Characterization of mRNA polyadenylation in the apicomplexa.
Messenger RNA polyadenylation is a universal aspect of gene expression in eukaryotes. In well-established model organisms, this process is mediated by a conserved complex of 15-20 subunits. To better understand this process in apicomplexans, a group of unicellular parasites that causes serious disea...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2018-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC6117058?pdf=render |
| _version_ | 1828767397206556672 |
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| author | Ashley T Stevens Daniel K Howe Arthur G Hunt |
| author_facet | Ashley T Stevens Daniel K Howe Arthur G Hunt |
| author_sort | Ashley T Stevens |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Messenger RNA polyadenylation is a universal aspect of gene expression in eukaryotes. In well-established model organisms, this process is mediated by a conserved complex of 15-20 subunits. To better understand this process in apicomplexans, a group of unicellular parasites that causes serious disease in humans and livestock, a computational and high throughput sequencing study of the polyadenylation complex and poly(A) sites in several species was conducted. BLAST-based searches for orthologs of the human polyadenylation complex yielded clear matches to only two-poly(A) polymerase and CPSF73-of the 19 proteins used as queries in this analysis. As the human subunits that recognize the AAUAAA polyadenylation signal (PAS) were not immediately obvious, a computational analysis of sequences adjacent to experimentally-determined apicomplexan poly(A) sites was conducted. The results of this study showed that there exists in apicomplexans an A-rich region that corresponds in position to the AAUAAA PAS. The set of experimentally-determined sites in one species, Sarcocystis neurona, was further analyzed to evaluate the extent and significance of alternative poly(A) site choice in this organism. The results showed that almost 80% of S. neurona genes possess more than one poly(A) site, and that more than 780 sites showed differential usage in the two developmental stages-extracellular merozoites and intracellular schizonts-studied. These sites affected more than 450 genes, and included a disproportionate number of genes that encode membrane transporters and ribosomal proteins. Taken together, these results reveal that apicomplexan species seem to possess a poly(A) signal analogous to AAUAAA even though genes that may encode obvious counterparts of the AAUAAA-recognizing proteins are absent in these organisms. They also indicate that, as is the case in other eukaryotes, alternative polyadenylation is a widespread phenomenon in S. neurona that has the potential to impact growth and development. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T07:26:33Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-695f0f060b364680b96faa77c6011b5e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T07:26:33Z |
| publishDate | 2018-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
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| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-695f0f060b364680b96faa77c6011b5e2022-12-22T01:15:57ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032018-01-01138e020331710.1371/journal.pone.0203317Characterization of mRNA polyadenylation in the apicomplexa.Ashley T StevensDaniel K HoweArthur G HuntMessenger RNA polyadenylation is a universal aspect of gene expression in eukaryotes. In well-established model organisms, this process is mediated by a conserved complex of 15-20 subunits. To better understand this process in apicomplexans, a group of unicellular parasites that causes serious disease in humans and livestock, a computational and high throughput sequencing study of the polyadenylation complex and poly(A) sites in several species was conducted. BLAST-based searches for orthologs of the human polyadenylation complex yielded clear matches to only two-poly(A) polymerase and CPSF73-of the 19 proteins used as queries in this analysis. As the human subunits that recognize the AAUAAA polyadenylation signal (PAS) were not immediately obvious, a computational analysis of sequences adjacent to experimentally-determined apicomplexan poly(A) sites was conducted. The results of this study showed that there exists in apicomplexans an A-rich region that corresponds in position to the AAUAAA PAS. The set of experimentally-determined sites in one species, Sarcocystis neurona, was further analyzed to evaluate the extent and significance of alternative poly(A) site choice in this organism. The results showed that almost 80% of S. neurona genes possess more than one poly(A) site, and that more than 780 sites showed differential usage in the two developmental stages-extracellular merozoites and intracellular schizonts-studied. These sites affected more than 450 genes, and included a disproportionate number of genes that encode membrane transporters and ribosomal proteins. Taken together, these results reveal that apicomplexan species seem to possess a poly(A) signal analogous to AAUAAA even though genes that may encode obvious counterparts of the AAUAAA-recognizing proteins are absent in these organisms. They also indicate that, as is the case in other eukaryotes, alternative polyadenylation is a widespread phenomenon in S. neurona that has the potential to impact growth and development.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC6117058?pdf=render |
| spellingShingle | Ashley T Stevens Daniel K Howe Arthur G Hunt Characterization of mRNA polyadenylation in the apicomplexa. PLoS ONE |
| title | Characterization of mRNA polyadenylation in the apicomplexa. |
| title_full | Characterization of mRNA polyadenylation in the apicomplexa. |
| title_fullStr | Characterization of mRNA polyadenylation in the apicomplexa. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Characterization of mRNA polyadenylation in the apicomplexa. |
| title_short | Characterization of mRNA polyadenylation in the apicomplexa. |
| title_sort | characterization of mrna polyadenylation in the apicomplexa |
| url | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC6117058?pdf=render |
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