is well understood. We purified the three murine Piwi family proteins, Mili, Miwi, and Miwi2, from mouse germ cells and characterized their interacting protein partners. Piwi proteins were found in complex with Prmt5/Wdr77, an enzyme that di-methylates arginine residues. By immunoprecipitation with specific antibodies and by mass spectrometry, we found that Piwi proteins are arginine methylated at conserved positions in their amino termini. These modifications are essential to direct complex formation with specific Tudor-domain proteins, whose interactions with Piwis can be required for localization of RNP complexes in cytoplasmic nuage, proper piRNA expression, and transposon silencing. Considered together, our findings indicate that arginine methylation drives the assembly of multi-protein machines whose integrity and specific sub-cellular localization is necessary for efficient function of the piRNA pathway. Keywords: gene regulation study Total small RNA in embryonic and post-birth mouse testes of tdrd1 and tdrd6 mutants
2009-07-25 | E-GEOD-17319 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Argonaute (AGO) proteins interact with distinct classes of small RNAs to direct multiple regulatory outcomes. In many organisms, including plants, fungi and nematodes, cellular RNAdependent RNA polymerases (RdRPs) utilize AGO targets as templates for amplification of silencing signals. Here, we show that distinct RdRPs function sequentially to produce small RNAs that target endogenous loci in C. elegans. We show that DCR-1, the RdRP RRF-3, and the dsRNA-binding protein RDE-4, are required for the biogenesis of 26nt RNAs, termed 26GRNAs, and that 26G-RNAs engage the Piwi-clade AGO, ERGO-1. Our findings support a model in which targeting by ERGO-1 recruits a second RdRP (RRF-1 or EGO-1), which in turn transcribes 22G-RNAs that interact with worm-specific AGOs (WAGOs) to direct gene silencing. ERGO-1 targets exhibit a non-random distribution in the genome and appear to include many gene duplications, suggesting that this pathway may control over-expression resulting from gene expansion. 8 samples examined. Small RNA libraries generated from: C. elegans animals.
2010-02-25 | E-GEOD-18714 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Diverse naturally-occurring small RNA species interact with Argonaute proteins to mediate sequence-specific regulation in animals. In addition to micro-RNAs (miRNAs), which collectively regulate thousands of target mRNAs, other endogenous small RNA species include the Piwi-associated piRNAs that are important for fertility and a less well-characterized class of small RNAs often referred to simply as endo-siRNAs. Here we have utilized deep-sequencing technology and C. elegans genetics to explore the biogenesis and function of endo-siRNAs. We describe conditional alleles of the dicer-related helicase, drh-3, that implicate DRH-3 in both the response to foreign dsRNA as well as the RNA-dependent RNA Polymerase (RdRP)-dependent biogenesis of a diverse class of endogenous small RNAs, termed 22G-RNAs. We show that 22G-RNAs are abundantly expressed in the germline and maternally inherited and are the products of at least two distinct 22G-RNA systems. One system is dependent on worm-specific AGOs, including WAGO-1, which localizes to germline nuage-related structures termed P-granules. The WAGO 22G-RNA system silences transposons, pseudogenes and cryptic loci as well as a number of genes. Finally, we demonstrate that components of the nonsense-mediated decay pathway function in at least one of the multiple, distinct WAGO surveillance pathways. These findings broaden our understanding of the biogenesis and diversity of 22G-RNA species and suggest potential novel regulatory functions for these small RNAs.
2009-10-01 | GSE18215 | GEO
Project description:The assembly of fission yeast pericentromeric heterochromatin and generation of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) from noncoding centromeric transcripts are mutually dependent processes. How this interdependent positive feedback loop is first triggered is a fundamental unanswered question. Here we show that two distinct Argonaute (Ago1)-dependent pathways mediate small RNA generation. RNA-dependent RNA polymerase complex (RDRC) and Dicer act on specific noncoding RNAs to generate siRNAs by a mechanism that requires the slicer activity of Ago1 but is independent of pre-existing heterochromatin. In the absence of RDRC or Dicer, a distinct class of small RNAs, called primal small RNAs (priRNAs), associate with Ago1. priRNAs are degradation products of abundant transcripts, which bind to Ago1 and target antisense transcripts that result from bidirectional transcription of DNA repeats. Our results suggest that a transcriptome surveillance mechanism based on the random association of RNA degradation products with Argonaute triggers siRNA amplification and heterochromatin assembly within DNA repeats. small RNA profiling in wild type S. pombe cells and in 12 mutant cells
2010-02-23 | E-GEOD-19734 | biostudies-arrayexpress