Faculty Bibliography

Long Interspersed Nuclear Element-1 (LINE-1, L1) is a mobile genetic element active in human genomes. L1-encoded ORF1 and ORF2 proteins bind L1 RNAs, forming ribonucleoproteins (RNPs). These RNPs interact with diverse host proteins, some repressive and others required for the L1 lifecycle. Using differential affinity purifications, quantitative mass spectrometry, and next generation RNA sequencing, we have characterized the proteins and nucleic acids associated with distinctive, enzymatically active L1 macromolecular complexes. Among them, we describe a cytoplasmic intermediate that we hypothesize to be the canonical ORF1p/ORF2p/L1-RNA-containing RNP, and we describe a nuclear population containing ORF2p, but lacking ORF1p, which likely contains host factors participating in target-primed reverse transcription.

LINE-1/L1 retrotransposon sequences comprise 17% of the human genome. Among the many classes of mobile genetic elements, L1 is the only autonomous retrotransposon that still drives human genomic plasticity today. Through its co-evolution with the human genome, L1 has intertwined itself with host cell biology. However, a clear understanding of L1's lifecycle and the processes involved in restricting its insertion and intragenomic spread remains elusive. Here we identify modes of L1 proteins' entrance into the nucleus, a necessary step for L1 proliferation. Using functional, biochemical, and imaging approaches, we also show a clear cell cycle bias for L1 retrotransposition that peaks during the S phase. Our observations provide a basis for novel interpretations about the nature of nuclear and cytoplasmic L1 ribonucleoproteins (RNPs) and the potential role of DNA replication in L1 retrotransposition.

Rapid and highly efficient mating-type switching of Saccharomyces cerevisiae enables a wide variety of genetic manipulations such as the construction of strains, for instance isogenic haploid pairs of both mating-types, diploids and polyploids. We used the CRISPR/Cas9 system to generate a double-strand break (DSB) at the MAT locus, and in a single co-transformation, both haploid and diploid cells were switched to the specified mating-type at ~80% efficiency. The mating-type of strains carrying either rod or ring chromosome III were switched, including those lacking HMLalpha and HMRa cryptic mating loci. Furthermore, we transplanted the synthetic yeast chromosome V to build a haploid poly-synthetic chromosome strain by using this method together with an endoreduplication intercross strategy. The CRISPR/Cas9 mating-type switching method will be useful in building the complete synthetic yeast (Sc2.0) genome. Importantly, it is a generally useful method to build polyploids of a defined genotype and generally expedites strain construction, for example in the construction of fully a/a/a/a isogenic tetraploids.

The ability to express non-native pathways in genetically tractable model systems is important for fields such as synthetic biology, genetics, and metabolic engineering. Here we describe a modular and hierarchical strategy to assemble multigene pathways for expression in S. cerevisiae. First, discrete promoter, coding sequence, and terminator parts are assembled in vitro into Transcription Units (TUs) flanked by adapter sequences using "yeast Golden Gate" (yGG), a type IIS restriction enzyme-dependent cloning strategy. Next, harnessing the natural capacity of S. cerevisiae for homologous recombination, TUs are assembled into pathways and expressed using the "Versatile Genetic Assembly System" (VEGAS) in yeast. Coupling transcription units constructed by yGG with VEGAS assembly is a generic and flexible workflow to achieve pathway expression in S. cerevisiae. This protocol describes assembly of a five TU pathway for yeast production of violacein, a pigment derived from Chromobacterium violaceum.

The Mobile Genetic Elements and Genome Plasticity conference was hosted by Keystone Symposia in Santa Fe, NM USA, February 11-15, 2018. The organizers were Marlene Belfort, Evan Eichler, Henry Levin and Lynn Maquat. The goal of this conference was to bring together scientists from around the world to discuss the function of transposable elements and their impact on host species. Central themes of the meeting included recent innovations in genome analysis and the role of mobile DNA in disease and evolution. The conference included 200 scientists who participated in poster presentations, short talks selected from abstracts, and invited talks. A total of 58 talks were organized into eight sessions and two workshops. The topics varied from mechanisms of mobilization, to the structure of genomes and their defense strategies to protect against transposable elements.

Background/UNASSIGNED:Recombinant DNA technology is today a fundamental tool for virtually all biological research fields. Among the many techniques available for the construction of a "custom DNA" molecule, the isothermal in vitro assembly, or Gibson assembly, allows for an efficient, one-step, scarless recombination-based assembly. Results/UNASSIGNED:Here, we apply and characterize the use of Gibson assembly for the deletion of DNA sequences around a DNA cut. This method, that we named "Gibson Deletion", can be used to easily substitute or delete one or more restriction sites within a DNA molecule. We show that Gibson Deletion is a viable method to delete up to 100 nucleotides from the DNA ends of a cleavage site. In addition, we found that Gibson Deletion can be performed using single strand DNA with the same efficiency as using double strand DNA molecules. Conclusions/UNASSIGNED:Gibson Deletion is a novel, easy and convenient application of isothermal in vitro assembly, that performs with high efficiency and can be implemented for a broad range of applications.

Humans and yeast are separated by a billion years of evolution, yet their conserved histones retain central roles in gene regulation. Here, we "reset" yeast to use core human nucleosomes in lieu of their own (a rare event taking 20 days), which initially only worked with variant H3.1. The cells adapt by acquiring suppressor mutations in cell-division genes or by acquiring certain aneuploid states. Converting five histone residues to their yeast counterparts restored robust growth. We reveal that humanized nucleosomes are positioned according to endogenous yeast DNA sequence and chromatin-remodeling network, as judged by a yeast-like nucleosome repeat length. However, human nucleosomes have higher DNA occupancy, globally reduce RNA content, and slow adaptation to new conditions by delaying chromatin remodeling. These humanized yeasts (including H3.3) pose fundamental new questions about how chromatin is linked to many cell processes and provide a platform to study histone variants via yeast epigenome reprogramming.

Using a comprehensive library of histone H2A and H2B mutants, we assessed the biological function of each amino acid residue involved in various stress conditions including exposure to different DNA damage-inducing reagents, different growth temperatures and other chemicals. H2B N- and H2A C-termini were critical for maintaining nucleosome function and mutations in these regions led to pleiotropic phenotypes. Additionally, two screens were performed using this library, monitoring heterochromatin gene silencing and genome stability, to identify residues which could compromise normal function when mutated. Many distinctive regions within the nucleosome were revealed. Furthermore, we used the bar-seq method to profile the mutant composition of many libraries in one high-throughput sequencing experiment, greatly reducing the labor and increasing the capacity. This study not only demonstrates the applications of the versatile histone library, but also revealed many previously unknown functions of histone H2A and H2B.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae contains two genes for each core histone, which are presented as pairs under the control of a divergent promoter, i.e. HHT1-HHF1, HHT2-HHF2, HTA1-HTB1 and HTA2-HTB2HHT1-HHF1 and HHT2-HHF2 encode histone H3 and H4 with identical amino acid sequences but under the control of differently regulated promoters. Previous mutagenesis studies were carried out by deleting one pair and mutating the other one. Here we present the design and construction of three additional libraries covering HTA1-HTB1, HTA2-HTB2 and HHT1-HHF1 respectively. Together with the previously described library of HHT2-HHF2 mutants, a systematic and complete collection of mutants for each of the eight core S. cerevisiae histone genes becomes available. Each designed mutant was incorporated into the genome, generating three more corresponding libraries of yeast strains. We demonstrated that although under normal growth conditions, strains with single-copy integrated histone genes lacked phenotypes, in some growth conditions growth deficiencies were observed. Specifically, we showed that addition of a second copy of the mutant histone gene could rescue the lethality in some previously known mutants, that cannot survive with a single copy. This resource enables systematic studies of function of each nucleosome residue in plasmid, single-copy and double-copy integrated formats.

Nutrient availability and stresses impact a cell's decision to enter a growth state or a quiescent state. Acetyl-CoA stimulates cell growth under nutrient-limiting conditions, but how cells generate acetyl-CoA under starvation stress is less understood. Here, we show that general stress response factors, Msn2 and Msn4, function as master transcriptional regulators of yeast glycolysis via directly binding and activating genes encoding glycolytic enzymes. Yeast cells lacking Msn2 and Msn4 exhibit prevalent repression of glycolysis genes and a significant delay of acetyl-CoA accumulation and reentry into growth from quiescence. Thus Msn2/4 exhibit a dual role in activating carbohydrate metabolism genes and stress response genes. These results suggest a possible mechanism by which starvation-induced stress response factors may prime quiescent cells to reenter growth through glycolysis when nutrients are limited.