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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Organellar Signaling Expands Plant Phenotypic Variation And Increases The Potential For Breeding The Epigenome, Roberto De La Rosa Santamaria Oct 2012

Organellar Signaling Expands Plant Phenotypic Variation And Increases The Potential For Breeding The Epigenome, Roberto De La Rosa Santamaria

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

MUTS HOMOLOGUE 1 (MSH1) is a nuclear gene unique to plants that functions in mitochondria and plastids, where it confers genome stability. Phenotypic effects of MSH1 down- regulation were studied in sorghum inbreed line Tx430 and Arabidopsis ecotype Columbia-0, with the hypothesis that RNAi suppression of MSH1 triggers retrograde signaling from organelles to the nucleus, alters the epigenome, and derives heritable phenotypic variation suitable for artificial selection. An array of morphological traits and metabolic pathways was detected, including leaf variegation, male sterility and dwarfism, associated with altered gibberellic acid metabolism, higher levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and decreased synthesis …


Mecp2 Binds To Nucleosome Free (Linker Dna) Regions And To H3k9/H3k27 Methylated Nucleosomes In The Brain, Anita A. Thambirajah, Marlee K. Ng, Lindsay J. Frehlick, Andra Li, Jason J. Serpa, Evgeniy V. Petrotchenko, Begonia Silva-Moreno, Kristal K. Missiaen, Christoph H. Borchers, J. Adam Hall, Ryan Mackie, Frank Lutz, Brent E. Gowen, Michael Hendzel, Philippe T. Georgel, Juan Ausió Jul 2012

Mecp2 Binds To Nucleosome Free (Linker Dna) Regions And To H3k9/H3k27 Methylated Nucleosomes In The Brain, Anita A. Thambirajah, Marlee K. Ng, Lindsay J. Frehlick, Andra Li, Jason J. Serpa, Evgeniy V. Petrotchenko, Begonia Silva-Moreno, Kristal K. Missiaen, Christoph H. Borchers, J. Adam Hall, Ryan Mackie, Frank Lutz, Brent E. Gowen, Michael Hendzel, Philippe T. Georgel, Juan Ausió

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

Methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (MeCP2) is a chromatin-binding protein that mediates transcriptional regulation, and is highly abundant in brain. The nature of its binding to reconstituted templates has been well characterized in vitro. However, its interactions with native chromatin are less understood. Here we show that MeCP2 displays a distinct distribution within fractionated chromatin from various tissues and cell types. Artificially induced global changes in DNA methylation by 3-aminobenzamide or 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine, do not significantly affect the distribution or amount of MeCP2 in HeLa S3 or 3T3 cells. Most MeCP2 in brain is chromatin-bound and localized within highly nuclease-accessible regions. We …


Examination Of The Chromatin Structure Of Xlr3b Using The Chromosome Conformation Capture Assay, Sarah Elise Conderino May 2012

Examination Of The Chromatin Structure Of Xlr3b Using The Chromosome Conformation Capture Assay, Sarah Elise Conderino

Honors Scholar Theses

Imprinted genes contain epigenetic modifications that influence expression patterns based on parent-of-origin. Recent studies have shown that imprinted genes contribute to numerous human diseases and disorders. Xlr3b, an imprinted gene on the X chromosome, has been implicated in social and behavioral deficits characteristic of disorders such as Turner syndrome and autism. The imprinting mechanism of this gene is still unknown, and this study analyzed the native chromatin structure of Xlr3b through the chromosome conformation capture assay to determine if there are any long-range interactions that regulate the expression of this gene. Brain tissue from a mouse model of Turner …


The Dna- And Rna-Binding Protein Factor Of Dna Methylation 1 Requires Xh Domain-Mediated Complex Formation For Its Function In Rna-Directed Dna Methylation, Meng Xie, Guodong Ren, Chi Zhang, Bin Yu Jan 2012

The Dna- And Rna-Binding Protein Factor Of Dna Methylation 1 Requires Xh Domain-Mediated Complex Formation For Its Function In Rna-Directed Dna Methylation, Meng Xie, Guodong Ren, Chi Zhang, Bin Yu

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty and Staff Publications

Studies have identified a sub-group of SGS3-LIKE proteins including FDM1–5 and IDN2 as key components of RNA-directed DNA methylation pathway (RdDM). Although FDM1 and IDN2 bind RNAs with 5' overhangs, their functions in the RdDM pathway remain to be examined. Here we show that FDM1 interacts with itself and with IDN2. Gel filtration suggests that FDM1 may exist as a homodimer in a heterotetramer complex in vivo. The XH domain of FDM1 mediates the FDM1–FDM1 and FDM1–IDN2 interactions. Deletion of the XH domain disrupts FDM1 complex formation and results in loss-of-function of FDM1. These results demonstrate that XH domainmediated …


The Role Of Epigenetics In Evolution: The Extended Synthesis, Aaron W. Schrey, Christina L. Richards, Victoria Meller, Vincent Sollars, Douglas M. Ruden Jan 2012

The Role Of Epigenetics In Evolution: The Extended Synthesis, Aaron W. Schrey, Christina L. Richards, Victoria Meller, Vincent Sollars, Douglas M. Ruden

Integrative Biology Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.


Epigenetic Variation May Compensate For Decreased Genetic Variation With Introductions: A Case Study Using House Sparrows (Passer Domesticus) On Two Continents, Aaron W. Schrey, Courtney A. C. Coon, Michael T. Grispo, Mohammed Awad, Titus Imboma, Earl D. Mccoy, Henry R. Mushinsky, Christina L. Richards, Lynn B. Martin Jan 2012

Epigenetic Variation May Compensate For Decreased Genetic Variation With Introductions: A Case Study Using House Sparrows (Passer Domesticus) On Two Continents, Aaron W. Schrey, Courtney A. C. Coon, Michael T. Grispo, Mohammed Awad, Titus Imboma, Earl D. Mccoy, Henry R. Mushinsky, Christina L. Richards, Lynn B. Martin

Integrative Biology Faculty and Staff Publications

Epigenetic mechanisms impact several phenotypic traits and may be important for ecology and evolution. The introduced house sparrow (Passer domesticus) exhibits extensive phenotypic variation among and within populations. We screened methylation in populations from Kenya and Florida to determine if methylation varied among populations, varied with introduction history (Kenyan invasion < 50 years old, Florida invasion ~150 years old), and could potentially compensate for decrease genetic variation with introductions. While recent literature has speculated on the importance of epigenetic effects for biological invasions, this is the first such study among wild vertebrates. Methylation was more frequent in Nairobi, and outlier loci suggest that populations may be differentiated. Methylation diversity was similar between populations, in spite of known lower genetic diversity in Nairobi, which suggests that epigenetic variation may compensate for decreased genetic diversity as a source of phenotypic variation during introduction. Our results suggest that methylation differences may be common among house sparrows, but research is needed to discern whether methylation impacts phenotypic variation.