Project description:Drosophila melanogaster undergoes a complete metamorphosis, during which time the larval male and female forms transition into sexually dimorphic, reproductive adult forms. To understand this complex morphogenetic process at a molecular-genetic level, we performed whole genome microarray analyses. In somatic tissues at 48 hour After Puparium Formation (APF), 173 sex-biased transcripts that likely function downstream of the doublesex (dsx) branch of the sex determination hierarchy were identified. The mode of regulation of the sex-specific isoforms of DSX (DSX-F and DSX-M) was examined. It was determined that for most downstream targets, DSX-F and DSX-M regulate gene expression in the same manner, but that one isoform acts as a more potent regulator. Keywords: wild type; genetic modification
Project description:Drosophila melanogaster undergoes a complete metamorphosis, during which time the larval male and female forms transition into sexually dimorphic, reproductive adult forms. To understand this complex morphogenetic process at a molecular-genetic level, we performed whole genome microarray analyses. In somatic tissues at 48 hour After Puparium Formation (APF), 173 sex-biased transcripts that likely function downstream of the doublesex (dsx) branch of the sex determination hierarchy were identified. The mode of regulation of the sex-specific isoforms of DSX (DSX-F and DSX-M) was examined. It was determined that for most downstream targets, DSX-F and DSX-M regulate gene expression in the same manner, but that one isoform acts as a more potent regulator. Keywords: wild type; genetic modification All microarrays were dual channel with direct comparisons of male versus female or wild type versus mutant. All samples consist of whole body pupae collected at 48 hour After Puparium Formation (APF). For each experiment, four biological replicates were analyzed in a dye-swap design.
Project description:Oocyte maturation is the foundation for developing healthy individuals of mammals. Upon germinal vesicle breakdown, oocyte meiosis resumes and the synthesis of new transcripts ceases. To quantitatively profile the transcriptomic dynamics after meiotic resumption throughout the oocyte maturation, we generated transcriptome sequencing data with individual mouse oocytes at three main developmental stages: germinal vesicle (GV), metaphase I (MI), and metaphase II (MII). When clustering the sequenced oocytes, results showed that isoform-level expression analysis outperformed gene-level analysis, indicating isoform expression provided extra information that was useful in distinguishing oocyte stages. Comparing transcriptomes of the oocytes at the GV stage and the MII stage, in addition to identification of differentially expressed genes (DEGs), we detected many differentially expressed transcripts (DETs), some of which came from genes that were not identified as DEGs. When breaking down the isoform-level changes into alternative RNA processing events, we found the main source of isoform composition changes was the alternative usage of polyadenylation sites. With detailed analysis focusing on the alternative usage of 3'-UTR isoforms, we identified, out of 3810 tested genes, 512 (13.7%) exhibiting significant switches of 3'-UTR isoforms during the process of moues oocyte maturation. Altogether, our data and analyses suggest the importance of examining isoform abundance changes during oocyte maturation, and further investigation of the pervasive 3'-UTR isoform switches in the transition may deepen our understanding on the molecular mechanisms underlying mammalian early development.
Project description:Zebrafish embryos are transcriptional silent until activation of the zygotic genome during the 10th cell cycle. Onset of transcription is followed by cellular and morphological changes involving cell speciation and gastrulation. Previous genome-wide surveys of transcriptional changes only assessed gene expression levels; however, recent studies have shown the necessity to map isoform-specific transcriptional changes. Here we perform isoform discovery and quantification on transcriptome sequences from before and after zebrafish zygotic genome activation (ZGA). We identify novel isoforms and isoform switches during ZGA for genes related to cell adhesion, pluripotency and DNA methylation. Isoform switching events include alternative splicing and changes in transcriptional start sites and in 3’ untranslated regions. New isoforms are identified even for well-characterized genes such as pou5f1, sall4 and dnmt1. Genes involved in cell-cell interactions such as f11r and magi1 display isoform switches with alterations of coding sequences. We also detect over 1000 transcripts that acquire a longer 3’ terminal exon when transcribed zygotically relative to the maternal transcript counterparts. ChIP-seq data mapped onto skipped exon events reveals a correlation between histone H3K36trimethylation peaks and the skipped exons, suggesting epigenetic marks being part of alternative splicing regulation. The novel isoforms and isoform switches reported here include regulators of the transcriptional, cellular and morphological changes taking place around ZGA. Our data display an array of isoform-related functional changes and represent a valuable resource complementary to existing early embryo transcriptomes. Examination H3K36me3 in zebrafish whole embryos at the Post-MBT stage
Project description:Zebrafish embryos are transcriptional silent until activation of the zygotic genome during the 10th cell cycle. Onset of transcription is followed by cellular and morphological changes involving cell speciation and gastrulation. Previous genome-wide surveys of transcriptional changes only assessed gene expression levels; however, recent studies have shown the necessity to map isoform-specific transcriptional changes. Here we perform isoform discovery and quantification on transcriptome sequences from before and after zebrafish zygotic genome activation (ZGA). We identify novel isoforms and isoform switches during ZGA for genes related to cell adhesion, pluripotency and DNA methylation. Isoform switching events include alternative splicing and changes in transcriptional start sites and in 3’ untranslated regions. New isoforms are identified even for well-characterized genes such as pou5f1, sall4 and dnmt1. Genes involved in cell-cell interactions such as f11r and magi1 display isoform switches with alterations of coding sequences. We also detect over 1000 transcripts that acquire a longer 3’ terminal exon when transcribed zygotically relative to the maternal transcript counterparts. ChIP-seq data mapped onto skipped exon events reveals a correlation between histone H3K36trimethylation peaks and the skipped exons, suggesting epigenetic marks being part of alternative splicing regulation. The novel isoforms and isoform switches reported here include regulators of the transcriptional, cellular and morphological changes taking place around ZGA. Our data display an array of isoform-related functional changes and represent a valuable resource complementary to existing early embryo transcriptomes.