Unknown,Transcriptomics,Genomics,Proteomics

Dataset Information

The Cutoff protein regulates piRNA cluster expression and piRNA production in the Drosophila germline

ABSTRACT: In a broad range of organisms, Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) have emerged as core components of a surveillance system that protects the genome by silencing transposable and repetitive elements. A vast proportion of piRNAs is produced from discrete genomic loci, termed piRNA clusters. The molecular mechanisms and the factors that govern the expression of these loci are largely unknown. We have preciously shown the Cutoff (Cuff), a protein with similarity to yeast Rai1, is a component of the piRNA pathway. In order to understand the function of the Cuff protein in piRNA production, we produced small RNA libraries from cn, bw (wt) and cuffwm25 mutant ovaties. The analysis of these libraries revealed that approximately 80% of the total piRNA population is depleted in the absence of a functional Cuff protein. We also determined that Cuff is mostly a nuclear protein and is enriched at the level of certain piRNA clusters. Our results point to a role for Cuff in the transcriptional regulation of piRNA generating loci and in the production of the proper piRNA complement during Drosophila oogenesis. piRNA profiling in ovaries from cn, bw and cuffwm25 mutant ovaries

ORGANISM(S): Drosophila melanogaster

SUBMITTER: Trudi Schupbach

PROVIDER: E-GEOD-47738 | biostudies-arrayexpress |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-arrayexpress

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Publications

The Cutoff protein regulates piRNA cluster expression and piRNA production in the Drosophila germline.

Pane Attilio A Jiang Peng P Zhao Dorothy Yanling DY Singh Mona M Schüpbach Trudi T

The EMBO journal 20111101 22

In a broad range of organisms, Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) have emerged as core components of a surveillance system that protects the genome by silencing transposable and repetitive elements. A vast proportion of piRNAs is produced from discrete genomic loci, termed piRNA clusters, which are generally embedded in heterochromatic regions. The molecular mechanisms and the factors that govern their expression are largely unknown. Here, we show that Cutoff (Cuff), a Drosophila protein related to ...[more]

PMID: 21952049

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Project description:PIWI-clade Argonaute proteins silence transposon expression in animal gonads. Their target specificity is defined by bound ~23-30nt piRNAs that are processed from single-stranded precursor transcripts via two distinct pathways. Primary piRNAs are defined by the endo-nuclease Zucchini, while biogenesis of secondary piRNAs depends on piRNA-guided transcript cleavage and results in piRNA amplification. Here, we analyze the inter-dependencies between these piRNA biogenesis pathways in the developing Drosophila ovary. We show that secondary piRNA-guided target slicing is the predominant mechanism that specifies transcripts—including those from piRNA clusters—as primary piRNA precursors and that defines the spectrum of Piwi-bound piRNAs in germline cells. Post-transcriptional silencing in the cytoplasm therefore enforces nuclear, transcriptional target silencing, which ensures the tight suppression of transposons during oogenesis. As target slicing also defines the nuclear piRNA pool during mouse spermatogenesis, our findings uncover an unexpected conceptual similarity between the mouse and fly piRNA pathways. To understand the hierarchical order of primary versus secondary piRNA biogenesis in Drosophila ovaries, we sequenced piRNAs bound to total-Piwi, germline-Piwi, Aubergine and Argonaute3 from ovaries of germline specific knockdowns of control, piwi, aub, ago3 single knockdowns and aub/ago3 double knockdowns. To determine changes in Transposable Element (TE) transcription or TE RNA steady state in perturbed piRNA pathway conditions, we performed Pol2-ChIP-sequencing and polyA bound RNA-sequencing from ovaries of multiple germline knockdown genotypes. We also sequenced genomic DNA from ovaries of control knockdowns to experimentally estimate the TE copy number in our genetic background. Finally, we used CAP-seq from germline specific Piwi depletions to identify the Transcriptional Start Sites (TSS) in TEs in a deregulated background. Replicates are labeled with R1, R2, R3, R4 where indicated.

Dataset Information

The Cutoff protein regulates piRNA cluster expression and piRNA production in the Drosophila germline

Publications

The Cutoff protein regulates piRNA cluster expression and piRNA production in the Drosophila germline.

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